May 24, 2016

A claims management company that made 17.5 million calls asking people if they had suffered hearing loss at work has been fined £250,000 by the ICO.

The nuisance calls were made by Blackburn-based Check Point Claims Ltd.  People who picked up the phone heard a recorded message encouraging them to claim compensation for job-related hearing loss.

The ICO launched an investigation after receiving 248 complaints.

The ICO reminds businesses that making calls that play a recorded message is only allowed if they have gained specific permission from people to make that type of call.  Companies must also identify themselves within the message.  Check Point Claims Ltd did neither.

The ICO found that Check Point Claims Ltd instigated 17,565,690 automated marketing calls between March and September 2015, of which 6,388,122 were connected.

Check Point Claims has gone into liquidation.  While this creates a challenge in recovering the fine, the ICO says it is “committed to making the most of the UK’s insolvency regime” to pursue money owed.

Head of Enforcement, Mr Eckersley, said: “We will do everything within our power to recover fines on behalf of taxpayers and those millions of people who have been hounded by unwanted calls.  Even companies that have stopped trading or try to get themselves struck off cannot escape because we will use all means available to chase the debt”.

As previously reported in N2K, as of 16 May, cold callers can no longer hide or disguise their phone number and must display their phone numbers when making unsolicited phone calls.  The ICO says that this will make it easier for it to find and take action against companies making nuisance calls.  To read the ICO’s press release in full and to access the Monetary Penalty Notice, click here.