VIP Travel Reservations, Inc.: SPAMMER ALERT and WARNING! Lawbreaking Outfit Ignores the National and Pennsylvania Do-Not-Call Lists
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Bernard Madoff, Prisoner #61727-054
Federal Correctional Complex, Butner
Granville County, North Carolina
__________________________
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I have left a legacy of shame, as some of my victims have pointed out, to my family and my grandchildren. This is something I will live in for the rest of my life. I’m sorry.
— Bernard Madoff, convicted
felon, apologizing to the victims of his investment fraud
_______________________
Despite our
being on the Pennsylvania and National Do-not-call lists, we keep getting calls
from an outfit called VIP Travel Reservations, Inc.
How they got our number and name, I do not know; we have an unlisted
number.
Their callers are rude, lying thieves, and not very bright, given that
they won’t give up, even as you are yelling at them. Why on earth would one
want to engage with people who are not interested in your “service”?
So far, we have received six calls, all during the dinner hour – as if we,
while enjoying our meal, would be delighted to hear from dodgy strangers.
Here are the details:
Call # 1: When I informed the caller that our number was on the Do-not-call
list, this idiot had the audacity to insist that the Do-not-call lists do not
exist.
What a howler.
I hung up on her.
Call #2: I informed him that we had already been called and to
please remove us from their list. Instead, he started talking over me with his “script.”
I was done being polite.
I said, “I don’t want to talk with you people!”
Idiot caller #2 accused
me of “discrimination” – yes, I do discriminate against rude people who push
their way into my home, uninvited.
Once I started talking
lawsuit, he hung up.
Call #3: Again, I reminded the woman that I was on the Do-Not-Call
list. This idiot tried to change tactics by saying she was not selling anything
but conducting a survey.
I said, “I don’t answer
surveys, either” and hung up.
Yeah, I’m going to hand
over my personal information to scammers and thieves – I’ll get right on that.
Calls #4 and #5: Ghost calls with heavy breathing. NNNNiiicccceee.
Call #6: Caller asks for my husband by name.
Me: “He’s not here; may I
take a message?” By now, I’m suspicious...
He: “Are you Mrs.
_______?”
Me: “May I ask who is
calling, please?”
He: “Never mind. Why don’t
you go back to playing with your ABC blocks?”
Me: “Screw you!” and some
other choice words, not fit for my sweet blog.
He: Hangs up.
Okay, here’s the deal: if you’re conducting a bonafide business, offering
a real service or product at a fair price, why would your telemarketers be
trained to act like complete jackasses by demeaning customers to whom they are trying
to convince to buy something?
For the following reasons, VIP Travel Reservations, Inc., is most likely
a scamming, thieving boiler room operation, designed to part you with your
money:
1. Their telemarketers
ignore the Do-Not-Call list because they realize that they are one step ahead
of the law. Evidently, there are enough “marks” (I’m not one of them, thank you),
out there that make these boiler room tactics successful, even if they are on
the run most of the time. Legalities mean nothing to them.
2. They try to “trick” you
with bogus contests and sweepstakes – in other words, blatant lies told by accomplished liars.
3. When you don’t bite,
they become rude and abusive.
4. Despite clear evidence
that the recipient of their calls is really
not interested, they persist with numerous calls – as if being called an F-word
weren’t enough to strike a potential mark from their list.
Okay, let’s suppose that you listen to their spiel and are tempted to
bite and accept their offer.
My advice: don’t.
It will sound too good to be true – that’s because it is too good to be true.
Once a scammer senses any kind of “trust” on your part, he or she will
tell you what you want to hear, not necessarily the truth. In fact, it will be
a bald-face lie, 100%. The scammer will appeal to your greed – who doesn’t want
something for cheap or even free? After all, everyone loves a bargain – because
he/she works for a company set up to part you
from your hard-earned cash.
But you have to question why this stranger wants to give away free travel
and other gifts to you. Never forget: there is always an angle, an angle that
will never benefit anyone but the caller’s company.
Good rule of thumb: don’t engage with telemarketers who cold-call you;
you don’t know who is on the other end.
In fact, even be wary when it’s good old Uncle Joe who has the “can’t
miss” investment scheme.
Remember Bernie Madoff? He “made off” with millions of dollars from friends and family members and is
now serving time in prison. His marks – mostly friends, neighbors, and family –
lost just about everything they had by investing in a “can’t lose” scheme.
His apology to his victims seems especially hollow, given that his most
of his victims are still without financial relief.
Madoff is sorry because he got caught.
___________________
For your enjoyment, read more nuggets about VIP Travel Reservations,
Inc.:
Boiler room stories:
Federal Trade Commission Resources (FTC):
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