WASHINGTON — So much for silence from telemarketers at the cherished dinner hour, or any other hour of the day.
Complaints to the government are up sharply about unwanted phone solicitations, raising questions about how well the federal “do not call” registry is working. The biggest category of complaint: those annoying prerecorded pitches called robocalls that hawk items including lower credit-card interest rates and new windows for your home.
Robert Madison, 43, of Shawnee, Kan., says he gets automated calls almost daily from “Ann, with credit services,” offering to lower his interest rates.
“I am completely fed up,” Madison said in an interview. “I’ve repeatedly asked them to take me off their call list.”
When he challenges their right to call, the solicitors become combative, he said.
“There’s just nothing that they won’t do.”
Since he hasn’t made any progress getting “Ann” to stop calling, Madison has started to file complaints about her to the Federal Trade Commission, which oversees the list.
