Media Contact: Janet C. Hart, CFEE (704) 927-8617 office
CHARLOTTE, N.C.
– The Better Business Bureau has been deluged with consumer complaints about automated
telemarketing calls that promise to lower interest rates on consumers’ credit
cards. Also known as “robocalls,” these calls are a nuisance and they violate U.S.
and Canadian Do-Not-Call laws. Some companies behind the calls are ripping off
consumers by charging large up-front fees to negotiate lower interest rates
with credit card companies—something consumers can do on their own for free.
Telemarketers are taking
advantage of families who are struggling with debt by offering financial “assistance”
for a fee and calling consumers around the clock - 24 hours a day. Consumers
report ‘robocalls’ on both their cell and home phones even when the numbers are
registered with the Federal Do-Not-Call lists. ‘Robocalls’ are prerecorded
telephone calls made using automated dialers. Under
North Carolina law, prerecorded commercial telemarketing calls are illegal
unless a live operator first asks if the consumer wishes to listen to the
message.
“These
telemarketing calls offering to lower credit card interest rates disregard
state and federal laws and they charge unnecessary fees,” said Tom Bartholomy,
BBB President. “You can call your credit card companies on your own - for free
– and ask them to lower your interest rates and you will get similar results.”
Consumer complaints
also report problems with stopping the telemarketing calls despite repeated
requests. In other complaints, consumers allege that the telemarketing companies
failed to uphold money-back guarantees when they are unsuccessful in lowering
credit card rates. The BBB has received numerous complaints about two
Orlando-based companies, CSTR
Solutions, Inc. and Genesis
Capital Management, and one Tacoma-based company, Mutual
Consolidated Savings.
The BBB offers
the following advice for consumers about ‘robocalls’:
- Never give personal information,
including Social Security, bank or credit card numbers, over the phone to
an unknown telemarketer.
- Be sure you understand the terms and
conditions of the contract before you sign up or provide credit card or
other payment information.
- U.S. consumers can place their home phone
number on the federal Do Not Call list by visiting www.donotcall.gov. If your number is
already on the list, but you continue to receive telemarketing calls—or you
receive ‘robocalls’ on your cell phone—you can report these problems on
the same website.
For more
information, visit www.bbb.org or call at
1-877-317-7236 toll-free in N.C. and S.C.
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