N/A How do skip tracers get away with demon dialing?

mikea

mikea

Touchdown! Greaser!
Gone West
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iWin
Barry! Spike!

I've had my new phone number for less than 3 weeks and I've gotten a whole mess o' marketing calls, but I digress. I did add it to the no-call list. I'll file with the DMA opt-out next.

I got a few mangled recorded calls last week that were blocked by the Privacy manager service. This morning I guess it was decided I don't have the right to sleep late on a Saturday. I was woken by a auto-dialer "We have an important business matter to discuss..." Once I was conscious enough I managed to get the message to repeat and heard that they were looking for the deadbeat that used to live in the house. I guess that's what happens when you buy a foreclosure.

I ran into this slightly when my insurance guy ran through a list of the various people who had lived at this address and asked I was any of them, even though he knew better. The phone company asked a bunch of similar questions.

The mail guy said he knew what was going on when he had bunches of certified letters to deliver. He said the people who were left living at the house - and there was a long cast of characters - just decided to stop paying bills.

My question is, where do the skip tracers get off being able to auto-harass random people? Am I supposed to call now enter the "code" and explain for 10 minutes that I ain't the guy and they better stop calling? If I don't, how long will they ring my phone? I WORK using my phone. I cannot be interrupted by this crap much less have them decide to wake me up.

My only thought for an alternative is see if I can add the number to my call blocking service. Fight computer with computer. Being that they got blocked by my Privacy Manager the first time I gotta figure they have lots of numbers and methods to use.

My other thought was to tell them to call 8???-???-???? and ask for Lisa for more info, using the number for the Illinois State's Attorney.

Any advice?
 
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why not just unplug the phone except when you explicitly need it? you have a cell phone where your friends know to call you... let the phone ring, if it is unplugged it isn't making noise.
 
woodstock said:
why not just unplug the phone except when you explicitly need it? you have a cell phone where your friends know to call you... let the phone ring, if it is unplugged it isn't making noise.
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Sure. I should deny my mother chance to call me because some pimply-faced kid blithely entered my phone number on a data entry page. I'll also have to block call waiting - I knew it was mistake to let them add it - when I'm spending the many hours a day on work phone conference.
 
PIA I know, but next time a skip tracer calls ask for his mailing address and send a registered letter stating you are not the one they are looking for and harrassment has to stop or legal action will follow. That will almost always get them to stop. If it doesn't, hire a lawyer and make some money, cause you will be owed.

The guys looking to collect on bad debts are only one step above the ones who decided to skip town without paying their bills.
 
NC Pilot said:
PIA I know, but next time a skip tracer calls ask for his mailing address and send a registered letter stating you are not the one they are looking for and harrassment has to stop or legal action will follow. That will almost always get them to stop. If it doesn't, hire a lawyer and make some money, cause you will be owed.

The guys looking to collect on bad debts are only one step above the ones who decided to skip town without paying their bills.
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It ain't a human calling. It's a machine. The recording says who they're looking for but I gotta call and tell them to stop calling?

When I was getting calls for the ex's daughter, I eventually got a human - *I* had to call, of course - and told him to stop or else. They did stop, but there were two rounds of the idiots discovering me as a lead.
 
My aunt had a problem with a renter she that had skipped out. She started getting those phone calls from other creditors he stiffed. She got one of those machines that sends out a tone when you pick up the phone that makes the machine on the other end think the number is out of order. The automated systems would flag that as number no longer good and quit calling it. It was a little irritating for those of who called her for a while, but in a couple of weeks, the collection calls stopped.
 
Like Lisa said, those thingies actually do work.

Can you sue 'em? Yeah. Wouldja win? Who knows. What wouldja get? Not much.
 
Unfortunately, you are going to have to make some calls.

Deadbeats often change phone numbers so they search by address - I'm not sure if you get an unlisted number but I think that will shield you. The machine will keep dialing until a human tells them not to.

As far as mail, return them as "no longer at this address".
 
I've had my cell number since April 2002. For most of two years, I was getting calls asking for "Brandon." Only a couple were business calls. The rest were from a couple males with the remaining being the sweetest sounding voices imaginable. I had to wonder what this guy had going for him! Did he kick the bucket? Did he suddenly get married and he practically changed identity to cut off all communications with said female variety? And, I do mean variety! There were no less than some two-hundred calls for good Ole Brandon. I joked with a few, telling them of the number of calls from those sounding as sweet and wishing I had whatever it was this guy had. One asked me what I did for a living. I guess "courier" wasn't quite up to par for her. I should have said I was a retired lawyer from the Republican National Committee. Nawww...

I've had my home phone number since March of 2003. Even today, I still get collection calls for "Veronica Ruiz." I advised them to remove my number and they say they will. The number has since been switched from BellGoneSouth to Vonage. The calls continue. Somehow, they managed to tie my cell number to the home number. So now there are calls to my cell number for Ms. Ruiz. When I get the call and can get past the computer BS, I calmly and politely tell them to remove my number from their database. I add, "Should I receive just one more phone call from your office, I shall file a criminal complaint for harassment followed by a civil suit."

I once had a collection agency inform me my number was associated with six different collection accounts. None of them being my name, of course!

Of course, there's the issue of spam for mortgage refinancing. I delete a few a week. A couple times, I entered false data with exception of using my middle name for my first. When the mortgage rep calls, I politely inform them they obtained my information through the use of spam. In one case, I had a decent manager provide the contact information for a lead marketing company. That person insured me they would remove my name from their list. Oddly, no one could believe their call to me could possibly originate from a link redirected to a Geocities web page. Before ending each call, I informed them of the Can Spam Act under Title 15.

I've never been able to conclude if Brandon had married Veronica but anything is possible! :)
 
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Mike,

Did you have an attorney handle the closing on the house?

If so, I'd start there.

You'll also want to do a little research on the laws of your state - and the Feds - governing bill collection. Follow 'em to the letter, and keep detailed notes of dates and times. This will allow you to go after them as well as give the district attorney information to go on.

Being on the Do Not Call list will also help. If there's a State list as well as a Fed list, then do that, too. Then report 'em each and every time. YOU have no business relationship with them.
 
wsuffa said:
Mike,

Did you have an attorney handle the closing on the house?

If so, I'd start there.

You'll also want to do a little research on the laws of your state - and the Feds - governing bill collection. Follow 'em to the letter, and keep detailed notes of dates and times. This will allow you to go after them as well as give the district attorney information to go on.

Being on the Do Not Call list will also help. If there's a State list as well as a Fed list, then do that, too. Then report 'em each and every time. YOU have no business relationship with them.
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Thanks, Bill. I thought of that.

I actually hired two attorneys - one who specializes in foreclosures recommended by my buddy and my broker who was at the close, and an old friend of mine who gave me some advice and found a lot of data on the property.

I was already gonna call the 1st one. I also got mail from ComEd addressed to "Bank Foreclosure" I need to deal with.

It still frosts me that they can just throw phone numbers in for random calling to see what bears fruit without any consequences. Marketers and even collection agencies can't do that legally. I think the auto-dialers themselves are illegal in Illinois. I wonder if that industry bothered to buy exemptions from the laws, or if they just think they're above the law. I also wonder how my phone number got out so f*in' fast.
 
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mikea said:
I also wonder how my phone number got out so f*in' fast.
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I'm sure there are means skip tracers come up with that are probably not ethical. But, they don't usually care since they get paid for results. Not my home number nor my cell number will come up during any search on any online guide. But, they still managed to link them.
 
I called a second time and told them to stop calling. The worse part is the a-holes act like I HAVE done something, I said, "Do you know you've woken me up?"

"I'M NOT GOING TO ARGUE WITH YOU!!!!"

I didn't argue until after that. They continued to call for another month after that second time I took the time to tell them to stop.

Being that I logged and timestamped every call and got the name of the 2nd guy and that they are in Columbus, OH.

Somewhere online I stumbled on the web that you can complain to the FCC. http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/complaints_tcpa.html I supplied the name and phoen number of the company and part of my call log.

Until.. no calls at all this last week.

What's weird is I was getting two types of calls where I thought at least two scumbag firms were calling. I haven't gotten calls from either.

What's weirder is I'm suddenly getting one ring no caller ID hangup calls.

Based on what this nutball is able to do, I'm still thinking of suing and getting my $10,000. Maybe I'll buy his book. http://www.twincities.com/ci_5804935

It REALLY made me mad. :mad:
 
Wow I never heard of an auto skip tracer. Thats odd! Wonder how they collect any $$ that way. Who the hell listens to a machine. Guess it can't hurt to try to tone thingy
 
My phone is for my convenience. Not anyone elses. It stays ringer off all the time. If I see someone called, I might call them back.
 
AdamZ said:
Wow I never heard of an auto skip tracer. Thats odd! Wonder how they collect any $$ that way. Who the hell listens to a machine. Guess it can't hurt to try to tone thingy
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They use a predictive dialer. It gives a message, "We have an important message. Please call 866-123-4567."

Now, when the victim(me) has Privacy Manager, he once in a long while manages to get "567" as the caller from Privacy Manager. I have no idea how I managed to get the whole phone the one time.

I Googled the professional lawsuit guy in the article and came across many telemarketer and collecton agency sites that warmed of him:
http://www.acainternational.org/media.aspx?cid=6855
Note the ads for predictive dialers.

The federal court in Minnesota issued an injunction baring him from making any more claims.

BTW, I bought a Telezapper. I bought it from an Amazon affiliate seller and the battery was dead, so my bargain wasn't quite what it looked like but with anew battery it works. Thanks to the above Privacy Manager it wouldn't work for the scumbags. I did hear a mechanical "Goodbye" once from a telecall. I'm on the Do Not Call list, too, so I could get those guys.

My phone is so quiet now I'm almost getting lonely. :D
 
EdFred said:
My phone is for my convenience. Not anyone elses. It stays ringer off all the time. If I see someone called, I might call them back.
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What if you work from home on 20-30 projects simultaneously and co-workers may have to talk to you?

Just like attempting to sleep late on a Saturday, I guess I shouldn't be doing that.
 
mikea said:
What if you work from home on 20-30 projects simultaneously and co-workers may have to talk to you?

Just like attempting to sleep late on a Saturday, I guess I shouldn't be doing that.
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Cell phone
 
mikea said:
I talk have 2 to 4 or more hour long calls on some days. My wireless POTS phone sometimes runs out of charge. My cell phone would never hold up.
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no A/C adapter?
 
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