Do not call deadline Tuesday

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WTHI) - Attorney General Greg Zoeller is reminding Hoosiers that the next deadline to register for the state’s Do Not Call list is Tuesday, November 16. Phone numbers placed on the list by 11:59 PM (EST) November 16 will begin receiving benefits of the law starting January 1, 2011.

Registration on the Do Not Call list is free. Re-registering on the list is not necessary if the phone number and address stays the same. Consumers may register online or by phone.

Visit www.IndianaConsumer.com or call 1(888) 834-9969 to register a phone number or verify that a number is registered.

More than 1.8 million phone numbers are currently registered on the Do Not Call list, which represents about 60 percent of eligible phone numbers in Indiana. However, the percentage of registered phone lines varies widely in different parts of the state.

• Evansville: 43.58%
• Fort Wayne: 69.51%
• Indianapolis: 71.75%
• Lafayette: 78.07%
• Northwest Indiana: 38.56%
• South Bend/Elkhart: 83.60%
• Southern Indiana: 53.31%
• Southeastern Indiana: 48.97%
• Terre Haute: 84.44%

The Attorney General’s office encourages all Hoosiers to register, especially senior citizens who are particularly vulnerable to telephone phishing scams targeting individuals receiving Social Security and Medicare benefits.

“Indiana’s Do Not Call registry does more than just cut down on disruptive telemarketing calls – it makes it easier to spot a potential scam,” Zoeller said. “If you receive an unwanted call from a solicitor even though your number is registered, that is a big red flag they may not be doing business legitimately because they are willing to violate Indiana’s telephone privacy laws.”

Indiana law also forbids the use of autodialers to deliver pre-recorded messages without a live operator obtaining consent to deliver the message. These calls are often referred to as “robo-calls.” The Attorney General’s telephone privacy division responds to consumer complaints related to possible Do Not Call and Autodialer violations and enforces the state law prohibiting unsolicited fax advertisements.

Individuals who are on the Do Not Call list and receive an unwanted telemarketing call or unsolicited fax advertisement can submit a complaint to the Attorney General’s office. These complaints help the office to enforce Indiana telephone privacy laws.