EMERGENCY PROCEDURE INVESTIGATION

26/11/2008 00:00:00

PhonepayPlus, the phone-paid services regulator, has launched an investigation following seven complaints from members of the public, all of whom have South East London addresses.  Having contacted the network operator through whose network the service operates, PhonepayPlus considers the service provider responsible under the PhonepayPlus Code of Practice to be ‘Ambavox AG.'

The complaints relate to a parcel delivery mailing which encourages recipients to call a premium rate number to re-arrange what the promotion states was a ‘missed delivery.'

Due to the very serious nature of the alleged breaches of its Code of Practice, PhonepayPlus has invoked its emergency procedure to bar access to numbers associated with the service with immediate effect.

The bar on access applies to all numbers on which the service has been operating. In addition, all revenue payable to the service provider has been withheld by the network operator pending the outcome of the investigation.

PhonepayPlus regulates premium rate service providers, which are defined in paragraph 11.3.6 of the PhonepayPlus Code of Practice (Eleventh Edition Amended April 2008).

Background

The service is charged at £1.50 per minute from landlines, and potentially considerably more from mobile phones. It is brought to the attention of consumers when they receive a parcel delivery mailing at their home.  Complainants are concerned this is not a genuine delivery service and the company is not a genuine courier company. When complainants called the premium rate number they got a repeated call queuing message keeping them on hold with no answer. Complainants were not given any pricing information and are concerned about the cost of the call. PhonepayPlus has received seven complaints regarding this service. The complainants' concerns are further aggravated given the time of year when consumers may be expecting parcel deliveries.

Our concerns

Our investigation initially focuses on the following paragraphs of the PhonepayPlus Code of Practice (11th Edition Amended April 2008):

• Misleading (Paragraph 5.4.1a) - due to the misleading nature of the parcel delivery mailing.
• Unreasonably Prolonged or Delayed (Paragraph 5.4.2) - due to the repeated call queuing message keeping callers on hold with no answer.
• Pricing Information (Paragraph 5.7.1) - due to the apparent lack of pricing information within the promotion of the service.
• Contact Information (Paragraph 5.8) - due to the apparent lack of non-premium rate contact information within the promotion of the service.
• Live Service Introductory Message (Paragraph 6.3.1a) - due to the apparent lack of introductory message giving details of the call costs and the name of the service provider providing the live service.

Next steps

We have written to both Atlas Interactive Group, the Network Operator, and Ambavox AG, the Service Provider, setting out our concerns. Under paragraph 8.3.3 of the Code of Practice, we have also requested further information from them to assist our investigation. They have until 1st December 2008 to respond.

We aim to adjudicate on all investigations dealt with under the emergency procedure within 10 working days of the service provider's response to the alleged breaches raised.

However, this timeframe may vary depending on the complexity of the case and on whether there is a need to request more information.