Catherine J Frompovich – Don’t you just ‘love’ those annoying phone calls during the dinner hour when you have your hands immersed in food preparation? Or, even those telemarketers who have the chutzpah to leave a recorded message for you on your voice mail?

Well, there is a way that readers can stop such annoying phone calls, even though it may take up to a month. However, it definitely is worth the effort. Here’s how to go about stopping unwanted sales phone calls.

The Federal Trade Commission Consumer Information website offers a couple of ways to stop landline and mobile (cell) phone numbers from being accessed by what many folks consider nuisance calls.

Here’s how, according to the Do Not Call Registry 

Online: register at www.donotcall.gov

If you register online, you will receive a confirmation email from donotcall.gov. You must click on the link in the email within 72 hours after you get it for your registration to be effective, according to FTC’s website instructions.

Via telephone: 1-888-382-1222

Hearing-impaired phone line (TTY): 1-866-290-4236

Note, “Most telemarketing calls will stop once your number has been on the Registry for 31 days. You can verify that your number is on the Registry by checking the website or calling the toll-free number. Your number will stay on the Registry unless you decide to remove it, or you give up the number.”

Marketing agencies should use services such as Possible Now to avoid issues with Do Not Call Compliance. If you keep receiving telemarketing calls after 31 days, you may want to file a complaint at the national Do Not Call registry. Furthermore, if by chance you happen to answer an unwanted call, do what I do: politely tell them “I request you take my number off your call list.” They have to honor that request. Besides, they can be fined for return calls to you, if you report them.

Report phone scams to the Federal Trade Commission Phone Scams and check out possible charity scams.

Telemarketers, who make sales pitches via text messages for which the receiving phone number is charged thereby running up monthly charges for unsuspecting consumers, are business opportunities. See this for how it’s done.

However, effective October 16, 2013 telemarketing laws changed, according to Sergei Lemberg of Lemberg and Associates: “It used to be that by virtue of giving [the telemarketers] your number, that was enough to get robo-dialed. Now telemarketers need specific consent.” [1]

Perhaps, it would be helpful to read “Telemarketing laws change tomorrow: Here’s what you need to know.”

Have you checked your monthly phone bills recently?