Sole trader fined £50,000 after making over 194,000 unlawful marketing calls

• People receiving calls described them as “dishonest”, “threatening” and an “invasion of privacy” 
• Our investigation concludes sole trader failed to take reasonable steps to comply with the law 
• Representations made to counter our findings questionable and lacked evidence.

We have fined Newcastle based sole trader Darian Bishop, trading as ECO4U, £50,000 for making over 194,000 unlawful marketing calls to people on the UK’s ’do not call’ register. 

Bishop’s unlawful calls related to grants for new boilers and solar panels, with the inference made during the calls that he was connected to a government scheme.  

It is against the law to make marketing calls to people who have been registered on the Telephone Preference Service register (TPS) for more than 28 days, unless they have explicitly consented to receive the calls. 

Catherine Sankey, Group Manager at the ICO said:

“Feeling threatened or abused in your own home, simply because you picked up your phone, will never be acceptable.  

“Our investigation clearly showed this individual was fully aware of the law in relation to making marketing calls yet went ahead and made them anyway. 

“Our fine shows that we will hold all those who flout the law to account, from sole trader to larger companies employing a number of staff, and should act as further warning that we continue to pursue and fine companies who choose to ignore the law in pursuit of financial gain.” 

Investigation findings and outcome 

We became aware of Bishop during wider enquiries relating to an increase in complaints received about the energy and home improvement sector. An investigation began in October 2023 after we and TPS received 21 complaints.  

Bishop maintained he received valid consent after people completed an application form via a Facebook advertisement. A sample of complainants were contacted during the investigation, all of whom confirmed to us either they did not complete an application form or they did not use Facebook. 

We concluded Bishop was aware of the rules surrounding the making of marketing calls: he confirmed he knew about the relevant law and was previously investigated in 2015 for making persistent sales calls and misleading people into believing they would receive a free boiler under the ‘Green Deal’ scheme.  

We found Bishop did not provide enough information to enable people to understand who they were receiving calls from, nor did he take reasonable steps to prevent non-compliance with the law. 

Darian Bishop received a monetary penalty notice for £50,000 and an enforcement notice. 

Examples of complaints received 

“Reminded caller about TPS scheme to which I belong. Was asked did I pay for it and there’s no such thing and it doesn’t work. I stated I would be reporting this cold call and was told I was being awkward, and the caller hung up. This is an invasion of my privacy again”.  

“Think he said calling from government company. Asked for me by name. When I said I wouldn’t do anything over the phone he was asking if he had the right address and would send someone tomorrow. So very threatening”.  

“Although this company identified themselves as Echo Government Scheme Deal, they initially said they were calling on behalf of a government scheme about my gas boiler. In short the call is dishonest. I’m concerned about companies claiming to have a government connection, talking about scheme that do exist – in this case the Green Deal – and trying to give their call a degree of official authority.” 

Advice for the public 

To help you, your friends and relatives stop unlawful marketing calls, texts or emails you can: 

• Register landlines and mobile numbers with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS). The TPS is a register used by legitimate marketing companies to identify people and businesses that have said they don’t want to receive marketing calls. Alternatively, you can tell the company directly that you do not wish to be contacted. 
• Mobile phone users can report the receipt of unsolicited marketing text messages to the Mobile UK's Spam Reporting Service by forwarding the message to 7726. 
• Refer concerns that you or someone you know has been the victim of fraud to Action Fraud (in England, Northern Ireland and Wales) and Police Scotland (in Scotland); wider concerns about a business’ practices can be referred to Trading Standards; any abandoned calls that you receive to Ofcom. 
• Complaints about nuisance calls, texts or emails can be made to us via our website. 

Industry advice 

The issue of unlawful marketing calls is of significant concern to people in the UK. We urge all businesses operating in this sector to consult and abide by published guidance and also take up the opportunity of speaking to our experts via its helpline should obligations remain unclear.