Claims management firm Brazier Consulting Services has become the latest business to be exposed as a PECR pest after being found guilty of making over 11 million unlawful marketing calls.
The Information Commissioner’s Office is on a roll when it comes to breaches of the Privacy & Electronic Communications Regulations and launched an investigation against Brazier following a barrage of complaints from the public over nuisance calls about PPI claims.
When contacted, Brazier failed to provide evidence to show sufficient consent to call any of the complainants. The ICO also found no evidence to suggest that the firm provided any training whatsoever to staff in relation to PECR.
The calls led to 316 complaints to the ICO and Telephone Preference Service (TPS).
One complainant said: “The advisor was aggressive in manner and I felt quite threatened by his attitude. I am now worried that they intend to charge me for a service that I do not want, have never contacted them regarding PPI , and I have not signed any documents to the contrary. All I want is for them to stop these aggressive phone calls.”
Another added: “I was asked if I had made any PPI claims. I then asked for the caller to remove my number from the system. She then said that she was not allowed to remove numbers from the system, and that I would have to do it myself. I asked her if she was aware of the GDPR regulations and she said, ‘Of course, but are you on the GDPR?'”
The ICO slapped the Leeds-based business with a £200,000 and also issued an Enforcement Notice compelling the firm to stop its illegal marketing activity. It warned the directors that failure to do so is a criminal offence.
ICO investigations manager Natasha Longson said: “It’s clear from the complaints we received that these calls caused real distress. What’s more, the firm continued to bombard people by phoning even when they’d been asked to stop.
“It’s thanks to members of the public that this firm came to our attention and we could take action to bring a stop to this. I would encourage anyone pestered by other rogue operators to report them to the ICO.”
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