ACMA have reported that Westpac was issued with a formal warning for breaches of the Do Not Call Register Act 2006 (‘the Act’).
ACMA reported that Westpac was the bank that had the greatest number of complaints made against it to ACMA, concerning alleged breaches of the the Act. ACMA claim that although Westpac had a relationship with its customers, ‘its procedures for recording the withdrawal of consent had failed.’
Westpac was reported to have agreed to and implemented a number of measures to resolve the issue including ‘washing’ their call lists against the Do Not Call Register.
ACMA’s report that they have had a total of 40,000 complaints since May 2007 concerning the Act, and noted a significant drop in the number of complaints from 2007 to the end of 2008. This is no doubt in part to increasing awareness, and availability of tools to assist in compliance.
This serves as a timely reminder for ISPs and Telcos, particularly now that many utilise the services of overseas call centres. Section 9 of the Act makes it clear that just because a call centre is located overseas it doesn’t prevent the application of the Act.
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The “washing” with the DO NOT CALL Register,
although it sounds nice, the way it has been implemented is a very costly and slow exercise for any company to go through, i.e.: its another tax on business.
Just pointing out the other side of the coin. I have nothing against the general idea.
I agree ‘washing’ is another cost on business. You comment raises the point I always make, regulation needs to find a balance between protecting the community and the respecting the interests of business – not as easy as it sounds.