New regulations to crack down on cold callers

The new regulations will remove a clause that requires authorities to prove a company has caused “substantial damage or substantial distress” before an action can be launched.

In addition, plans to hold company bosses accountable for nuisance calls and to make caller identification compulsory are also being considered.

The culture minister, Ed Vaizey, said the relaxed rules will mean more companies can be pursued.

So far, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has pursued nine cases since January 2012 – with the fines imposed totalling £815,000.

Mr Vaizey said: “For far too long, companies have bombarded people with unwanted marketing calls and texts, and escaped punishment because they did not cause enough harm.

“This change will make it easier for the ICO to take action against offenders and send a clear message to others that harassing consumers with nuisance calls or texts is just not on.

“We’re also going to look at whether the powers the ICO has to hold to account board-level executives for such behaviour are sufficient or we need to do more.”

About four out of five people are cold-called regularly, while a third feel intimidated according to research carried out by Which? – the consumer rights group.

Currently, householders can register for the Telephone Preference Service, which stops unsolicited calls from landlines.

However, it does not prevent unsolicited mobile phone calls, text messages and calls from overseas.

Over 15,600 complaints were made to the ICO in November regarding nuisance communications, with 2,377 relating to the sale of solar panels and 1,830 to PPI.

Complaints totalled over 175,00 over the course of last year.

The UK government established a task force to deal with nuisance calls last year. It made 15 recommendations to deal with the problem.

Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which? (pictured) chaired the task force.

He said: “We welcome the government making good on its promise to change the law so it’s easier to prosecute nuisance callers.

“These calls are an everyday menace blighting the lives of millions so we want the regulator to send a clear message by using their new powers to full effect without delay.”

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme: “Eight out of 10 people have told us they have had an unwanted call or text over the last month, a third of people have said they have been caused distress and they have been feeling intimidated by these calls, so this is a massive problem and we have to get a grip on it.

“If we get the regulators, the government and the telecoms companies working together on this we think we could start seeing a rapid decline in calls but that’s going to take a while.”