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Bell Pays $1.3 Million To Settle Do-Not-Call Violations

By Michael Geist

The CRTC announced yesterday that Bell has agreed to pay $1.3 million to settle a case involving multiple violations of the do-not-call list rules. Bell places the blame at third-party telemarketers who placed calls to people on the list.  The fine is the largest to-date by the CRTC for a do-not-call violation and unquestionably sends a strong signal that the Commission is prepared to enforce the law with strict penalties.  I had previously been critical of the enforcement efforts and this marks an important step forward in demonstrating that the law can be used effectively.

The fact that Bell was the target is significant for at least two reasons.  First, Bell administers the do-not-call list under contract.  By targeting the company, it sends the message that no one is above the law.  Second, as I wrote last year, Bell was seemingly the top source of complaints among reputable companies:


Working together with University of Ottawa students Sean Murtha and Frances Munn, I recently reviewed more than 60,000 complaints released by the CRTC.  The complaints were lodged in late 2008 and early 2009 using the do-not-call list's Internet-based complaints mechanism.  In each case, the complaint included all relevant information with the exception of the complainant's name and telephone number, which were excluded for privacy reasons. There were hundreds of complaints about automated calls promising cruise vacations or lawncare services.  But the undisputed leader among reputable companies was Bell Canada, which alone was the subject of nearly one thousand complaints.  In fact, the wireless sector had the distinction of taking the top three spots with Rogers and Telus ranking second and third respectively. There were also hundreds of complaints against Canada's top financial institutions and retailers including RBC, CIBC, Scotiabank, TD Canada Trust, and Sears.

In an ideal world, the revenues generated by the Bell settlement would be reinvested in further do-not-call investigations so that other major sources of complaints would face possible administrative action.

Full post as published by Michael Geist on December 21, 2010 (boomark / email).