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Fundraisers under investigation for nuisance calls

Major UK charities have come under scrutiny after claims that their fundraisers are contacting those who have opted out of nuisance calls.

Four of the UK’s largest charities are to be investigated after claims that their fundraisers are contacting those who have opted out of nuisance calls.

The NSPCC, British Red Cross, Oxfam and Macmillan Cancer Support will be investigated by the Information Commissioner’s Office following allegations that their fundraising staff used contacts from the government’s opt-out nuisance call database, the Telephone Preference Service which allows those registered to prevent sales calls. The four charities, described as the biggest in the UK will be scrutinized to determine whether they have broken data protection laws.

A spokesperson for the Information Commissioner’s Office said: “We’re aware of allegations raised against several charities, and will be investigating whether there have been any breaches of the Data Protection Act or privacy and electronic communication regulations.”

Staff members working on behalf of the charities at a call center in the capital are being accused of targeting the vulnerable, including those suffering from dementia and the elderly of Britain. 

Olive Cooke, one of Britain’s longest serving poppy sellers, died back in May after being “tormented” by cold-callers from charities.

This comes after the death of a 92 year old poppy seller, Olive Cooke, who committed suicide due to the extensive charity fundraising calls she was being bombarded with.

The call-center in question, Gogen denied the claims and ensured it does not “make cold calls of any kind to TPS-registered data supplied by third parties generated by lifestyle or profiled survey questionnaires”.

Fundraising director at Oxfam, Tim Hunter said “I have personally tested the robust measures in place to ensure these standards are maintained and vulnerable people are protected. We monitor calls, carry out undercover spot checks and work with the industry watchdog to make sure our strict guidelines are followed,” he said.

A Macmillan spokeswoman said: “We take the requests of our supporters very seriously and all supporters can choose to unsubscribe from communications at any time”.

A British Red Cross spokeswoman said: “We would never knowingly ask for donations from someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia, and further measures are being put in place to ensure best practice is followed at all times.”

A government announcement vowed to tackle the issue by threatening companies with fines of up to £500,000. Information Commissioner’s Office reportedly received 175,000 complaints for nuisance calls last year.

SU/HA


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