Nuisance calls are a daily nuisance, but without caller ID, which displays the number of the person calling, it’s hard to know who’s on the other end of the line until you answer. But once you’ve answered, it’s too late and you’re forced to speak to that person. Fortunately, Ofcom has prohibits businesses from hiding their numbers when making cold calls.
How do I filter phone calls on a landline?
BT Customers
BT offers a free service – BT Call Protection – which helps prevent unwanted calls. The company claims that this service allows it to redirect up to 30 million unwanted calls per week to unwanted voicemail.
Numbers will also be added to this blacklist when many customers report unwanted calls from the same number. You can also set up your own blacklists which can include individual numbers, withheld numbers and international calls. To add a number, simply call 1572 after receiving the unwanted call. This of course only works after subscribing to Call Protect.
It’s free if you’re a BT customer. To activate the service on your line, simply click on www.bt.com/callprotect or call 0800 389 1572. You’ll need to go through an ordering process, but you’ll only need your BT phone number and postcode to do so: no payment details are required and it’s a permanent free service, not a special offer that becomes a paid service after, say, 12 months.
TalkTalk Customers
TalkTalk launched its own call filtering service on 17th January 2018 and it’s also free. It’s called CallSafe and you can activate it by by dialing 1472. You can then view and manage your approved and blocked callers via My Account or by calling 1472.
People you call regularly will not be blocked, and calls from people known to be annoying will never be forwarded to you. If someone calls you from a number that is not on the blacklist, but has never called you before, they will have to record a short message that you will hear when you pick up the phone. You can then decide whether or not to accept the call.
This is a feature you only get with BT if you buy a special landline phone.
Sky Customers
Sky’s monitoring service is called Talk Shield. It’s free if you have Sky Broadband and Sky Talk. You’ll need to sign in to your Sky account to activate it if you didn’t do so when you activated your services.
It asks callers to give a brief introduction when they call, and then you decide whether you want to take their call without them knowing if you’re available.
Of course, this will allow calls from those on your “Star” list without forcing them to take that extra step, and you can also add numbers to a block list.
Telephone Preference Service – TPS registration by SMS
Although more than 17 million national telephone numbers are registered with the TPS, the government program does not appear to have done much to reduce the number of nuisance calls – at least in my experience. Telemarketing companies are supposed to check this database and avoid calling these numbers.
You can register your number with the TPS, but this is just one step towards banning all nuisance calls. Many businesses ignore the rules or call from outside the UK, meaning the rules don’t apply.
Since May 2016, it is much easier to register your phone number on the TPS, since you can now do it via SMS. Just type TPS tracking your e-mail address has 78070 to register in the official database of excluded telecommunications numbers.
Get Caller ID
If you have a compatible phone, you can ask your phone company if they can display the number of the person calling you. Most companies offer this service for free.
If the number calling is in your phone’s directory, the name will appear instead. On the BT phone I used until recently, international calls were reported as such, and since we don’t have any contacts abroad (or friends who might call us), it’s easy to avoid answering calls from people we don’t know.
Actively block calls
The main problem with nuisance calls is that even if you know not to answer them, it’s still annoying to have to listen to the phone ring or get up to find out who’s calling.
It’s possible for your phone provider to block specific numbers, but this will usually cost money, usually a few pounds a month. BT calls this ‘Choose to Refuse’, but it also offers other ‘calling features’ that include blocking all withheld UK numbers.
That’s where call blockers come in. These are boxes that you plug inline to your existing landline. I tried one on Amazon – the CPR 1200 – which costs £29.99. If nuisance calls really bother you, it’s worth it for the peace and quiet.
The box comes with 200 known spam numbers already programmed in, but you can add a new number simply by pressing the button on top after you answer a call and discover it’s a spam or cold call. (This only works if the calling number is visible via caller ID, and you need caller ID for the box to work.)
The CPR 1200 also allows you to block international calls, withheld or private numbers and entire area codes. It’s all done using your phone’s keypad and it comes with a quick reference sticker so you don’t have to memorise which combinations to press. As the box is powered by the phone line, it doesn’t need a power adapter, making it convenient and easy to install.
It can even handle two phone lines and two phone handsets.
BT Cordless Home Phone with Call Blocking
An alternative to a separate box is a new phone with similar features built in. BT’s Premium Cordless Home Phone with Call Blocking costs £94.10.
The main handset includes buttons to control the built-in answering machine and to synchronise its directory with other handsets (there are single, double and trio handset packs). When someone calls, the phone answers automatically and asks the person to say their name. Only then does it ring and alert you. You will then hear a message telling you who is calling and you can choose to accept the call once, always, send it to the answering machine or always block it.
Your friends and family will contact you automatically as long as their number is in your address book. You can sync your mobile phone contacts with your landline for easy setup.
Another interesting feature of the phone is the “Do Not Disturb” function, which mutes the ringer and lights. You can mark certain people as VIPs in the address book, so that their calls can still be received.
Block numbers on your mobile phone
The above options are great if you’re having trouble with unwanted calls on your landline, but these days it’s becoming a bigger problem on mobile phones.
For specific methods to block callers on your smartphone, see How to Block a Number on iPhone and How to Block a Number on Android.
Table of Contents
