Hilton - That's Not Hot

OK, I admit I'm still a bit rattled by the fraud thing (and I'm going to post about the responses of the various companies in a day or two). So when I got a phone call yesterday afternoon that ended up in dead air, it bothered me. The caller ID showed "Hilton, 407-xxx-xxxx". That's an Orlando area code, but beyond that I couldn't tell much. The phone rang again last night, showing the same CID display. This time after I said "hello," there was the familiar pause of an ACD connecting me to an agent, who then exclaimed "Hi, Larry!" as if I was supposed to know her. Ugh. You're not my friend, honey, you're a cold-calling time-share-selling phone rep.

I once again said "hello" in the deadest tone I could muster. She started in on her sales pitch, indicating that since I was a valued member of the Hilton Honors program, blah blah blah. When she paused I said "I am not interested at all, place me on your DO NOT CALL list."

Today, I've logged onto the Hilton webpage and find that there is no place where I can opt out of phone calls. I can opt out of email, no problem. And there is no way to not have a phone number on the profile. I tried to change it to one of my favorites, (888)555-1212, which might or might not get you to toll-free directory assistance (I don't really care). They wouldn't take that, so I poked around the site a bit and found one of their fax numbers. So on the off chance that they decide to call me again, they won't get very far.

I realize that it's my choice whether to belong to this (or any) customer loyalty program. I don't think that means I have to be subject to unwanted sales calls, especially when I'm already listed on the national DO NOT CALL registry. Yes, there is a loophole in the registry allowing calls from companies with whom I have an "existing relationship." I think it's a stretch to go from hotel customer to potential time-share sucker buyer, but I'm sure they don't.

Well, I've emailed them and rather tersely said "don't do that, ever again." I'll post the response if it's of any interest.