Is cold calling illegal in the UK? Rules for B2B calls
Most B2B cold calling is legal in the UK if you screen numbers against the TPS and CTPS, say who you are, show your number and stop when asked.
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Cold calling is legal in the UK. The ICO explains that most live marketing calls do not need the person's prior consent, but you must not call a number registered with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) or the Corporate Telephone Preference Service (CTPS) unless that person has told you they are happy to hear from you, and you must not call anyone who has told you not to. Every call must say who is calling and display a number. Calls about claims management services need consent, and live calls about pension schemes are allowed only in the narrow circumstances the ICO sets out.
This is general information, not legal advice. If you are deciding whether to run calls in-house or hand them over, our outsourced cold calling page explains how a managed team answers the question is cold calling legal in the UK in practice, on every call it makes for you.
On this page
The law that applies
Telephone marketing in the UK is governed by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR), alongside data protection law. The ICO regulates both and publishes the guidance this page follows.
PECR regulation 21
Regulation 21 is the rule for unsolicited live marketing calls. In plain terms, it stops a business from making, or getting someone else to make, a marketing call to a line where:
- the subscriber has told that business they do not want its calls, or
- the number is on the register of people who have opted out of marketing calls, which is the TPS or the CTPS.
A newly registered number is protected once it has been on the register for 28 days. And a registered subscriber can still agree to calls from a named business, which then overrides the registration for that business. If you would rather hand the screening and calling to a managed team, see outsourced lead generation for what that involves.
UK GDPR and data protection
If your list holds the names and contact details of people at businesses, data protection law applies to how you collect, store and use them, alongside PECR. How Ant Assist keeps lead data secure is set out in how is lead data kept secure.
TPS and CTPS screening
The ICO's guidance on live direct marketing calls says you must screen numbers against the TPS and CTPS before you make live marketing calls, unless the person has told you they are happy to receive your calls.
What each register covers
- The TPS is the register for individuals who do not want unsolicited marketing calls.
- The CTPS is the register for corporate subscribers, such as companies, that do not want them.
Screening in practice
Screen the whole list before the first call and again before each new calling campaign, because numbers are added all the time and a newly listed number becomes protected 28 days after it is registered. Keep a record of when you screened and against which registers. Remove or flag every registered number, unless you hold that person's agreement to hear from you specifically. Once calls begin, cold calling success rates show how to measure them.
Calling companies, sole traders and partnerships
The ICO treats limited companies, LLPs and Scottish partnerships as corporate subscribers covered by the CTPS, and sole traders and certain other partnerships as individuals covered by the TPS, so screen B2B lists against both. The ICO's business-to-business marketing guidance divides business subscribers into two groups.
Corporate and individual subscribers
| Type of business | ICO treats it as | Screen against |
|---|---|---|
| Limited company | Corporate subscriber | CTPS |
| Limited liability partnership (LLP) | Corporate subscriber | CTPS |
| Scottish partnership | Corporate subscriber | CTPS |
| Sole trader | Individual subscriber | TPS |
| Certain other partnerships | Individual subscriber | TPS |
A plumber trading in their own name is a business to you, but in these rules they are an individual, and their number can be on the TPS.
Why both registers apply
You often cannot tell from a list whether a business is a company or a sole trader, and some numbers are personal mobiles used for work. The ICO's B2B guidance says to screen against both the CTPS and the TPS before live B2B marketing calls. Screening both closes the gap.
Rules for every live marketing call
Identifying yourself and showing your number
The ICO says you must say who is calling and display your number, or another number on which you can be contacted. Never withhold the number.
Honouring objections straight away
If someone asks you not to call again, that request applies to your business from then on, whether or not they are on a register. Add them to your own do-not-call list at once and make sure every caller and every tool uses that list. Do not call them again unless they tell you they are happy to hear from you.
Claims management and pension calls
The ICO says calls about claims management services need the person's consent, and live calls about pension schemes are allowed only if you are a trustee or manager of an occupational or personal pension scheme, or authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and either the person has consented to such calls or you meet the ICO's strict existing-client criteria: you have an existing client relationship with them (not one you set up mainly so that you could make such a call), they might reasonably envisage such a call from you, and you gave them a chance to opt out when you collected their details and in every communication you send them (see the ICO's live calls guidance). If your offer touches either, take advice before you call anyone.
Calling hours
People often ask whether it is illegal to cold call after 8pm. The ICO's live calls guidance opened for this page does not set calling hours, and we have not found an official source that sets a legal cut-off, so we do not state one. For B2B calls, call during the hours your prospects work.
Penalties and enforcement
You can be penalised for breaking the UK rules on marketing calls. The ICO can take enforcement action, which can include monetary penalties against the organisation and, in some cases, its directors. The fastest way into trouble is calling registered numbers without screening, ignoring people who have asked you to stop, and withholding your number.
Compliance checklist
Use this compliance checklist before every UK calling campaign: screen against the TPS and CTPS, keep a do-not-call list, display a callback number and open each call with your name and business. It is a working list, not a legal opinion.
- Screen the full list against the TPS and the CTPS, and record the date.
- Re-screen before each new campaign.
- Remove registered numbers, unless you hold that person's agreement to your calls.
- Load your own do-not-call list into every dialler and CRM.
- Check the offer is not about claims management or pensions; if it is, stop and take advice.
- Display a number you can be called back on.
- Open every call with your name and the business the call is for.
- Record every objection on the call and update the do-not-call list the same day.
- Keep notes of who was called, when and the outcome.
- Review the list and the do-not-call records each month.
Dealing with unwanted calls
If you are a householder or a sole trader receiving sales calls you do not want, you can register your number with the TPS; a business that is a company can register with the CTPS. You can also tell any caller not to call you again, and under regulation 21 that business must then stop. The ICO, which regulates these calls, publishes guidance for people receiving them on its website.
Outsourcing and who is responsible
Outsourcing the calls does not outsource the responsibility. Regulation 21 covers both the business making the call and the business that gets someone else to make it, so if a provider calls on your behalf, you share the risk. Agree in writing who screens, how often, whose do-not-call list is used, and how objections reach you.
At Ant Assist your lead generation VA is one dedicated person, never shared, working from our own managed office in Cairo, on UK business hours, 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, and supervised there. Screening, the do-not-call list and the opening line are agreed with you before the first call, and every call is logged in your CRM. We work under NDAs and data-processing agreements, with password managers and access you can revoke. The introductory rate is £5 per hour; see the calculator for your hours. For the wider question of what a cold call is, see what is cold calling, and for the calls themselves, our cold calling tips.
Questions about UK calling rules
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