Ofcom Rule Changes: Knock On Effect for Debt Collection
The UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, published a Statement and Consultation paper setting out the review of its General Conditions of Entitlement at the end of 2017. The changes, which will apply to all UK communications providers, will come into effect on 1st October 2018. They follow a consultation on proposed changes in consumer protection in December 2016, and a consultation on network functioning and numbering and other technical matters in August 2016.
Seeking to ‘clarify and simplify many of the rules’ Ofcom have removed some rules that are no longer in use or relevant, and have implemented new rules on customer complaints, identifying vulnerable customers and calling line identification. These will have a knock-on effect for debt collection and other third-party firms acting on behalf of the communications providers, who will have to ensure that they abide by the new rules.
In addition, Ofcom are also bringing in changes to network functioning and numbering, meaning that numbers displayed to those receiving calls must be valid, must uniquely identify the caller, and must be ‘dialable’, or able to be used to make a return or subsequent call. It will be incumbent on communications providers to take reasonable steps to identify calls on which invalid or non-dialable calling line identification (CLI) data is provided, and to block these calls, where technically feasible. Ofcom states that if such calls are blocked at the network level, they would be prevented from reaching consumers, thus reducing nuisance calls. Although not currently considered as a requirement, Ofcom suggests that communications providers should check CLI data where it appears as a mobile number, but appears to be coming from a fixed device – something that businesses who run such operations should be aware of.
Communications providers, along with any firm acting on their behalf, will also be required to have clear and effective policies and procedures for identifying vulnerable customers, to ensure that they are treated fairly and appropriately. Currently, Ofcom’s General Conditions impose certain requirements on communications providers in relation to end users with disabilities; the changes require that special measures be adopted for end-users whose particular circumstances may make them vulnerable. The changes also impose a requirement for communications providers to establish, publish and implement policies to ensure that the needs of vulnerable consumers are adequately considered and met.
To read more about the requirements for the fair and appropriate treatment of vulnerable customers, complaints handling policies and procedures and changes to the current rules that aim to ensure that users have access to fair debt collection and disconnection practices... You can access the full blog post here.