Culture, Media and Sport CommitteeWritten evidence submitted by Terry Pearce [NTC 011]
My submission includes experience from three different perspectives:
1.The most commonly cited fear of nuisance telephone calls (cold calls) is the exploitation of the elderly. My late mother suffered from early-stage dementia, and, combined with a trusting nature, she was an easy target for cold callers. I once called her during a double glazing demonstration at her home (she already had double glazing). I told the company representative (on speakerphone) that I would call back in ten minutes and did not expect him to be there. During my visits, she agreed to let me view her bank statements to ensure all was well. This often revealed new direct debits for services she didn’t need. In one instance, she was scammed by a company claiming to be Sky, selling service contracts for satellite equipment. They turned out to be unrelated to Sky and I informed the local trading standards office. I printed a note which she left by her phone, “I am a member of TPS and you shouldn’t be calling me” which she initially used, but the note would soon get lost in other paperwork. I also attached a “No cold callers” note to her front door. The vulnerability of my mother to cold calling was a constant worry.
2.My personal experience of cold calling is one of frustration and annoyance. I would often arrive home after a busy day, shower, get changed, spend 30 minutes preparing a tasty meal with fresh ingredients, and as I started to unwind and sat down at the dining table, I would invariably get a cold call. These primarily related to PPI and energy (solar panels or grants for insulation). I became tired of quoting registration of TPS as cold callers ignored this and TPS appears to be toothless. Even though I would ask callers to remove my details and not call again, the calls were relentless. Even where I made online enquiries, carefully marking the no calls/text/post boxes, these were often ignored. More worryingly, I would get calls from Indian call centres, which the ICO and TPS have no jurisdiction. Some callers were less than friendly, and in one instance, abusive. The Indian call centre call was usually a scam (claiming to be Microsoft and saying my PC had a virus). They would call at least twice every week, and after six months, I decided to take action.
I installed a TruCall device which screens calls. It acts in the same way as a spam filter on email—it only allows callers on your white list and blocks callers on your blacklist. Other calls are screened for you to decide. The transformation is a godsend, and I now have control over my calls. The ability to do so is empowering, and I feel like a helpless victim without it. (I should point out that I have no relationship with TruCall other than being a very satisfied customer).
I also receive nuisance text messages on my mobile, which I can block after the initial nuisance text. But I always wonder, how did they get my details? Who has my number?
The recent success of the ICO in punishing cold call companies is to be welcomed, but I feel that there should be an easier way to log nuisance calls. At the moment, each nuisance call has to be separately logged, with much repetitive information. A central resource like Who Calls Me? www.whocallsme.com would streamline this process.
3.As a professional sales account manager in the technology sector, I have very strong views on cold calling. A company that has to cold call to win business says a lot about the company, ie they are prepared to annoy 95% of their contacts to win 5% of the business. Cold calling is labour intensive and takes up valuable time in business. In my earlier sales career, I would often be told “You’re the 12th cold call this morning to the IT Manager.” Why companies think that this is good practice is beyond me. On the rare occasion I receive a business cold call in the office, I ignore their product and challenge their sales strategy. The book “Never Cold Call Again!” by Frank Rumbauskas sums up the whole approach to winning business. There is no place for cold calling in the 21st century, as there are more ethical and effective ways of reaching your target market.
August 2013
