Google Voice gives you a free phone number, which can forward to your 'real' phone.
Or, for most people here, you might find the "Send to Voicemail" or "Block" features more handy ;)
A month before we stopped making our last payments on our cards, we changed our phone numbers with our credit cards to our Google Voice numbers. When a creditor calls, I simply go into Google Voice and have it "Send to Voicemail", and I never hear from them again. I'll occasionally log back in to see what kind of voicemails creditors leave.
If you'd like, you can have it simply "Blocked" (mark as 'Spam'), and they will get an "out of service" type of number. But, I urge you NOT to do that... or they'll simply find another number to call. If you send them to voicemail, then they at least think it's a valid #.
Lastly, you can even set a 'customized' greeting for creditors. For instance, record a voicemail greeting that says "Hello, I have retained a lawyer. Refer any further questions to John Smith at 555-1234. Thank you." Then, when creditors/collections call you, simply change the greeting for that caller to what you recorded.
Where to get it:
It is INVITE ONLY.
Request an Invite, though it may take weeks/months to get an invite
Or, find someone who has an invite already, and get it immediately. I have 2 invites left. The first 2 who reply that want one, I will provide to you! BUT, please don't waste it, and don't sell it!
If you're really desperate, you can find invites being sold on eBay for about $6.
- Ryan
EDIT: One other helpful tip... if you DO let creditors call your Google Voice # (ie, allow it to forward to your real phone), Google Voice has a RECORD feature
Simply ask the creditor if they consent to being recorded. If they say "Yes", then press '4' on your phone's keypad and it will keep a recording for you
Or, for most people here, you might find the "Send to Voicemail" or "Block" features more handy ;)
A month before we stopped making our last payments on our cards, we changed our phone numbers with our credit cards to our Google Voice numbers. When a creditor calls, I simply go into Google Voice and have it "Send to Voicemail", and I never hear from them again. I'll occasionally log back in to see what kind of voicemails creditors leave.
If you'd like, you can have it simply "Blocked" (mark as 'Spam'), and they will get an "out of service" type of number. But, I urge you NOT to do that... or they'll simply find another number to call. If you send them to voicemail, then they at least think it's a valid #.
Lastly, you can even set a 'customized' greeting for creditors. For instance, record a voicemail greeting that says "Hello, I have retained a lawyer. Refer any further questions to John Smith at 555-1234. Thank you." Then, when creditors/collections call you, simply change the greeting for that caller to what you recorded.
Where to get it:
It is INVITE ONLY.
Request an Invite, though it may take weeks/months to get an invite
Or, find someone who has an invite already, and get it immediately. I have 2 invites left. The first 2 who reply that want one, I will provide to you! BUT, please don't waste it, and don't sell it!
If you're really desperate, you can find invites being sold on eBay for about $6.
- Ryan
EDIT: One other helpful tip... if you DO let creditors call your Google Voice # (ie, allow it to forward to your real phone), Google Voice has a RECORD feature
Simply ask the creditor if they consent to being recorded. If they say "Yes", then press '4' on your phone's keypad and it will keep a recording for you
12/14/10 - Filed Chapter 7, 02/09/11 - 341 Hearing, 04/14/11 - 
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