Nuisance calls- what are my rights?
A massive 85% of people will have received a nuisance call in the last month. Usually at the most awkward time your phone will ring, you’ll search for it expectantly and it’s once you have answered you’ll be speaking to a silent line, a machine, or someone asking you to buy something you don’t want or need. You might also have received countless text messages from companies offering you thousands of pounds for that accident you were never in, or insurance you never had.
Nuisance calls can be really annoying for anyone who receives them, but for more vulnerable people, they can cause real stress and anxiety. Due to this problem, the government introduced new cold calling regulations earlier this year where companies can now receive a fine of up to £500,000 for cold calls and nuisance text messages.
Nuisance calls can be really annoying for anyone who receives them, but for more vulnerable people, they can cause real stress and anxiety. Due to this problem, the government introduced new cold calling regulations earlier this year where companies can now receive a fine of up to £500,000 for cold calls and nuisance text messages.
How you can prevent nuisance calls
There are two different types of nuisance calls- calls where there is just silence on the line, and unwanted sales or marketing calls. The two different types are dealt with two different regulators- Ofcom deals with silent calls and the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) deals with unwanted calls.
Marketing and sales calls
If you don’t want to receive marketing or sales calls, you can register your phone number with the TPS. This creates a kind of “no call” list for companies. It’s quick and easy to do, but unfortunately can not stop all sales calls, as some companies may use random number generators and call you by mistake. If you receive any calls while your number is on the TPS Register, you can make a complaint to the Information Commissioners Office (ICO).
Once you have made your request, it will take 28 days for your number to appear on the register then companies aren’t allowed to phone you for marketing reasons unless you’ve given them express permission before or after signing up.
If you are ever buying a new product or signing up for a new service, make sure you carefully read the information about “marketing materials”. Sometimes, they will ask you to tick the box if you DO want to be contacted by sales teams or if you want your information to be passed to third parties. Other times it will say tick the box of you DON’T want to be contacted by sales teams or if you don’t want your information to be passed to third parties. Sometimes it will even automatically tick the box for you, so make sure you know what you’re getting.
Preventing your details from being used for marketing or from being passed to third parties should help reduce both the amount of cold calls you receive and also the amount of junk mail and junk emails.
Spam text messages
Spam text messages are on the increase, but sending unsolicited text messages is illegal. If you are receiving a lot of spam texts, you can report them to the Information Commissioners Office.
You can also report spam texts directly to your mobile phone provider free of charge by forwarding the text message to 7726. All operators now use 7726, with the exception of Vodafone who use 87726.
Silent phone calls
Silent calls are often caused by an automated calling system used by many call centres. The automated system dials a number but if there aren’t enough call centre staff to take all the calls, you may end up with silence on the end of the phone.
Ofcom have guidelines that state there must be an information message if a call does not go through on time. They can also fine a company up to £2 million if they decide to take enforcement action.
If you are receiving silent or abandoned calls, Ofcoms website recommends that you try to identify the caller and check if you have received a voicemail. You are also able to complain to Ofcom about the calls. You can complain by:
• Ringing their customer contact team on 0300 123 3333
• Filling out their online form
• Or by post: Ofcom, Riverside House, 2a Southwark Bridge Road, London, SE1
How to avoid scams
If you are called out of the blue and asked to share personal details with a caller who is vague about the details of their company, you or are pressurised into a sale that sounds too good to be true, you may be the victim of a scam phone call.
These phone calls could be people trying to get money or personal details from you and you need to be cautious if you come across any of these types of calls. It is always better to be safe than sorry, so if you have any suspicions at all, don’t carry on with the phone call.
If you are asked to call a business back to clarify it is legitimate, make sure you do so via a different phone or few days later. Many people use the “call back” technique when they are “phishing”. Read more about it here.
Visit Action Fraud if you feel uncomfortable about a phone call. If you have a small amount of doubt it is worth stopping the call and doing your research.
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