Marketing is crucial for businesses, and often, businesses make telephone calls to potential customers as part of their marketing strategies. However, the protection of individuals and their rights is fundamental under data protection and electronic marketing rules. As such, businesses must follow strict legal rules when making marketing calls. This article will explore whether businesses can cold call individuals and the key legal issues to consider when doing so. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
When we speak of \u2018cold calling\u2019, we refer to making unsolicited (unrequested) marketing calls to individuals. There are two sets of legal rules to consider when making unsolicited telephone marketing calls<\/a>. As a business engaging in this activity, you will need to comply with both data protection and electronic communication laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) is the UK\u2019s data protection law compliance regime, alongside the Data Protection Act 2018. The UK GDPR sets rules about processing personal data about living individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are several legal rules to follow under the GDPR. Telephone marketing activities will generally involve processing personal data, such as the name and telephone number of the proposed call recipient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Where a business makes marketing telephone calls, it needs to ensure that it has an appropriate \u2018lawful basis\u2019, that is, a valid legal reason to do so. A business must be able to justify and document its lawful basis for making marketing calls. Commonly, businesses tend to rely on the grounds of \u2018legitimate interests\u2019 or \u2018consent\u2019 to make marketing calls.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n The lawful basis for processing personal data can be challenging to determine in practice. If you are unsure about this, you should seek legal advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n Continue reading this article below the form\n <\/i>\n<\/a>\nGeneral Data Protection Regulation Rules<\/h2>\n\n\n\n