Fake phone calls

[Twinmum]

Morning,

Does anyone know a phone company that can block cold calls ?
My Dad has Alzheimers and is getting a lot of calls lately, which i keep telling him to ignore.

His latest worry is costs, I have Power of Attorney and have been dealing with his finances for the last two years but all of a sudden he phones me several times a day saying people are coming round to cut his phone or his TV off. We are with Virgin and I phoned them last week to see if they had phoned, but they had not and will only call my number now. The man said they know about these calls but he did not advise how to block them.

Thanks for any advice,

 

[DollyBird16]

Hi
I have a BT handset (got mine from Argos but seen it online too) that blocks calls.
I also signed up to a service from bt that once numbers are programmed into the handset, I can see who is calling.
Any cold calls don’t come through, any numbers that are not in my programmed numbers I get the choice of accepting the call.
I’m sure the service is not unique to bt.

 

[pipd]

Register his number with the TPS (telephone preference service) then all cold calls should stop within a few weeks. You can do it online quite easily tpsonline.org.uk

 

[rhubarbtree]

Afraid tps dos not work for all calls. I understand they can divert from abroad to a UK number therefore out of jurisdiction. I have been particularly pestered this last couple of weeks. Some from a Sheffield number, some from Southend and an awful one yesterday. A recorded message saying they were from H.M.Customs and a writ had been taken out against me, call this number. I didn't but it would certainly frighten many people, they probably make their money on the cost of the return call. That one ended "Have a Blessed Day". Many people have reported these on our local facebook page so we are obviously being targetted.

I am in the middle of house sale so have calls from many different numbers so cannot block. Hope you can find something that will only allow family and friends to call your Dad.

 

[Twinmum]

Thanks for your advice. We have been registered with TPS for several years now.

 

[Duggies-girl]

My dad had a call a couple of days ago, he answered the phone and then looked at me with a worried look and said 'I haven't paid my bill and they are going to cut me off'

I took the phone from him and said 'who is this' and they put the phone down. I probably sounded less gullible than dad so they did not want to talk to me.

I googled the number and it is unknown but I find this very worrying because my dad was convinced that he would be cut off.

It is so hard to explain to my dad that these people are up to no good because he does not understand that there are bad people around.

 

[Twinmum]

It is worrying isn't it, I keep saying to my Dad if its not me or my husband, just put the phone down.

Sounds exactly like the call my Dad received during the week, as he was convinced someone was coming to take his phone and tv away.

 

[Amelie5a]

I couldn't believe how many 'rubbish calls' were being made to my Dad's phone - several a day. Even using handsets which should block certain calls, weren't very successful.

But his phone service is with BT and they started to provide a service called BT Call Protect last year. It's very effective - the odd rogue call gets through every few weeks or so - but I can tell from the online logging system that many more calls are getting blocked. And if a stray one sneaks through, I just blacklist it.

 

[Mipsydoo]

is there anyone that could offer me advice . My mum recently diagnosed and as yet struggling with diagnosis. It has come to our attention mum has called 118 on numerous occasion with outragous charges. Is there anyway to block outgoing calls , shes with virgin and also has a mobile phone ...advice or suggestion would be most welcomed

 

[Duggies-girl]

It is worrying isn't it, I keep saying to my Dad if its not me or my husband, just put the phone down.

Sounds exactly like the call my Dad received during the week, as he was convinced someone was coming to take his phone and tv away.

I don't know the answer, I can explain it time and time again to my dad that if the phone does not display a name then don't answer it but it won't go in. He has had long conversations with the 'have you had an accident' people even though I tell him to just put the phone down.

He is too polite to do this and just accepts that if someone says something then it must be true because 'why would they lie'

I have contemplated taking his bank card from him for safe keeping but I just can't bring myself to do it.

 

[Lawson58]

We have a similar system in Australia but of course they cannot prevent the scam calls from overseas coming through. We have a lot of relatives overseas so cannot ignore calls that come up as being from a private number. Our system also allows charities and previously called numbers to call so I am aware that there are a couple of homegrown scammers pretending to be charities abusing the system and I don't know how you beat that one.

One call that was very frightening for a lot of people was a robo call that told us we were being investigated by the Australian Tax Office and gave a number to call.

I came home one day to find my husband about to give bank details to a voice at the other end claiming to be an environmental group. I am a member of three different environmental groups and had never heard of them so I hung up on him.

 

[Twinmum]

I don't know the answer, I can explain it time and time again to my dad that if the phone does not display a name then don't answer it but it won't go in. He has had long conversations with the 'have you had an accident' people even though I tell him to just put the phone down.

He is too polite to do this and just accepts that if someone says something then it must be true because 'why would they lie'

I have contemplated taking his bank card from him for safe keeping but I just can't bring myself to do it.

Morning

My dads the same, too polite and of an older generation that wont ignore a phone call.

Have you got Power of Attorney for your Dad ? I have and as I do all his shopping and Bills etc I keep his bank card now. At first I left him £5 in his wallet so he thought he had money, but now he never even mentions it.

 

[canary]

I don't know the answer, I can explain it time and time again to my dad that if the phone does not display a name then don't answer it but it won't go in.

Do you have a "do not disturb" facility on your phone? If you only want named people to get through and you have a do not disturb option, then thats the way to go.

 

[jugglingmum]

I have contemplated taking his bank card from him for safe keeping but I just can't bring myself to do it.

I suggestion regularly mentioned on TP is to scrape off the last 3 digits on the back of the bank card so it can't be used over the phone or on the internet.

 

[Mal2]

I have a BT phone that screens the caller. It asks the callers name, if I do not know the caller or feel it is a 'junk' call I ignore it and it goes to unwanted call box, which if they call again it is not accepted. I have had the phone for 3 years and do not get these calls anymore, Obviously the screening puts them off. Especially the Indian man who used to ring me every week, telling my I have a virus on my computer.

 

[Duggies-girl]

I suggestion regularly mentioned on TP is to scrape off the last 3 digits on the back of the bank card so it can't be used over the phone or on the internet.

Good idea @jugglingmum I might just have a go at that. Thank you.

 

[Duggies-girl]

Morning

My dads the same, too polite and of an older generation that wont ignore a phone call.

Have you got Power of Attorney for your Dad ? I have and as I do all his shopping and Bills etc I keep his bank card now. At first I left him £5 in his wallet so he thought he had money, but now he never even mentions it.

Thank you @Twinmum POA applied for and received the letter today confirming it will be granted in 4 weeks as long as there are no objections. I take dad to do his shopping and he pays cash for everything. He could not use his card to pay for things and can't cope with a cash machine so I take him and do it for him. All his bills are paid online so that is one thing not to worry about.

 

[Duggies-girl]

Do you have a "do not disturb" facility on your phone? If you only want named people to get through and you have a do not disturb option, then thats the way to go.

Thank you @canary I don't know I will have to look into that. Everyone who needs to be is in his phone book but a friend from abroad comes up as something different.