I was attending a funeral once, had phone on silent, and afterwards noticed SEVEN missed calls from a private number, no messages left at all. I became a bit worried because clearly someone was very anxious to get hold of me.
I sat watching the phone and lo and behold it began to ring, private number. It was NTL trying to sell me something! I was so annoyed - 8 calls in less than an hour - desperation. I chewed the person out of it.
Ive no idea if they have called since as I do not answer private number calls or calls from numbers I dont recognise. If its legit and I do not answer, the person will leave a message. I have noticed quite a decrease in these calls since I adopted the no answer except to numbers I know approach.