I answered a call from 0709 980 71304 yesterday from somebody saying "Hello, can you hear me? Hello! Hello!" and then he hung up. I was about to call this number back, but as I did not recognise the voice or the number, I decided to first Google this unfamiliar 0709 prefix. Luckily I did, as I found out that it was a phone scam to a premium number which can cost up to £50, had I called it back. So be warned!!

CLI dumping (calling and hanging up immediately) is more common from 070 numbers. That is intended to encourage the receiver to return the call in the mistaken belief that the call was from a UK mobile number and returning it can be done from 'free' minutes.

Ofcom is well aware of the issue and has even reserved the 06 number group onto which is could insist all such 'personal numbers' be moved but has mysteriously shelved that proposal.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?p=8335083

I wonder why?

The safest policy is that calls from 070 numbers should never be returned.

There are no numbers costing up to £50.

Yes, 0709 98 numbers are charged at pn2 rate - 47.5p/minute at all times.

http://www.productsandservices.bt.co...ialisedNos.pdf

Think the OP had meant £50 / min which there is no such number and is just an urban myth been going around years.

At around 50p / min you'd have to be stupid to stay on 100 mins to get to the £50 mark without realising it's a scam.

I don'tknow what happened there but that link above now takes you elsewhere (BT Shop?) so here it is again:

http://www.productsandservices.bt.co...ialisedNos.pdf

It still does, try right clicking and opening in a new window

When I put stuff on Gumtree for sale I have a Virgin mobile no on the listing.

Sometimes people ring and after a couple of rings they hang up.

I assume this is so I ring them back to give details regarding the item for sale.

For it to cost up to £50 you would have to be on the phone line for sometime.I'm pretty sure at least within a minute someone would realize it's a scam.

I wonder how many sales people miss by only putting a mobile phone number on adverts and listings?

i would never go wth anyone sales or services, that do not, will not give a landline number, at least with a landline you can virtually find out where they are located.

a mobile number could be a shed in a field, or a caravan on the A1 !

I don't have a landline .

If they phone my mobile I give them the address to come and see the item.

People who phone me are usually fairly local maybe 5-10 miles away at most.

Where I live people won't travel far to see an item on Gumtree.

For people 'listed' as businesses then no landline - no business from me.

Saying that when I didn't have a landline myself (only do now due to VM wanting me to stay as a customer, so offered it free connection, free line rental, free caller display and free E-WE calls package, that I now have it) I used a local VoIP number from Sipgate and had that on constant divert to voicemail.

Getting a Sipgate local number is handy as some 'real' big businesses won't accept just mobile and there's no costs involved to having a sipgate number.

But with VOIP services how they are now, I could get myself a landline number from the other end of the country and have it redirected to my mobile, or just answer it on my PC. It'd be quite easy, if I had a reason, to convince people I was in Glasgow or somewhere.

With me when people come to see the item advertised on Gumtree they see where I live.