Being Phone Stalked

[blas]

By this local college.

Note: I will say before I even post this, this is my fault, I DID give them my number. Foolishly, I didn't think and just filled out contact information. All I originally wanted was a pamphlet or brochure. I didn't preferably want to be contacted via phone because I knew they'd call when I was trying to sleep during the week.

Like I said originally, it's my fault I gave them my number. But they were calling me so frequently for a while, it was reminiscent of the days of dealing with Dell.

It started the week before my layoff, so that was the end of April. The first day, they called my phone 6 times between 1 pm and 6 pm, despite leaving a voicemail the first time.

The day after, a Friday, they started calling as early as 9 am and called at least 5 or 6 more times that day.

Nothing that weekend, thankfully.

That following Monday, 5 or 6 more times, almost once per hour between regular school hours.

Same for that entire week.

The week I went back to work, they were only calling about 3 times per day. The thing is, they would ALWAYS leave a voicemail the first time they called, but would continue to keep calling.

Yes, I KNOW, it's my fault I didn't answer. Honestly, they were creeping me out so much, I was hoping they'd just get the hint and quit. There are 60,000 people that live here, you can do by without me going this school.

The past two weeks, it's down to only 1 or 2 calls per day. And school will be out soon, but the problem is, this is an accellerated type of all year school, so that probably won't be the case. I am hoping they just will quit calling.

All I wanted was information. NOT to be called several times a day for several weeks on end. I didn't even apply or send any money.......sigh. I am definetly not going to this school.

[Teskeria]

After the first week, I would have called and told them to cease and desist. That you would be reporting them for harassment if they continued, and btw, the harassement they have already given you has caused you to decide against their school.

[Andara Bledin]

After a dozen calls in two days, I would have called them back and told them to remove my number from their list and never call me again for being creepy and obsessive. That's just way too desperate.

^-.-^

[blas]

Yeah, I kind of take the easy way out, I guess. But ignoring sometimes just prompts people to call more.

I'd say desperate doesn't even begin. I didn't even apply or anything, and they are blowing up my phone to set up a meeting with me.

I'll go to the tech school before I'd go to this school, just on the fact alone that they are obsessively desperate.

[Mystic]

You really need to answer next time and tell them to fuck off.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

You call them. Tell them what is going on, tell them they are not to call you or in any way contact you for any reason ever again. Tell them that they are to send you a copy of their do not call policy and a letter from their office on their letterhead saying that they will never contact you again for any reason.

They will tell you that it may take x amount of time for them to remove you from their database. Inform them that that is their problem, not yours, and if they call you again after you hang up you will take them to small claims court and sue them for one violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, which starts at five hundred bucks, plus the potential to triple that due to the harassing nature of their calls.

Ask them when should you expect to get the paperwork you are requesting from them. Don't give them longer than a week.

Don't get mad, don't get nasty. Be polite.

Unfortunately, this should actually end the calls immediately. I say "unfortunately" because local stuff like this is a gold mine to people like me. People calling you locally can be taken to small claims court and sued for a nice little chunk of change.

If they call you again, take them to small claims court. Who doesn't like free money?

[bhskittykatt]

We have something like this happening with the local blood bank. I think it's an issue with their auto reminders, though, 'cause they'll call and immediately hang up so fast the phone doesn't have a chance to ring; all we get is a missed call notice. Once we set up an appointment, the calls stop until it's time to pay our blood tithes again. But in that case, I think it is actually a technical error with the phone system.

In your case, that's just plain harassment. Seriously, how is that any way to attract potential paying students? It comes off as desperate and creepy. I'd pick up the phone long enough to tell them not interested and stop calling.

[greensinestro]

Had this happen after I requested information for auto insurance company quotes. One inquiry on the Internet, and nearly fifty calls before I had to get rude with them. I tried to ignore them, but they wouldn't stop until I called them back.

I feel your pain.

[PepperElf]

We have something like this happening with the local blood bank.

yeah i use to get that a lot. except they were calling me to get me to donate in buffalo ny, when i'd moved back east ...

the last time they called me however i'd already moved out of state. that pretty much stopped them. well and the fact that i stopped using my tracfone and switched to a new one with a new number (yes i could have kept the old one but it was a POS with water damage anyway)

[blas]

I went through something similar to this years ago, before I got my factory job with benefits, I wanted info from Blue Cross or whatever, and I was called and called and called and called, I mean this was worse than a persistent crush or something. I can't believe some places practice business like that.

[Sapphire Silk]

blas, sounds to me like you inquired of a for profit school. There have been investigations by Congress over their recruitment practices: recruiters are being paid on commission to sign up students regardless of whether the school is a good fit, or the student prepared for the level of work involved.

Some traditional schools have been aggressive too, but not to the point of phone stalking.

[XCashier]

We've been having a problem like that.

Our office has loads of phone numbers, some of which don't go through and automatically go to the main voicemail box, which happens to be at my phone (and there's no way to tell which number it rang through on). No ring, no noise, all of a sudden my message light is blinking. I listen to the message, it says I received a call from XXX-XXX-XXXX totalling two (sometimes six) seconds. Then the message plays two (or six) seconds of silence.

This has happened every day. When we try to call them, they "don't know" which of our numbers they called and want us to tell them every one. Yeah, something's rotten in Denmark here. I'm pretty sure my superior reported them, but we're still getting their calls.

I mean, why? What is the point? It can't be good business to constantly harrass people with phone calls. Yet they do.

[telecom_goddess]

I made the mistake once of wanting information from an online school....I finally had to tell them look I'm not interested anymore sheesh...I don't want to ENROLL right now I was just curious about cost and whatnot.

[blas]

That's all I wanted, as well. I just wanted to comparison shop tuition prices and classes and schedules.

Beyond the phone stalking, there's no way I'm going to this school. Word of mouth is that despite no waiting lists and only one year terms, their tuition isn't reasonable (hence, no waiting lists) and you don't get the financial aid you'd get for the tech college, which I would assume is also a result of being able to go to school right away.

[wagegoth]

This is why I keep a landline at home with voicemail on it. I turn off the ringer and check voicemail now and then. It's the perfect number to give a salesperson or someone you don't really want to have calling you.