Numbers Re-Used?

[kjhale]

I am just wondering if NTL re-use their telephone numbers?
(rant coming up)
We are now on our third telephone number with NTL in just over a year as we kept getting phone calls for different people repetetively. The first number we were given we had 6 phone calls in 1 day for this one particular woman, this continued for the first month so we called up and got our number changed, lo and behold a similar thing happened again so we changed for the final time.

So far there hasn't been too many calls (touch wood) but it still is irritating when you rush to get the phone and then its for someone who you have never heard of, but you might as well start taking messages for them!
(Rant over)

Anyone else had similar problems? or know what we can do?

[Chris]

I've heard of it happening, though never experienced it (except at work, where my extension number used to belong to someone else!) There's little you can do I'm afraid - the number goes into quarantine for a set period and is then cleared for re-use. I'm surprised you got so many calls though, I would have thought most people would realise it wasn't the former user's number after a while. The only thing you can do it try to establish how long the number has been in quarantine for ... next time someone phones, ask them when they last got hold of the person they are after on the number they have just dialled. If you find that it's less than the requisite period (don't know how long that is, doubtless someone else will post it soon enough), then you can complain about it. But all they will do is change your number again!

[Paul]

I would expect that at some point numbers would be reused at an address as there are only a finite number of available number combinations. I take it these are calls from people that used to know the previous owners of the number before you got given it? Sounds like someone moved without telling people that their number was changing Not really NTLs fault if someone has done that but not much fun for you either.
If it's companies calling then you can get your number listed on the TPS list which will cut a lot of cold calling. If it's just people that still have the number in the address books for people they know then you are going to suffer it for a while. There is also the fact that it could just be that someone has a similar number to yours and someone is miss dialling. We get calls for a local school now and then as their number is only 1 digit different to ours I was at work on Tuesday and in the space of an hour we got 3 "wrong number" calls and our number is an internal number for BT callcenters to use lol.
The odds are that you have been unlucky in receiving these calls but I can't think of much NTL can do to stop it from happening unless they can give you a number that they can guarantee has never been used before anywhere in the country for any area code region.

[Stu038]

Originally Posted by Chris T

don't know how long that is, doubtless someone else will post it soon enough

Used to be 90 days, but I did hear that that had been extended though I'm not sure by how long.

[Chris]

Originally Posted by Stu038

Used to be 90 days, but I did hear that that had been extended though I'm not sure by how long.

90 days? I was thinking more in terms of 18 months! If it's that short a time, no wonder the OP's getting unwanted calls!

[Paul M]

Of course ntl reuse numbers, as do BT. Both always have and always will. You cannot just discard numbers.

[Stephen]

As far as I can remember it is normally a minimum of 6 months before a number can be reused.

[Taf]

We received calls from double glazing agents and loan companies (not cold calling but wishing to talk to a specific person about debts). This went on-and-on for a year... ex NTL number recycled to us....