The phone rang while I was getting dressed. It was a robo call telling me I could get the interest rate lowered on my credit card. It came to my “Do Not Call” listed phone. I got two on my cellphone Friday. There’s a “Do Not Call” rule for cellphones too.
Does the FTC know about these? Of course. Last February they posted a page on their website with advice to consumers.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, says consumers who get these interest rate reduction robocalls should listen to them with extreme skepticism, and delete them. Many are scams.
Really? Wow, thanks for that expert insight.
Hey, FTC. This stuff against the law! Aren’t you supposed to recommend prosecution and shut them down? Can’t we make crime not pay?
If we wanted consumer protection based on caveat emptor we could save a boatload of money by dissolving the FTC. Most of us would rather have you step in and… you know… do your job!
These companies charge money. The collect fees through credit card payments. Can’t they be found and stopped?
I’ve been getting these calls for sometime. I receive as many as 5 a week on my home and cell phone. Usually it is “Rachael, from card holder services”. There seems to be no way to stop it. Out of frustration I now enter a complaint after each call with the National Do Not Call Registry. I know, a lot of good it does, but it makes me feel better.
I get those “Rachel” calls too. Always from a different number. Been going on for years. You would think a scam like this could somehow been stopped.
Unfortunately, the phone numbers used are all spoofed (faked), so even if you report the call, the complaint can’t go anywhere.
I never answer my phone. All my calls go to voicemail. I only pick up if the caller identifies himself/herself and I want to talk to them. I don’t have caller ID, but I don’t need it because I can hear if the caller starts to leave a message. I also get a lot of calls when somebody calls and then hangs up as soon as they hear my outgoing message. My phone is on the Do Not Call list.
I’ve been getting Rachel calls for 5 years, several times a day sometimes. I haven’t had a call in 6 days, longest span ever. Maybe they stopped them.
It appears they got the robo system providers who also provide the fake numbers as well, allowing them to make calls at pennies per call.
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2012/02/voiceblaze.shtm