France will ban so-called “cold calls” — unwanted commercial calls — from August 11. Despite a series of measures introduced in recent years, such calls remain a common problem in the daily lives of the French, prompting the government to take tougher action.
The law, supported by the government of Emmanuel Macron, will take effect on Tuesday, August 11. It tightens the rules and bans unwanted intrusive calls. The aim is to protect consumers from intrusive commercial offers and vulnerable individuals from fraudulent activities. From now on, it will be illegal to contact consumers without their prior consent, which, according to Alice Vilcot, head of the office of the General Directorate for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control, “can be revoked at any time”.
However, the practice of “cold calls” will be allowed in two cases: when a company has already obtained the customer’s consent, for example, during a purchase, store visit, or through a form, and when the call concerns an already signed contract. The government states that the law is a response to years of consumer complaints. According to authorities, about three-quarters of France’s population receives at least one unwanted promotional call per week, and many receive more.
Penalties for violating the new law will be severe. Individuals can be fined up to 75,000 euros per call, and companies up to 375,000 euros per call.
Previous measures and transition to a consent system
Over the past fifteen years, numerous measures have already been introduced, including a ban on calls from mobile numbers starting with 06 or 07, as well as at certain times of the day or on weekends. However, this ban only applied to a few sectors, such as personal training accounts, home adaptation for people with disabilities or the elderly, and energy-efficient renovation. The new law will cover almost all sectors.
Another previous measure was the possibility to register on a platform to avoid contacts. The Ministry of Finance notes with satisfaction: “Thus, we are moving from an opt-out system to a system based on prior consent”. However, according to the consumer association Que Choisir, the fight does not end there. Marie-Amantine Stevenin, president of the association, warns that, deprived of the ability to make phone calls, “many scammers will try to change their field of activity and work through door-to-door sales”. She is already calling for the regulation of this practice.
Concerns in Morocco
The new French law has raised concerns in Morocco, where the Minister of Employment Younes Sekkouri told deputies that up to 50,000 jobs in the country’s call centers are at risk. He noted that the sector has attracted about 100 million dollars in investments and generates more than one billion dollars in annual revenue in the country. Low labor costs, a large French-speaking workforce, and relatively weak unions have made Morocco an attractive destination for international companies, especially French firms seeking to cut costs.
Youssef Chraibi, president of the Moroccan Federation of Outsourcing Services, told the local daily Le Matin that the French market has historically accounted for more than 80% of Morocco’s outsourcing sector revenue. He added that “pure telemarketing now accounts for only 15% to 20% of total activity”, noting that the sector has diversified beyond traditional call center services.
Measures in other countries
Germany has had a similar system since 2009. The Netherlands strengthened its rules on calling last month. The country had already banned unwanted commercial calls, but now companies cannot call their own customers with promotional offers without prior permission.
Many other countries have adopted measures based on opt-out systems. In the United States, people can register on the National Do Not Call Registry, which reduces the number of unwanted promotional calls. Canada has its own Do Not Call List, while the United Kingdom has the Telephone Preference Service. Companies that call people who have opted out of calls can be fined up to 500,000 pounds sterling (583,000 euros) per call.
Source: Euronews
