The only good thing that comes out of the incessant phone calls about vehicle warranties are the jokes.

IRRITATING ROBOTIC VEHICLE WARRANTY CALLS

Those irritating robot voices have resulted in some very funny memes, but those memes are something I can gladly sacrifice if I ever hear Generic Human tell me that the warranty for a car I haven’t owned in since more than six years is about to expire. You don’t know how many times I’ve wanted to stick around to let anyone know that this Hyundai Sonata is just a distant memory. But I never went that route, and now I will never have that opportunity.

The Federal Communications Commission, which has governed part of my life for more than three decades, has probably captured the hearts and minds of tens of millions of Americans answering a call from Idaho, Alaska or of Maine to tell them about a warranty issue they don’t know about. you have. Now, to be fair, most of us have probably given up on answering our phones if a weird number from a state WE’VE NEVER VISITED pops up on the screen, but sometimes we’re in a hurry and answer without thinking. . On one of those occasions, I wish I had thought to turn things around like THIS guy did:

FCC CREASES DOWN AND ENDS WARRANTY SNAP CALLS

The FCC announced Thursday that its Robocall Response Team is putting the final nail in the coffin of unwanted and very annoying scam calls regarding the marketing of auto warranties.

Additionally, the agency identified the origin of these calls, naming names and companies:

The calls come from Roy Cox, Jr., Aaron Michael Jones, their Sumco Panama companies and international associates. Building on the FCC’s action earlier this month, all US voice service providers must now take all necessary steps to avoid carrying this robocall traffic.

The move follows a public advisory, issued by the FCC’s Office of Enforcement on July 7, which warned service providers that action to stamp out illegal calling was imminent.

HOW THESE ROBOTIC WARRANTY CALLS HAPPEN

All originating service providers should immediately stop carrying Cox/Jones/Sumco Panama operation robocalls.

Here is some information from a press release issued by the FCC on Thursday:

The Cox/Jones/Sumco Panama operation appears to be responsible for the manufacture of more than eight billion pre-recorded illegal calls to US consumers since at least 2018. The robocalls include pre-recorded marketing messages that encourage consumers to follow invites them to speak with a “Warranty Specialist” to extend or reinstate their car’s warranty.

FCC ADVICE FOR CONSUMERS REGARDING SCAM CALLS

And while we may already be doing the following, the consumer advice shared by the FCC is worth keeping handy:

• Do not share – Do not provide any personal information to anyone who calls you out of the blue.
• Be aware – Phone scammers are good at what they do and can use real information to gain your trust and imply that they work for a company you trust.
• Caller ID – Criminals can use “spoofing” to deliberately tamper with transmitted information.
• Double Check – If you think this is a legitimate call, hang up and call the company you have an established business relationship with using a phone number from a previous bill or on their website.
• Let us know – File a complaint with the FCC: https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/.

I doubt I’m the only one to say that’s a huge relief. On the one hand, there are professional contacts who contact me via my personal cell phone, but I don’t necessarily have all their numbers on file. And because many of those in question are out of state, I might not answer the phone, fearing it’s another stupid robocall about a warranty.

I look forward to seeing reduced activity on my phone in the future.

[SOURCE: LEX 18-Lexington]