Description:
??Wisconsin’s Bureau of Consumer Protection works to enforce the Do Not Call law, protecting Wisconsin residents from unwanted sales calls and texts.
Criminals often use telemarketing as a tool to reach their victims. If your number is on the Do Not Call Registry and you receive an unsolicited sales call, it’s probably fraudulent.
Registration on the Wisconsin Do Not Call Registry is permanent. Wisconsin residents no longer have to sign up every two years. Sign up once, and you’re done, as long as you have that number.
Wisconsin uses the National Do Not Call list for registrations. To verify that your number is registered, check through the federal website or call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY: 1-866-290-4236). You must call from the phone you want to verify.
Wisconsin residents who sign up for the National Do Not Call Registry are protected by both the federal Do Not Call law and by Wisconsin’s telemarketing laws.
Register online at https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Online_Services/DoNotCall.aspx or call from the phone you are registering to 1-888-382-1222 (TTY: 1-866-290-4236).
Residential cell phones, landlines, and VoIP numbers are eligible for registry.
After you register, your phone number will show up on the registry by the next day. Telemarketers covered by the Do Not Call Registry have up to 31 days from the date you register to stop calling you. If you receive a call from a telemarketer after 31 days, file a complaint.
Why do I get calls when I’m on the registry?
The Do Not Call Registry is a tool to reduce the number and frequency of unwanted calls. Some businesses or organizations are permitted by law to call numbers on the registry, including:
•Organizations with which you have established a business relationship
•Organizations you have given prior consent to contact you
•Tax-exempt nonprofit organizations
•Noncommercial calls such as polls, surveys and political messages
•Calls made to a number listed in the current local business telephone directory
•Calls made by an individual acting on his or her own behalf and not as an employee or agent of any other person
Robocalls
If you answer the phone and hear a recorded message instead of a live person, it's a robocall. You've probably gotten robocalls about candidates running for office, or charities asking for donations. These robocalls are allowed. But if the recording is a sales message and you haven't given your permission to get calls from the company on the other end, the call is illegal. In addition to the phone calls being illegal, their pitch most likely is a scam.
Why am I getting so many robocalls?
Technology is the answer. Companies are using autodialers that can send out thousands of phone calls every minute for an incredibly low cost. The fraudulent companies that use this technology don't bother to screen for numbers on the Do Not Call Registry. If a company doesn't care about obeying the law, you can be sure they're trying to scam you.
What should I do about robocalls?
•Hang up the phone. Don't press 1 to speak to a live operator and don't press any other number to get your number off the list. If you respond by pressing any number, it will probably just lead to more robocalls.
•Consider contacting your phone provider and asking them to block the number, and whether they charge for that service. Remember that telemarketers change Caller ID information easily and often, so it might not be worth paying a fee to block a number that will change.
•Report the violation online at https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Online_Services/DoNotCall.aspx or call the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-422-7128.
Do Not Text Me
Wisconsin law protects cell phone users from unwanted texts. If your cell phone number is on the Do Not Call Registry, unsolicited text sales pitches are illegal. The same exceptions apply to texting.
Report Violations
The Bureau of Consumer Protection is committed to ensuring that Wisconsin’s Do Not Call law is enforced. If you are on the Do Not Call Registry and you get a call from a telemarketer 31 days after you registered your number, file a complaint online at https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Online_Services/DoNotCall.aspx or call 1-800-422-7128. Please provide as much information as you can, including the name of the telemarketing company, the location from which they are calling, the name of the person calling, the phone number and the product or service they called to sell.