0178999999999

This is a Scam. Once an automated message asks you to press and number on your phone that you have won something, will always charge you. BY pressing the button "9" you will be returning the call to a premium rate number.

I answered but hung up. Got the call from 0178999999999 but this is not an active number. If anyone has pressed the button 9 and now has a premium rate charge on their bill, can you please email me the premium rate number to complaints@live.co.uk so that I can take this matter furher. I can also help you get a refund for any charge that you have got on your bill. Just ask on the email.

This is on a TPS active phone number. No message left on 1571.

they called me on my mobile, but luckily I didn't answer as I was driving. I'm all for finding out who these people are and bombarding them with unstamped mail, emails and reverse charge calls. I get calls from other strange numbers on my landline too even though I am registered not to

Firstly, the calls come from an AutoDialler - illegal in the UK. The number 0178999999999 is fake and an indication of the intentions of this company. The people involved in this scam (and it is a scam) are based in the USA - they deliberately target UK numbers to avoid the juristiction of UK law i.e. there is little the TPS and Information Commissioner can do about this as they call from abroad.

Let me also clear up something: if you are called by an auto-dialler and asked to press a button to connect to an agent you CANNOT be charged (premium rate number or otherwise) for the call. In fact I would encourage everyone to talk to their agents and waste THEIR time and THEIR money i.e. THEY get charged for the call, not you.

The automated message is misleading and fraudulent. It claims that you have won a free cruise or holiday. The latest message claims this is a cruise to the Bahamas, previously it has claimed to be  more general Caribbean cruise. They have been trying this scam since at least 2005 using various different numbers and addresses.

If you get talking to an agent, you soon discover that there is no free holiday and they are asking you to pay £598 for the pleasure for staying at their Calypso Cay resort villas, get tickets for Disney world, visit to Fort Lauderdale, etc and a "free cruise". Flights from the UK are not included of course. Some free holiday, eh?

So who are they? Well, the last agent claimed to be representing Disney! I asked him to repeat that and got put through to his equally unhelpful "manager", Holly Miller.

They will direct you to: http://www.uwontrip.com/promo/uk. This appears to be the following company:
Tropical Grand Vacations  aka Matza limited
851 State Road 434 Suite 120-122, Longwood, FL, 32750
and appears to have a UK freephone number as follows: 0808 234 7528 (why not call it?)
This domain name is registered anonymously via DomainsByProxy.
Google is your friend is you search by this address: https://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-180-060-9385/7
http://www.siteadvisor.com/sites/tropicalgran ... stid/?p=1196198


The manager claimed they are Calypso Cay Resort aka Amerisuites Vacation:
http://www.calypsocay.com/
Calypso Cay Sales Center
4951 Calypso Cay Way
Kissimmee, FL 34746
UK Freephone: 0800 091 0919

These people have a nasty history of scamming. Google "Calpso Cay scam". Examples:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/167/RipOff0167630.htm
http://boakes.org/talk/topic/calypso-cay-resorts-are-at-it-again

So what can you do about it if they call you?

Do NOT give them your credit card details.

Complain to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Go to their website http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/ and clik on 'consumer issues' and then go to 'consumer complaint form online' and make a complaint.

OR

File a complaint with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Go to their web address:

http://www.800helpfla.com/ccform.html

Next, select the 'File a Complaint' option at the top of the page.

I had a call from these guys 'bout 5 minutes ago. Didn't answer though because anyone that I would want to talk to when I have a cold wouldn't have that number. I'm very unregretful I didn't now.

:)

This number keeps calling my business who are they - I never answer

0178999999999 called me today. I am registered with TPS so why am I getting these calls?

Just had a call from this number 0178999999999 despite being ex dir and tps registered. Why don't TPS stop this?

Hey folks i also had a call from this numnber and it again about telling me i had won a holiday of a lifetime.

Thjey claimed to be a disney affiliate anmd have ties to Visa. They claimed thta it was through voisa that i'd won the prize of a holiday to disney world to stay in their 5star resort, then a 3 day trip to any city in  the states, and a cruise to the bahamas.

They tried to get credit cared details to 'verify' i was the right person for the prize. They asked me for my exp date so i gave it, no harm in that there are millions of people with same exp date. Then they asked me to verify the long no.

I had been suspicious already and had meanwhile looked themm up on the int. They claimed to be CBholiday and gave CBholiday.com as web address. Its adummy site and i discovered their address is exact same as 'Onceinalifetime@ holidays and another dummy name 'FourVacation' which i also discovered through the wonder of Google had been giving people these same phonecalls about winning a prize!!

I asked him that if he really had got my name through Visa and it was a ligitimate offer then he should have my card details there. He said he did but needed me to verify them. I said i wasn;t going to give him my long card number and told him to instead give me the last 4 digits.

He said he couldn't cos he'd be fired. I told him i wouldn't report him and he said the call was being recorded. I then informed him that i hadn;t beeen told it was being recorded at the start and he kinda stammered i then said not to worry and that if it was being recorded his superiors would hear me clearly giving him permission to read out the last 4 digits.

He again stammered and said he couldn't for legal reasons. I informed him that it was perfectly legal to display the last 4 digits ( you can see them on receipts everywhere.)

He tried to bluff that in the states its different, which it isn't i've been there enough to know it hasn't. So i asked him why he was lying and he tried to bluff his way out again then got annoyed and said.

"Clearly sir you are not grateful for this wonderful offer so i will have to pass it on to the next family!" Lol!

Got the cheesy American accented pre recorded 'You have been randomly selected for a free Florida holiday...' from this number this afternoon and I am TPS but there is little you can do by the look of it!!!

Who is passing on these numbers to these Yankee companies though...Grrrrrrr!!

As another user had said they target areas. So i think today they were targeting Wales. They called i noticed they had a lots of 9's so my suspicion arosed so googled and came to this site. Call was made at 16.58 .

Called by this number in the Portsmouth area at 7 pm today.
I answered and they then hung up after only 2 or 3 seconds of pre-recorded speech from them.

Yep, I'm Portsmouth too, called here at 7.23pm.   No message left on ansaphone.  Glad there is a thread, and hope they don't keep ringing (especially at funny hours).   Have had a major bereavement recently, and we're all affected, and I would get up to answer even if 4am.   So would rather they didn't!!

Am TPS registered also - but understand how they get round it.  Let's hope for some new legislation.

Called me in Portsmouth tonight at 19:46.

same as john i recieved one in nearby fareham

Just got a call from this number

09/12/08  20:30

I am also in portsmouth, looks like a trend

Just got a call from this number in swansea

I got a call from +178999999999 -  yes nine x nines.on my mobile at 4.27 pm 10.12.08 but did accept the call.The phone has recorded the number in my call received listing.What is going on?

this number called me this morning telling me (recorded msg) that I had been randomly selected to win a holiday etc etc press 9 to hear more - hung up and called BT who told me that as long as it didnt come through the reverse charge people then I cant have been charged for it, but what I want to know is how did they get my number?  I had my number changed last month and I am ex directory so where did they get it!!!!?????

Also in Portsmouth, called today 13/12/05 @ 16:13