How many times have you sat down to eat dinner with your family only to be interrupted by the telephone ringing? You answer and all you get is a sales pitch from some telemarketer trying to sell you insurance, vinyl siding, or some other product you don't really need. By the time you get off the phone your dinner is cold and your temper is hot. It's enough to drive you crazy!

Fortunately, there is a way to stop telemarketers from bugging you all night and day. It's called the "Do Not Call" List.

The Do Not Call list is operated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). It's basically a huge list of phone numbers that telemarketers are not allowed to call. You can add your number to the list at DoNotCall.gov.

Now there are some exceptions to the rules that will allow some phone calls to get through. Calls on behalf of charities, political organizations, and surveyors are still permitted, as are calls from companies with which you already have an existing relationship. Also allowed are calls from companies that receive your permission to call. That means read the fine print carefully before signing anything or you may be unknowingly giving them permission to bug you.

Once you add your number to the Do Not Call list, you should stop receiving unwanted calls within 31 days. However, some shady telemarketers can't take a hint and continue to harass you even after you join the list. To stop telemarketers like this, you can file an official complaint with the FTC and they will be subject to serious fines. This should stop nuisance calls for good.

In order to file a complaint, you'll need the name and phone number of the organization calling you. You can get the number right from your caller ID. Getting the name can be a bit tricky, since the number will often come up "unlisted" or "unavailable". In this case, you can run a reverse number lookup right online to find out exactly who owns the number.