Do Not Call complaints plunge

The number of complaints from consumers about the Do Not Call register has plunged 60% in the last year, according to data from the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

Figures released by the ACMA show that there were 12,057 complaints in the 12 months to 31 May 2009, well down from the 30,060 complaints received between May 2007 and May 2008.

Since the register was launched in May 2007, 3.5 million consumers have added their phone numbers to the register. In the last 12 months, 1.2 million numbers have been added.

Not surprisingly, the ACMA has been quick to claim credit for the drop and says that its compliance campaign against telemarketing companies has sent a strong message to the industry.

Over the past two years, the ACMA has issued eight formal warnings, accepted eight enforceable undertakings and collected more than $300,000 in penalties from businesses that have called people on the register.

“This very sizeable drop in complaints indicates that the telemarketing industry is getting the message and changing behaviours,” Chris Chapman, chairman of the Australian Communications and Media Authority, said in a statement.

“Making prohibited calls to people on the register just isn’t worth it – you will get caught and you will get penalised.”

Rob Edwards, chief executive of the Australian Direct Marketing Association, says the new data shows that the register is working.

“Clearly there was a systemic failure [in the industry]. You can’t overlook the fact that there are 3.5 million people on the register,” he says.

“But telemarketing businesses want to comply. The reality is no one wants to call consumers who don’t want to be called.”

But while Edwards is happy with the Do Not Call register for consumers, he remains frustrated and angry at the Federal Government’s plan to introduce a register for businesses.

“Why have it in the first place? The cure is worse than the problem,” he says.

While the Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has promised to consult with the industry before introducing the necessary legislation, Edwards says the ADMA is yet to sit down with the Department.

“We’re still waiting to hear back from the Department on what they might think is a reasonable exemption. We’re yet to have a dialogue.”

But he does say that the falling level of complaints against telemarketers indicates the problem may not be as big as some think.

“There are hundreds of millions of phone calls made each year and we’ve got 12,000 complaints. It’s hardly a big problem.”