Keep getting home improvement scam calls. Decided to have a little fun with one of them.

Then you're as much a scum bag as the telecriminals?

I see your just like the fool you responded to, only caring about yourself with no consideration towards other people who might be affected by your selfishness....how sad life must be to spend your time "telling stories" to make yourself feel better. (I read your post in the Nigerian thread too)

2 wrongs don't equate to being right.

Yes, this post made perfect sense AND was very helpful. To answer your questions addressed to me:
Yes, filing cases in Fed court would be ideal.  Problem is either finding a lawyer who will accept your case or having the know how to file on your own.  Filing in Fed court is expensive and very time consuming (even after you learn how to do it).  As a rule most cases (at least mine) are only in the 4 telescum call range.
The odds of getting the 3x in damages is always a crapshoot regardless of which court you're in.  It's totally the judges decision. It has not happened in any of my 39 cases (Im usually maxed out in my demand and seldom ask for it), but I am aware of other small claims cases where it was successful....  $2,500 for TWO calls. However I also know of two cases where the bonehead judges awarded $15 and $25 for 10 calls. Besides, in most cases in Fed court, the cases are settled before trial so as not to become a class action.
Yes, these judges (especially the pro tems) are a crapshoot in how they think. In my case that you referenced, my evidence was solid, the defendant actually admitted in court to making these calls and yet the judge still awarded pennies on the dollar. And regarding a previous comment, plaintiffs cannot appeal a decision in small claims. This may be different from state to state.  This also goes for the max amount of damages you can ask for. In my state, it is $2,500 but you are allowed to go up to $10,000 two times a year.  This makes my result even worse because I had to use up one of my10K cases just to receive my pittance.
Prior to filing my case I had received  16 calls, plus they failed to provide a copy of their DNC policy. This is where the $8,500 came from. They called an additional two times after I filed and I did not amend the claim.
I hope found this helpful.

Quote:

In my case that you referenced, my evidence was solid, the defendant actually admitted in court to making these calls and yet the judge still awarded pennies on the dollar.

You can file a petition for reconsideration and/or a petition to set aside the judgment based on new facts or that the judge's decision was based on wrong facts or law. I know this from experience in a Law suit I made against someone years ago.

I believe that you are referring to California?  It appears that there is a method to appeal small claims court decisions: http://www.courts.ca.gov/1072.htm

Yes, thanks. It is what Mike and that link said. I am aware of it but didn't want to take the time explaining it here.  I SHOULD do it, but I am aware of a number of times where others have tried but it has always been declined. Weird thing is it usually re examined by the same judge who did the ruling? I can hear him say,  "What???  This upstart is accusing ME of making a mistake?!!!"  Like I say, maybe they're just a little "jaded" but my TCPA contacts tell me not to bother.  Still, I have nothing to lose. I will not allow this pro tem to oversee any future cases.. Decisions, decisions.  Mike, was yours a small claims case?

Oops, I should have mentioned I am also in the process of suing him for violating califs Invasion of Privacy act for illegally recording out telephone conversations without announcing that it was. 5K per call for 3 calls. THAT would be sweet.  So I hesitate to go after him again for the tele's.

Yes, my Petition was based on new facts that surfaced after the initial decision was not in my favor. It was the same Judge too. I won the Petition.

RE: the case posted
AIRQUIP, INC.,
on behalf of itself and all others similarly situated,
Plaintiff,
v.
HOMEADVISOR, INC.,
IAC/INTERACTIVECORP, and
DOES 1 through 10,
Defendants.
Case 1:16-cv-01849 Document 1 Filed 07/19/16 USDC Colorado
https://www.roofcalc.org/wp-content/uploads/H ... -2016-07-19.pdf

I decided to do a little "light reading"  :) and this is what I got.  Reference year seems to be 2015/16.  The company was making $360 Million at that time.  I also rounded the figures off to make it easier.

They had 102,000 members.  Those members paid between $347 and $959 for an annual membership.  Most members took the lower priced plans.  Leads cost between $8 and $98 per lead.  They claimed that they would only send leads out to 4 contractors, however that was disputed.  They claimed that they only got leads from their website, but that was disputed as previously mentioned, they got the majority of their leads from illegal sales calls.  They claimed that their leads were good and these homeowners were ready to do work, which is false.  There is also an additional fee for this helpdesk app of $60 to $100 per month.

Now TT did not mention getting calls from more then one contractor, so, what happened to the other 3 or more?

In any case, getting one contractor at a time to charge back will not put a dent in this operation.  Not with those figures staring us in the face.  Especially if 3 or more contractors are paying for leads and not even using them, which would seem odd to me.

The other interesting fact seems to be that there is no written contract between the contractors and HA.  All HA is worried about is getting some sort of way to collect the money from the contractors, either debit or credit card.

Quote:

In any case, getting one contractor at a time to charge back will not put a dent in this operation.

That was the point I was attempting to make too. It would take several people PER contractor to make them concerned of illegal telemarketing having an impact on their leads as fakes.

So maybe 5  people make a phony interest from a telemarketing call and try persuading the same Contractor that calls, multiply that by just 100 contractors. Now  500 people would have had to make those contractors call on a  fake lead and lets average it to $50 per lead they paid, making it $25,000 Homeadvisors made from that teeny tiny percentage. Some of that might be refunded, but its highly doubtful enough to even make HA lose money, certainly no impact on the telemarketers.
Now multiply those numbers by what would be needed to achieve "critical mass" and then  TT,  tell again how its going to stop or even impact those telemarketers.

Thanks for the info as usual but I have lawyers up the wazoo. I have a couple that I use on a regular basis (meaning I give them first crack at it) and have discussed cases with a few others. Their dream goal is to get a class action started against some BIG national company. Gotta make a million to make it worth their while you see.
Yes, I suppose in the long run $400 isn't that much. I'm just used to $75 to file. No, filing the claim isn't the problem its the other things, discovery, motions to dismiss and the rest plus you'll probablyi go up against a real lawyer. I have skimmed thru how to books on the subject and it doesn't appear to be something I'd like to deal with. I am in contact with a few who actually do it and tell me how they learned it on their own and encourage me to do likewise. Unfortunately, I react to reading this legal stuff  like I would if I was reading something on quilt making and have a tendency to fall asleep....  However, if I keep getting these kind of judges I might be forced into it.

I don't mean to sound like I'm stomping on your foot, but you make it sound like its not worth the effort, I mean for the average person to do all that. People are constantly encouraging others to make a difference instead of complaining, but after reading your posts, I feel like its too much of a hassle and the Ignore/Block seems so much more inviting to just put up with it.

You explain things like a story your piecing together with each new post. Just a suggestion, maybe write out a process, step-by-step to help others understand how you gather info on your callers, decide on a good lawyer, how you find the procedure required to take someone to Court and have a chance to impact those illegal telemarketers and make them pay. Sorta like a tutorial.

I'm getting a headache just trying to understand what your saying, not trying to be discouraging, I'm just not big on legal proceedings or even where to start after finding out who called me, other than call a Lawyer, cross my fingers and hope for the best.
I know who a few of my callers are that robo call several times a day and are blocked, but I'm considering on making an issue over it. You sound like you know what your doing, but I can't make heads or tails out of it.

I took a Paralegal course that has to, for the most part be taught by actual lawyers.  I did it at a Community College, so the cost was not really all that much.  Something you could easily recoup within a few lawsuits.  However if you are not interested in the least in it then that would not be the way to go.  Yes, lawyers have a tendency to try to make the most money they can and 40% of a small suit is not enough sometimes to entice them.  However, from the last suit you were describing and had you sued for everything all at once, I think they might have been interested, or at least should have been.

Yes, I agree fully. The result was a complete shock to me and Im full of what I shudda dones.  Like I say, I still have his illegal recordings of our telephone calls to go after. THAT will be done with a lawyer. Lawyer thinks the company is big enough for a class action...  Good for the lawyer, crapshoot for me. I believe the payout ratio for class actions is a million bucks for the lawyer and a buck and a half for the plaintiffs....Ive never actually had a class action go to trial, it is usually settled beforehand.  A class on paralegal?  Not too bad of an idea.. Never occurred to me. However the thot of going back to school at my age is.... blah....
Mike, No it is not my intent to discourage anyone from suing in any court they choose. I did get the impression that most of those involved in this thread were familiar with court proceedings, my bad. Yes, it is very intimidating at first. You've got a defendant who hates your guts sitting a few feet away from you and (usually) have a judge unfamiliar with the TCPA and you have to try and explain it to them. Not to mention a couple dozen people sitting in the audience. Not a good situation if you're the shy type.
About a year ago I had mentioned to the  operators of this site that perhaps we could start a thread that dealt with the legal issues of filing cases about the TCPA.  Perhaps you guys might have some more influence than I?

I just received a call from "US Home Improvement" with a local number on the caller ID. I said hello two times and then I heard a guy with a foreign accent give the name of the company. I started to blow my police whistle into the phone as loud as I could several times and hung up. About five minutes later I received another call with a different local number. I picked up the receiver and hung up phone ..... What kind of a fool do they think I am???   LOL