How to ..... ?

By The Crazy Guy
 
When I lived in the UK I never received any spam calls, because I was on the TPS, Telephone Preference Service, which put you on a list of people who did not want spam calls. Occasionally, a call slipped through, but as soon as I told the spam caller that I was on the TPS, they hung up immediately. For abusing the TPS, companies could receive a heavy fine.

My experience

I have lived in Spain for 16 years and receive spam calls on a daily basis. What really gets me is that when you tell the caller that you don’t react to spam calls, THEY ARGUE WITH YOU! 

What is the matter with these people?

My current android mobile identifies suspicious calls, so I usually don’t answer. I call back and the number is not recognised, proving that I was right not to answer. 

Occasionally, a call identified as suspicious, is not. For example, my doctor’s surgery or my bank. 

It’s really not very impressive. If the UK could whack it 20 years ago, why not Spain?

The current situation

Unsolicited commercial calls without prior consent have been outlawed under the new General Telecommunications Law since June 2023. But some sly callers still manage to get through.

To make matters worse, robot-callers and cybercriminals are also ringing you, using aggressive marketing tactics to swindle you out of personal data or even hard-earned cash.

Help is at hand

If you’re “sick to the back teeth” of your phone ringing with annoying and time-consuming spam calls, it’s time to give those nuisance callers the boot. 

By signing up to the Spanish Telephone Preference Service (Lista Robinson), and tweaking some simple settings on your mobile, you can make your number pretty much invisible, making it difficult for telemarketers and fraudsters alike. 

Unfortunately, it’s not foolproof, but it makes it harder for them to ring. Think of it as putting on an invisibility cloak for your phone.

What to do

Register with the Robinson List (Lista Robinson).

It’s a free telephone preference service in Spain that allows you to opt out of unsolicited marketing calls. Visit the official website www.listarobinson.es and follow the registration steps.

You can also install call-blocking apps that nip unwanted callers in the bud.

For iPhone users: Truecaller and Hiya identify and block spam calls at lightning speed, ensuring you’re not left hanging on hold with scammers. You only need one of these, so take your pick.

For Android users: Truecaller, Hiya, and Mr. Number are all available at the Google Play Store. 

Again, you only need one of these. They all offer strong spam identification and blocking features, helping you keep those unwanted callers at bay. 

The two best options are Truecaller and Hiya, with Mr Number in third place.

Built-in protection

If your mobile is the latest model, you might already have the perfect tools to stop those harassing callers without needing extra apps.

On iPhone: Navigate to Settings > Phone > Silence Unknown Callers. This nifty feature sends calls from unknown numbers straight to voicemail, so you can avoid the disturbance and check messages later at your leisure.

On Android: Many Android devices come with built-in spam protection. Open your Phone app, go to Settings, and look for the spam protection option. Switch it on, and spam callers will “get the boot” automatically.

Conclusion

Don’t let spam callers drive you round the bend. Take control of your mobile phone line in Spain and give those unwelcome callers the silent treatment. 

Silence is golden, and now it’s just a tap away.

© The Crazy Guy

Acknowledgements:

Euro Weekly News
Marc Menendez-Roche
Paul Whitelock
Wikipedia

Images:

Firewall

Internet Matters

WSJ

YouTube

Tags:

aggressive marketing tactics, android mobile, call-blocking apps, cybercriminals,  Euro Weekly News, fraudsters, General Telecommunications Law, Google Play Store, hard-earned cash, heavy fine, Hiya, invisibility cloak, iPhone, Lista Robinson, Marc Menendez-Roche, Mr. Number, Paul Whitelock, personal data, Robinson List, robot-callers, Silence Unknown Callers, spam calls, spam protection, Spanish Telephone Preference Service, STOP SPAM CALLS, suspicious calls, telemarketers, TPS, Telephone Preference Service, Truecaller,  unsolicited commercial calls, unsolicited marketing calls, Wikipedia, www.listarobinson.es 
 

I don't understand it! Why don’t we have something similar in the UK?

A gestor/gestora does all those official tasks that the British hate, but nevertheless do themselves, muttering all the while. And a gestor doesn’t charge much – their rates are fixed by the government.

A lawyer can do these things also, but in my experience of Spain over a quarter of a century, they are inefficient, slow and costly.                                    At the gestoria [Photo courtesy of Freepik]

What is a gestor and what does he do?

The commonly used translation of gestor in English is “fixer”, although I don’t like that word – it smacks of dodgy practices, which a Spanish gestor most definitely is not.

A gestor is a quasi-government official, often with legal training.

The gestoria I use is a family firm and they cover just about everything.

I use Daniel to do my annual tax declaration, and he charges me 50 euros. For three years running I received threatening letters from HACIENDA, accusing me of “fiddling” my tax.

Daniel sorted it out each time. Toca madera (touch wood), I haven’t received a similar letter for several years. Hacienda appears to have accepted that they were wrong.

Another colleague, Daniel’s nephew Miguel, sorted out my permit to allow me to rent property legally. If I recall correctly, he charged me 30 euros.

Ana Maria organised a replacement TIE (Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero) and driving licence when my wallet disappeared. This service is invaluable. 

If you do it yourself, it’s much more complicated and involves a trip to Málaga City to go to the DGT (Dirección General de Tráfico) for the driving licence. If your gestor does it he goes to Málaga. What with the cost of fuel and parking, the gestor’s charge, 50 euros, is an absolute bargain. If you wish to challenge a traffic fine, they can also help with that, but, as Sergio explained, you never win against the police, so it’s better and much cheaper to pay the fine quickly and get the 50% discount.

A good gestor can save you money

When I sold a property in 2019 for 85,000 euros, I made a capital gain of 25,000, so I was liable to pay tax on that. However, the afore-mentioned Daniel, was able to legitimately off-set so much, that my CGT bill was reduced to a mere 50 euros! And what did he charge me? 50 euros. What a bargain!

I’m going to see him shortly to get him to help me claim a tax refund on some bonds I cashed in a few years ago and for which I was taxed, incorrectly, at the maximum rate. If I’m quick, that could be a nice little Christmas bonus!

Piso Blanco, Ronda, cost me 50€ in CGT [Photo PW]

Footnote

In my opinion people who try to do all this themselves are either crazy or foreigners. No Spaniard I know would dream of doing his own tax declaration or indeed anything official.

“Guiris” with little Spanish often try to do it themselves or use expensive lawyers.

As for me, also a "guiri", I love it that a gestor will do everything for me at a fair cost.

© The DIY Guy

Links:

Beating the Spanish tax man ... or not? - Olive Press News Spain

HOW TO ….. BUY A HOUSE in Spain?

HOW TO ….. do your Spanish INCOME TAX return?

SERRONSA - RONDA CENTRO COMERCIAL ABIERTO

Where there’s a WILL … the process in Spain - Secret Serrania de Ronda

Acknowledgements:

Gestoría Jimenez

Photos and Images:

Freepik

Gestoría Jimenez

Paul Whitelock

Wikipedia

Tags:

annual tax declaration, capital gain, CGT, cost of fuel and parking, DGT, Dirección General de Tráfico, driving licence, expensive lawyers, “fixer”, gestor, gestoria, guiri, Hacienda, Málaga, TIE, Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero, tax refund, toca madera, traffic fine