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Constant Phone Calls

JSRP
Tuning in

For the past week I have been receiving constant phone calls from Virgin Media.

These calls seem to be from a few different numbers and a quick google search reveals posts confirming these numbers as legit VM Sales team numbers. I have no idea if these are scam calls that have managed to spoof the VM or legit calls.

I made the mistake of answering one of the calls and was greeted with a terrible connection, unintelligible English, and some mutterings about upgrading my account. After telling the "sales rep" I was not interested several times (which was ignored) I hung up. The calls have continued since.

If these are legit calls then this is unacceptable. Can someone from VM please look at their sales call history to see if I have been contacted and if so, please refrain from doing so again.

I have my account set to not receive marketing calls.

 

Calls from past few days:

tempFileForShare_20220721-114903.jpg

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions

goslow
Alessandro Volta

@JSRP wrote:

For the past week I have been receiving constant phone calls from Virgin Media.

<snip>


General advice for this would be:

  • Opt out of marketing calls from VM (which you have done)
  • Sign up with TPS (if not done already)
  • Log a complaint to VM via their complaints process (which will be ignored)
  • Once VM complaint is ignored, log a complaint with ICO (who deal with sales call from a real person - a live call)

https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/nuisance-calls-and-messages/spam-texts-and-nuisance-calls/

I have used ICO in the past with a company that did not live up to data protection requirements and ICO were helpful (although they deal with individual complaints at the pace of a snail)

I get the impression that VM have sub-contracted all of their operations (inc. sales calls) to such a degree that there is no proper synchronisation of data between VM and its sub-contractors as to which customers are opted in/out of marketing. Couple that with pushy sales techniques, sales targets to be met and commission-based workers and you get the current mess.

With all of the above said, they could also be scam calls but VM doesn't even know reliably who is doing the calling and from which numbers (as exemplified by a recent topic where customers received very good renewal offers by SMS, then tried to call the number to get through, then found out they couldn't, then the SMS was declared on here by VM staff as a scam which then ultimately turned out not to be and was genuine!)

See where this Helpful Answer was posted

8 REPLIES 8

goslow
Alessandro Volta

@JSRP wrote:

For the past week I have been receiving constant phone calls from Virgin Media.

<snip>


General advice for this would be:

  • Opt out of marketing calls from VM (which you have done)
  • Sign up with TPS (if not done already)
  • Log a complaint to VM via their complaints process (which will be ignored)
  • Once VM complaint is ignored, log a complaint with ICO (who deal with sales call from a real person - a live call)

https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/nuisance-calls-and-messages/spam-texts-and-nuisance-calls/

I have used ICO in the past with a company that did not live up to data protection requirements and ICO were helpful (although they deal with individual complaints at the pace of a snail)

I get the impression that VM have sub-contracted all of their operations (inc. sales calls) to such a degree that there is no proper synchronisation of data between VM and its sub-contractors as to which customers are opted in/out of marketing. Couple that with pushy sales techniques, sales targets to be met and commission-based workers and you get the current mess.

With all of the above said, they could also be scam calls but VM doesn't even know reliably who is doing the calling and from which numbers (as exemplified by a recent topic where customers received very good renewal offers by SMS, then tried to call the number to get through, then found out they couldn't, then the SMS was declared on here by VM staff as a scam which then ultimately turned out not to be and was genuine!)

Thanks goslow,

Some really useful background information there, what an absolute mess...

I have raised a complaint and just registered with TPS as per your advice. The TPS site says the checks are performed every 28 days so will take a while to confirm if effective. I will wait on the complaint a bit then file an ICO complaint if my issue recurs.

goslow
Alessandro Volta

@JSRP wrote:

Thanks goslow,

Some really useful background information there, what an absolute mess...

I have raised a complaint and just registered with TPS as per your advice. The TPS site says the checks are performed every 28 days so will take a while to confirm if effective. I will wait on the complaint a bit then file an ICO complaint if my issue recurs.


If your phone has any means to block numbers then you could start blocking the numbers if it is reliably the same ones that keep coming through.

Your pic isn't approved yet (while typing this). Are the calls on your mobile or landline?

Check what features your phone(s) have to block the numbers. If you have no number blocking features, you might be able to set a particular ring tone or direct to answering machine for certain numbers so you know you can ignore the call.

If it is on your landline, this device

https://www.truecall.co.uk/shop/truecall-call-blocker

works very well. When I had a landline, it was 100% effective for me in screening out unwanted calls. Some BT phones have a 'lite' version of the technology built into the phone (although you shouldn't have to spend money on equipment just to stop VM calling you, if it really is VM!)

newapollo
Very Insightful Person
Very Insightful Person

@JSRP wrote:

I have my account set to not receive marketing calls.


Hi @JSRP 

I notice you say you have turned off marketing, but just to make you aware, if you have a media account and a mobile account, then you need to turn off marketing in both accounts.

If you sign into https://my.virginmedia.com/my-profile/my-preferences  you can turn off marketing from VM for the media account.

If you also have a mobile with VM you would also have to turn of the marketing there by logging into https://mobile.virginmedia.com/ecare/login 

Please note it can take up to 28 days to take effect .. This doesn't stop VM sending literature by post to the householder.

Also there are no separate options to turn off telephone, post, text messages, tv edit magazine etc individually, so all forms of marketing will be stopped.

Dave
I don't work for Virgin Media.
I'm a Very Insightful Person, I'm here to share knowledge.
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Graham_A
Very Insightful Person
Very Insightful Person

Also worth pointing out that as far as I understand registering with the TPS only affects unsolicited calls from genuine companies who comply with TPS rules. If you have an existing relationship with the company calling you then TPS rules do not apply.

________________________________
Graham

I'm a Very Insightful Person, I'm here to share knowledge, I don't work for Virgin Media, I'm a VM customer. There are no guarantees that my advice will work. Please read the FAQs
Have I helped? Click Mark as Helpful Answer or use Kudos to say thanks

 


@goslow wrote:

@JSRP wrote:

Thanks goslow,

Some really useful background information there, what an absolute mess...

I have raised a complaint and just registered with TPS as per your advice. The TPS site says the checks are performed every 28 days so will take a while to confirm if effective. I will wait on the complaint a bit then file an ICO complaint if my issue recurs.


If your phone has any means to block numbers then you could start blocking the numbers if it is reliably the same ones that keep coming through.

Your pic isn't approved yet (while typing this). Are the calls on your mobile or landline?

Check what features your phone(s) have to block the numbers. If you have no number blocking features, you might be able to set a particular ring tone or direct to answering machine for certain numbers so you know you can ignore the call.

If it is on your landline, this device

https://www.truecall.co.uk/shop/truecall-call-blocker

works very well. When I had a landline, it was 100% effective for me in screening out unwanted calls. Some BT phones have a 'lite' version of the technology built into the phone (although you shouldn't have to spend money on equipment just to stop VM calling you, if it really is VM!)


 

Thanks for the info, the image is of the 8 calls I've had to my mobile over a 3 day period. I have started blocking the numbers but I'm sure a new one will pop up as they have called me off 3 different numbers so far.


@newapollo wrote:

@JSRP wrote:

I have my account set to not receive marketing calls.


Hi @JSRP 

I notice you say you have turned off marketing, but just to make you aware, if you have a media account and a mobile account, then you need to turn off marketing in both accounts.

If you sign into https://my.virginmedia.com/my-profile/my-preferences  you can turn off marketing from VM for the media account.

If you also have a mobile with VM you would also have to turn of the marketing there by logging into https://mobile.virginmedia.com/ecare/login 

Please note it can take up to 28 days to take effect .. This doesn't stop VM sending literature by post to the householder.

Also there are no separate options to turn off telephone, post, text messages, tv edit magazine etc individually, so all forms of marketing will be stopped.


 

I only have VM broadband, my mobile provider is not VM.

Paulina_Z
Forum Team (Retired)
Forum Team (Retired)

Hi @JSRP,

Welcome to our Community Forums! Thank you for your first post and I'm sorry to hear that you've been receiving a high volume of calls from our team. I do apologise about this.

Have the calls continued since you first created the post? If so, how many have you received since last Thursday? 

I'll be more than happy to investigate this further and see if it was our team that made the outbound calls. I'll send you a Private Message to confirm some details. Please keep an eye out for a purple envelope at the top right corner of your Forum page. I'll be in touch soon.

Thank you.

Paulina_Z
Forum Team

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