You may occasionally receive a call intended for another person if the caller has dialed your telephone number in error or thinks your number belongs to the person the caller wishes to reach. The best way to deal with these calls is to advise the caller that he or she has reached the wrong number. If you know the telephone number of the person the caller is trying to reach, you may wish to provide him or her with the correct telephone number. If the calls persist, you may wish to change your telephone number. A charge may apply.

Fax or modem calls on your voice line are recognizable by an electronic beeping noise when you answer a call. Experience has shown that most fax calls received on a voice line are misdialed or misdirected calls. The party making the call usually realizes he or she is contacting the wrong person and proceeds with the necessary correction. If the calls persist, there are some Bruce Telecom services that may help you retrieve the sender’s number.

The best way to deal with obscene or harassing calls is to HANG UP. If calls persist, you may wish to screen out unwanted calls by using Call Screen. See Call Screen in the Calling Features section of this website for  information about the service. If calls persist and are threatening, you may wish to trace the caller’s telephone number using Call Trace. Call Trace will work on blocked numbers. Call Trace should be used only in serious situations when you wish to take legal action against the caller. If you are receiving many harassing or threatening calls and use Call Trace, you should be prepared to contact the police and have the caller charged. Bruce Telecom will release the traced number only on presentation of proper legal authorization and ONLY TO THE POLICE.

There is a charge of $5.00* per line for each use of Call Trace, with a monthly maximum of $10.00* per line. You pay only if the number is traced successfully. However, you pay for the trace whether or not the number is requested by the police. Using Call Trace does not guarantee that the police will accept your case or follow up on a Call Trace request. This service is available to individual-line residence and business customers only.

1. Hang up after answering the call.
2. Pick up the receiver and listen for the dial tone.
3. Press * 57 on a Touch-Tone™ telephone or dial 1157 on a rotary dial set.
4. A voice message will tell you whether the call has been traced successfully.