O2

Dealing with nuisance phone calls or texts

Receiving nuisance calls and text messages can be very upsetting. If you're unlucky enough to be receiving them read the following advice carefully before deciding what to do next.

What to do if you receive nuisance calls

• Keep calm: most malicious callers gain pleasure from upsetting the person they call. So, by keeping calm and showing no emotion, you may put them off
• Don't give out your mobile number: when you answer the phone, just say "Hello" rather than giving your name and number. This can stop a caller who dials your number at random from remembering it and calling again. If a caller asks you to confirm your number ask them what number they want and then tell them whether they are right or wrong
• Let callers identify themselves first if their number is not displayed on your mobile phone
• Be careful not to leave your name or contact number on your mailbox greeting
• If, after following these general precautions, the phone rings again, don't say anything when you answer it. A genuine caller will speak first
• Don't talk to malicious callers: some malicious callers may want nothing more than to have a conversation. You should put the mobile down calmly and ignore it for a few minutes before ending the call or switching it off. This can often deter the caller particularly when they realise they're wasting their time and money
• Remember malicious callers use the phone to hide behind, because most would be too frightened to say the same things to your face

If you've tried some of the advice above and you are still receiving nuisance calls or texts then you may want to consider changing your number. To do this, simply contact our customer service team.

If you have the number making the calls or sending the text messages and want to prosecute the offender(s) then you should contact the police to begin criminal proceedings against them. You'll need to give the police any information you have including any evidence of offending numbers from calls or text messages.

If the number is withheld or unavailable and you want to prosecute the offender, please contact us and we'll get our Nuisance Call Bureau to trace the offending calls. Please note that we have to give information resulting from our investigation straight to the police. We cannot give it to you directly.

What to do if you receive SPAM text messages

These are unsolicited, non chargeable text messages that are used by companies as a form of advertising. They usually include a premium/high rate number to call back or short code to text. You should not respond unless you are sure it is a genuine message. If you think it is SPAM we'd like to know about it. Forward the message to 7726 and we can investigate. Messages that contain premium rate numbers can also be brought to the attention of PhonepayPlus (the Premium Rate Regulator) who can also investigate their content, promotion and overall operation.

What to do if you receive calls from companies pretending to be O2

If you've been contacted by another organisation claiming to be O2 and they attempt to upgrade your phone, sell you insurance or take your bank details, please let us know. Some of these companies may sign you up to something you weren't expecting.

We've already taken legal action against companies who have led customers to believe they are calling from O2. Two of these companies were trying to sell mobile phone insurance.

Our advice is:

• We only ever discuss our own range of insurance, O2 Insure, which you can find at o2.co.uk/insurance. Our insurance Administrator is "Marsh Ltd".
• If you receive a call from a company claiming to be working with O2, do not give out personal information. Try to note down as much information from the conversation as you can and let us know by calling our customer services number on your bill. Your call may help us identify who they are so we can take action against them.
• You may receive a 'welcome call' from us soon after connecting which may include details of our own range of insurance products. You can tell it's us because the number shown on your phone will be 0845 863 0287. If you call us back on this number there is a recorded message to give you confidence it is O2.
• If you feel you've already been mislead into taking insurance you should take this up with the insurance company and ask for their cancellation and complaints policy. You may also want to contact Ofcom or the Financial Services Authority to report the practice of mis-selling and breach of distance selling regulations.

You might also want to register with the Telephone Preference Service, as they can help prevent you receiving further nuisance calls. You can call them on 08450 700 707. Or you can visit them online.