Beware of "Giving Hearts" charity scam!

By Pete Waldmeir

There's a new telephone scam operating in the Grosse Pointes that our friends and neighbors should be aware of.

It pops up on your Caller ID as "Giving Hearts," which sounds for all the world like a charity - so you answer it. But when you do, a telemarketer from an outfit called Global Crossing Telemanagement Inc. asks to speak to the "homeowner" and proceeds to try to sell you windows on behalf of a comany headquartered in Warren, MI. and run by a family group called the Carriers.

You're on the national "Do Not Call" list, you holler. Stop calling. But this is the Warren window replacement company's scuzzy way of skirting that legal prohibition. They promise that "a portion" of the window company's sale to you will go to charity.

What's "Giving Hearts?" There is no such 501(c)(3) legalized charity.

It's just another clever trick to enable Global Management to bypass the "Do Not Call" registry and get unwary Grosse Pointe residents to listen to their scam sales pitch. If they call, hang up.