Never Mind the Bus Pass

You’ve just settled down with a cup of tea or a glass of wine at the end of a long day. As you relax and unwind, the phone rings. Reluctantly you drag yourself off the settee and answer. It’s an unsolicited marketing call, someone trying to sell you solar panels. Even worse it’s an automated message about payment protection insurance mis-selling. AAAARGH! Can you stop these people calling you? Yes, you can, and here’s how.

The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 lay down rules for organisations regarding making unsolicited marketing calls to individuals

The regulations require that organisations do not make ‘live’ marketing calls (where there is actually a person talking to them, as opposed to a recorded message) to:

- a subscriber who has indicated a general objection to receiving such calls by registering with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) or,
- a subscriber who has notified the caller that they do notwant to receive such unsolicited calls

Register with the Telephone Preference service here. It takes less than 5 minutes

Automated marketing calls (calls during which you can’t speak to an actual person but have to listen to a recorded message) are even more invidious because Regulation 19 of the Privacy and Electronic Communication Regulations requires that companies or organisations making automated marketing telephone calls have the prior consent of the subscribers they are calling. Yes, I know what you’re thinking – when did I give all those organisations my permission? Registering with the TPS should stop these calls, but if it doesn’t, or if you don’t want to register, you can make a complaint to the government’s Information Commissioner’s Office here