Annoying phone calls

[peterjohno]

Since i got a telewest phone number last year i have been hammered with phone calls asking for what must be the owner of the number before me . Telewest said at the time that they had no new numbers and had to reassign old ones to new customers, and if they became a problem , then ask for a new number. They couldnt guarantee that the problem would stop.
It is a year on , and im still getting them . Mainly foreign callers asking for the same guy . I have subscribed to the tps service but this doesnt seem to be working . I get at least 4 calls a week sometimes in the afternoon , and sometimes around 8 at night .
Is there anyone else whos had this problem , and is there a way around it , without cancelling my phone service ???

[JG3870]

Originally Posted by peterjohno

Since i got a telewest phone number last year i have been hammered with phone calls asking for what must be the owner of the number before me . Telewest said at the time that they had no new numbers and had to reassign old ones to new customers, and if they became a problem , then ask for a new number. They couldnt guarantee that the problem would stop.
It is a year on , and im still getting them . Mainly foreign callers asking for the same guy . I have subscribed to the tps service but this doesnt seem to be working . I get at least 4 calls a week sometimes in the afternoon , and sometimes around 8 at night .
Is there anyone else whos had this problem , and is there a way around it , without cancelling my phone service ???

I had the same problem as you i was given a number that used to belong to someone else and after 2 years i was still getting calls for them, all you can do is tell the people who phone to remove your number from their database.
I got fed up of it to be honest and got rid of the phone and the problem has miraculously disappeared lol

[m_stephens]

Surprised that you couldn't keep your old number.

I had the same problem years ago when I was given the number which used to belong to a bank and used to get 50+ calls a day on my answering machine (including one from their computer centre asking if they could check why the cash dispenser had just gone offline !) When I told the bank, they said it was BT's problem. Fortunately I didn't bank with them and the problem stopped when I moved house.

[peterjohno]

So the only way you guys got rid of it was for 1. to get rid of the phone , and 2. Move house .
I rang bt who said they will give me a new number and ex directory it and reconnect me for free.
I then rang telewest and told them , i spoke to a decent guy called Darren who started offering me all kinds of stuff. I genuinely didnt want the phone , but he convinced me to stay with an offer of 11mths half price broadband. A number which hasnt been used for 6 mths ( incidently bt do this unused number for 6 mths) free anonymous call barring, and free international call barring, And free basic tv package. I have accepted this offer , but said that if the calls persist , then i WILL cancel the service.
I couldlnt fault the guy who also gave me his work email should i get any problems. So fair play to telewest who done as much as they could to keep my custom.

[JG3870]

I could have asked Telewest for a change of number but as i hardly used the phone i cancelled it and decided to take up the TV service instead.
I used to live in an NTL area and i had the same problem with a number i was given which used to belong to a pub so i would get calls from breweries, i complained to NTL and they changed the number for me free of charge so i would think Telewest would do the same.
You got a good result there Peterjohno

[Shaun]

Originally Posted by peterjohno

So the only way you guys got rid of it was for 1. to get rid of the phone , and 2. Move house .
I rang bt who said they will give me a new number and ex directory it and reconnect me for free.
I then rang telewest and told them , i spoke to a decent guy called Darren who started offering me all kinds of stuff. I genuinely didnt want the phone , but he convinced me to stay with an offer of 11mths half price broadband. A number which hasnt been used for 6 mths ( incidently bt do this unused number for 6 mths) free anonymous call barring, and free international call barring, And free basic tv package. I have accepted this offer , but said that if the calls persist , then i WILL cancel the service.
I couldlnt fault the guy who also gave me his work email should i get any problems. So fair play to telewest who done as much as they could to keep my custom.

Just keep an eye on your bills as they're know for letting the discount slip off.

[peterjohno]

Originally Posted by Shaun

Just keep an eye on your bills as they're know for letting the discount slip off.

Will do , cheers guys.