Ban on cold calling for consumer financial services and products
Consultation seeking views on the design and scope of the ban on cold calling for consumer financial services and products, including a call for evidence on the impacts of the proposed ban.
As announced in the Fraud Strategy in May 2023, the government will extend the pensions cold calling ban to cover cold calling for all consumer financial services and products.
Criminals often use telecommunication networks and services to commit fraud, including through cold calling the public. Banning cold calling for financial services and products will help block fraud attempts before they can cause harm. The public will know that no legitimate firm would cold call them to market financial services or products, and should feel empowered to terminate and report these calls.
This consultation paper explores how best to design and implement this ban to prevent scam calls from reaching the public, while allowing legitimate and beneficial communications from businesses to continue. The consultation also includes a call for evidence to collect information and data that will allow a more rigorous assessment of the impacts on businesses.