NORDMAs Code of
Practice for Telemarketing (TM) has the same objective as NORDMAs general Code
of Practice, in that it shall contribute to NORDMA maintaining an effective and
reliable system of self-regulation. These regulations (the Code of Practice)
shall fulfil reasonable requirements and expectations that consumers and
companies have with respect to the practices of the industry and of NORDMAs
members.
NORDMAs Code of
Practice for TM sets ethical and technical standards for members practices, and
it is a condition of membership that all TM-authorised member companies comply
with the Code. Where required, NORDMA will draw up, revise and publish
guidelines for practice in different areas that affect the
industry.
NORDMA has its own Supervisory Committee which is responsible
for supervising member companies compliance with NORDMAs Code of Practice.
Breach of the Code may have consequences for members.
- 1.
Definition of Telemarketing (TM)
- 2. General requirements
- 3. Training
- 4.
Complaints/erasure of data
- 5. Use of automatic
calling systems
- 6. NORDMAs Supervisory
Commite e
1.
Definition of Telemarketing (TM)
Telemarketing
means:
The sum total of the activities and communication required in order
to offer goods and services to one or more target groups, through the medium of
telecommunications, for the purpose of achieving a measurable response or
dialogue with customers or potential customers.
Telecommunications media
in this context may be ingoing and outgoing telemarketing, interactive TV, SMS,
MMS, etc.
2. General requirements
2.1
Licence
It
is a condition that NORDMA members engaged in TM activities shall have been
granted a licence to operate by the Data Inspectorate.
2.2 Responsible
management
The company must have a general manager, a board
of directors and an authorised accountant.
2.3 Controller/processor
In cases where a TM company carries out an assignment on anothers behalf, the relationship as regards roles and responsibilities shall normally be that the principal is the controller, and the TM company the processor. However, this does not exempt the TM company from co-responsibility with respect to ethical conduct and other areas mentioned below.
2.4 Ethical rules of
conduct (requirements as to operation of the activity)
The
company shall have drawn up rules for operation of the activity that are in
agreement with NORDMAs general Code of Practice, ethical rules and good
business practice.
The company undertakes to operate its TM activity in
accordance with the following ethical rules:
o It
is not permitted to use other than the principals register of members,
customers, suppliers or subscribers for the purpose of telephone marketing.
Telephone registers may only be used electronically after they have been updated
against the official Central Marketing Exclusion Register and Statistics
Norways Register of Deceased Persons.
o Market
research and sales campaigns must not be coupled together.
o
Marketers shall consciously avoid the sale of ideas and/or products which may
appear disreputable or offensive to the recipient.
o It
is a prerequisite that the goods and services concerned may be sold lawfully in
Norway.
o Upon
calling the recipient, the telesalesperson shall introduce himself or herself,
state on whose behalf he or she is calling and the purpose of the call. The
salesperson shall then request permission to continue the call.
o The TM company
is responsible for ensuring that all operators are at all times able to answer
any questions the recipient may have concerning the identity of the principal
and the source of the address/telephone number.
o Customers who call
back to a given number shall be notified, either personally or with the use of a
pre-recorded message, of the name of the company behind the sales campaign and
the name of the call centre that has made the call.
o
Private individuals shall not be called before 9 a.m. and no later than 9 p.m.
On Saturdays private individuals shall not be called after 6 p.m., and no
calling is permitted on Sundays and public holidays.
Automatic
mass calling where the sender is only an answer machine is prohibited under the
Marketing Control Act section 2 b), and shall not occur.
3. Training
The
company shall operate a training scheme for its employees. The employees shall
be trained in calling and communication. The company has an obligation to ensure
that all communicators are familiar with and understand the industrys own
ethical rules and the licensing requirements issued by the Data Inspectorate.
The employees shall undertake to comply with these rules.
4. Complaints/erasure
of data
The
company is obliged to keep statistics with regard to complaints. Clear
procedures shall be established for dealing with complaints.
If the data
subject so requests, his or her personal data shall be erased from or blocked in
the companys lists. Furthermore the communicator is obliged to ensure that he
or she is familiar with the procedure for permitting data subjects to register
in the Central Marketing Exclusion Register their objection to having their data
used for telephone sales purposes.
5. Use of automatic calling systems
5.1 Definitions
Automatic
calling systems
Automatic
calling systems (ACSs) are systems that are capable of calling a telephone
number automatically before an agent is ready to take over the call exclusively.
This includes systems such as:
o Predictive diallers
o Progressive diallers
o Power diallers
o Auto diallers
o Preview diallers
o Adaptive diallers
o Automatic diallers
This definition of automatic calling systems does not necessarily represent the limit of these systems, as other systems can also be included.
Live calls
A live call is a call where a live salesperson is actually in contact with a customer.
Abandoned calls
An abandoned call is any call where the system frees the line (abandons the call) after a call has been answered by a customer.
5.2 Minimum ring time
Members of NORDMA must ensure that their calling systems are set so as to ring using a minimum of 4 ring signals (= 20 seconds) before the ringing stops and the call is concluded as not answered.
5.3 Available salesperson
If no salesperson is available to take the call set up by the system, the system shall abandon the call and free the line as quickly as possible, and within a maximum of 3 seconds from the customer lifting the receiver. As a minimum, a message should be played identifying the caller and possibly also providing the recipient with information about how to contact the caller.
5.4 Proportion of abandoned calls
The calling system must at all times be adjusted in such a way as to prevent abandoned (or silent) calls, but must never exceed 5% as a proportion of live calls made for each sales campaign over a 24-hour period. The proportion of abandoned calls shall be calculated on the basis of actual calls (live calls) on/within the same campaign and time interval.
5.5 New call following an abandoned call
If a call to a recipient has resulted in a so-called "drop" (the recipient picks up the receiver too late, and there is no-one at the other end), the TM company shall, if calling the same number again later, ensure that this is done in such as way as to avoid a "drop" occurring again. Numbers that have received abandoned calls shall not be called again for a period of 72 hours and subsequent calls shall be made by a dedicated customer salesperson.
5.6 Records of calls
For each
individual sales campaign/project, NORDMAs members are required to retain
records broken down on a daily basis (dialler statistics) which clearly document
compliance with NORDMAs Code of Practice. The
records shall contain:
o The total number of calls attempted
o The total number of calls answered
o The total number of calls connected
o The total number of calls transferred to an available salesperson
o The total number of abandoned calls
5.7 Maintenance and storage of call records
Dialler statistics must be kept for a minimum of 12 months and must be available for inspection at reasonable notice from NORDMA or other relevant authority.
5.8 Number display
The TM companys calling identification number shall not be concealed from the recipient. The recipient shall at all times be able to identify the number, and so be able to ring back and receive a message as to who has called. It is the responsibility of the TM company to make this practically and technically possible.
5.9 Cost of calls
A recipient
who has experienced "drop", and who wishes to trace the caller, shall if desired
have the cost of tracing the call at the national rate refunded by the TM
company in question. Calls from customers to the company that has made the call
(on a displayed calling line identification number) shall be refunded at the
national rate.
6. NORDMAs
Supervisory Committee
NORDMA has established a Supervisory Committee whose most important purpose, where necessary, is to carry out independent assessments of complaints related to individual members compliance with the Code of Practice. The Supervisory Committee is composed of the General Manager of NORDMA as well as a technical specialist.
6.1 Roles and tasks
The
Supervisory Committee
considers all
unresolved customer complaints against NORDMAs members. The Committee will seek
to come to an amicable agreement in such complaint cases, and will if necessary
make an adjudicative decision in accordance with the Code of Practice.
Upon referral from
NORDMAs General Manager, the Supervisory
Committee may consider complaints against non-members who have
applied for membership of NORDMA. The Supervisory Committee will report to the
Board its viewpoints regarding the complaint.
The
Supervisory
Committee monitors the extent
of compliance with NORDMAs Code of Practice, and draws up an annual report
concerning this which is submitted to the relevant authority. The report is
compiled on the basis of cases considered by the Committee, as well as the
results of a questionnaire survey among the members. The
report is made publicly available in connection with the General Meeting.
The
Supervisory
Committee may carry out visits
to members for the purpose of discussing relevant problems, and may in this
connection take up matters that affect compliance with the Code of Practice,
irrespective of whether or not a complaint has been received from a third
party.
6.2 Authorisation
If the Supervisory Committee judges that a members practices are not in compliance with the Code of Practice, the Committee is authorised to decide one or more of the following measures:
o Get the member to undertake not to repeat the breach, or if necessary agree alternative practice with the member.
o Issue a written warning to the member, which shall normally be made public. The member will be given the opportunity to read through and comment on the warning before it is made public.
o Suspend the
member, or, if the circumstances dictate, terminate the membership of NORDMA.
NORDMAs Board shall be notified that the Committee is in the process of
imposing such sanctions.
Whether or not the Supervisory Committee concludes that there has been a breach of the Code of Practice, it may irrespective:
o Decide to advise the member concerning possible changes in practice and/or
o Seek
an amicable settlement on behalf of the involved parties.
