[Cedwards38]

Originally Posted by GeoGeo

We keep getting phone calls looking for a certain person that we don't know. I assume it is a collection agency trying to track someone down. I have told them every day that we do not know this person and please do not calls us again. 99.9% of the time the guy just hangs up on us. The next day we get the same phone call. I tried calling the phone number on the caller ID, but you could not get anyone and could not leave a message because the box was full. We do not know this person they are looking for. How do we put a stop to these annoying calls?

See it on Caller ID and ignore it............forever. Don't answer. Don't respond.

[DonH57]

Originally Posted by Carl in Tampa

Tell the caller that the person they are looking for is fleeing from the police, who have a warrant for his arrest for murder because he killed a bill collector.

LOL. That's the best one I've heard today!

[rn1tv]

I agree with ZCaveman, if you have Comcast you can block numbers or if you have a wireless landline, you may also have the capability to block calls. I can block 30 on mine. Check you manual for instructions. Also, are you registered on the "do not call" registry? I went on the complaint site for another issue today and I believe you address problems like this at this site. Check it out.

[mfp509]

Many years ago I had a bill collector harassing me and I wasn't the person they were looking for. I had the agencies phone number and reported them to the local police - it stopped real quick!

[Shimpy]

Enjoy the call. Answer their questions with a lot of false info and feel good that you caused them to waste their time tracking false leads. You'll get the rep. of an unreliable source and they will drop you.

[NottaVillager]

Several years ago when we were living in another place we got dealt a phone number that apparently used to belong to someone who had bought one of everything from every advertiser in the Yellow Pages and then never paid for any of it.

Debt collectors are NOT going to stop calling you just because you say that the person they are interested in isn't there anymore. People lie to them all the time. They have zero reason to believe you.

Due to the huge expanse in the use of phone numbers phone companies are recycling former numbers in 6 months or less, so your chance of getting a number that used to belong to a deadbeat, drug dealer or hooker is pretty good.

Getting the hot calls to stop is a fool's errand in today's world. If you've got a deadbeat problem like you have, the only real way to cure it is to ask your phone provider for a new number. They will gladly do it for you if you explain your situation.

[dillywho]

We kept getting calls for someone we did know, but only had sporadic contact. One day, I said that I did know the person but had no idea where they were or when we would hear anything from them. I was then asked if I could give them a message, to which I replied:

"No, I cannot. I am not their personal secretary and I do not take and convey messages. Finding them is your problem, not mine."
Never heard another word.

Also had one concerning the estate of a lady from back home that had recently passed. Just so happened she had married my ex-husband. When I told the person that I had known her, he asked how I had known her. I told him that she had worked for the same company that I did and had married my ex some 10 years prior. After he recovered from the shock, he apologized and hung up. Never heard from him again, either.

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by rn1tv

I agree with ZCaveman, if you have Comcast you can block numbers or if you have a wireless landline, you may also have the capability to block calls. I can block 30 on mine. Check you manual for instructions. Also, are you registered on the "do not call" registry? I went on the complaint site for another issue today and I believe you address problems like this at this site. Check it out.

My AT&T cell can also block calls.

[GeoGeo]

Sort of going off what was posted re: warrant for his arrest for murder because he killed a bill collector. A friend of ours works as a guard at prison. I may give the caller the phone number to a prison. Tell them he is in prison and here is his phone number. I wonder if that would stop the calls? Or would they call every day to see if he is out of prison, yet?

I thought about ignoring the phone calls, but like I said before they are from NY and my husband's family is from NY. You grab the phone quickly when you see it is a call from NY thinking maybe something happened to a family member.

I have CenturyLink for those who were wondering.

[wholman66]

This is why we don't have a home phone, land line.. only cell phone..

[Ecuadog]

Originally Posted by wholman66

This is why we don't have a home phone, land line.. only cell phone..

We went through Hurricane Sandy in Long Island, NY, and for days, the only contact we had with the outside world was via the copper landline. Cell phones and VOIP were no good.

This is why we have a copper landline.

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by GeoGeo

Sort of going off what was posted re: warrant for his arrest for murder because he killed a bill collector. A friend of ours works as a guard at prison. I may give the caller the phone number to a prison. Tell them he is in prison and here is his phone number. I wonder if that would stop the calls? Or would they call every day to see if he is out of prison, yet?

I thought about ignoring the phone calls, but like I said before they are from NY and my husband's family is from NY. You grab the phone quickly when you see it is a call from NY thinking maybe something happened to a family member.

I have CenturyLink for those who were wondering.

I think your idea of taping the phone number onto each phone would work. That way you could ignore the call and know it's not someone from your family calling.

[JC and John]

We have Century Link and received a phone # that belonged to a Villager. It's been over 2 years now and still get calls for this couple although much less now. I have found out who they use for car repair, appliances, spa services, wealth management etc. That said, I too was getting phone calls for someone I didn't know regarding probation, debt collection etc. I suspect the Villagers gave up their phone number for a new one because of these types of calls. Anyway, I went online with Century Link and found out how to put a block on one particular phone number. No more calls! My Iphone 5 with ATT has a block call feature. I blocked another number that was calling me on my cell. Done no more calls. I also have registered both phones on the do not call registery. Not sure the do not call list really works. It certainly doesn't work for callers from out of the country. BTW, I have reported a phone number from south FL to the do not call registery, twice, with no results. The calls stopped only after the Medicare sign up season ended. We continue to let the answering machine pick up and monitor the calls that way.

[Auntmimi]

I know that if you have Verizon, you can go online on their site and block certain numbers. I imagine you can call your provider and ask them to block the number. It has worked for us

[blueash]

Another option depending on your phone is you may be able to assign a ring to an incoming call from a specific number. My phone seemingly has an option of a silent ring. This way I don't even know they called until I check the missed calls.