The sound of consumer clapping can be heard since their telephones may be ringing less often today.
The FTC has announced settlements with huge companies -- massive ones, really -- that are among the agency's largest ever.
Want to win a Craftmatic bed? Sure, they look cool, but if you filled out a sweepstakes entry form, the feds say that Craftmatic called and called. The FTC's statement also says that Craftmatic's predictive (automatic) dialer did not connect outbound calls to one of their sales reps in 2 seconds resulting in "millions" of abandoned calls. That is not only awful customer service, but hideously expensive service as well.
Worst of all those alleged violations in our eyes? When consumers (not customers -- consumers who filled out a simple sweepstakes entry) asked to be put on the company's do not call list, their requests were ignored. That is inexcusable in our books and perhaps one of the main reasons why Craftmatic settled the claims with a penalty exceeding $4 million.
The other companies did not fare well either. ADT's alarm services group and two of its dealers ignored the do not call registry and are out $2 million. Financial product company Ameriquest was also charged with ignoring the do not call registry among other violations.
Remember, you need to log calls when you tell a company to add you to their do not call registry. Log their name, their number and the time and date. That level of detail is invaluable in helping prove these cases.
A final thought about unwanted telephone calls. While yesterday was Election Day for many local and state races, the big day is coming. Telephone technology is more advanced than it was four years ago so just think about what the 2008 Presidential election (and the primaries leading up to it) will do to the number of automated calls made?
Political calls are conveniently exempt from the do not call registry. A new non-profit is valiantly registering names and numbers to present to campaigns so that consumers receive only the political calls they want -- or none at all. Register at the above link if you want to be a part of that process and keep your dinner warm.
Labels: ADT, Ameriquest, Craftmatic, do not call, FTC, stop political calls
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