Queensland-based solar power company, Instyle Solar, has been hit with a $10,800 infringement notice for failing to obtain consent to call numbers on the Do Not Call Register.
The company was fined following an investigation by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, which found Instyle Solar did not maintain adequate records of consent for numbers it gathered in several ways, including purchasing lists of numbers.
Instyle Solar is the first company targeted by the ACMA in a new tougher campaign with the solar power industry under the miscroscope.
The ACMA has named the solar power industry as a Priority Compliance Area for 2017-18 and can take a range of enforcement actions against businesses found to have breached the Do Not Call rules—including seeking a civil penalty and/or injunctions from the Federal Court, giving an infringement notice, accepting a court enforceable undertaking, or issuing a formal warning.
{loadposition peter}“The ACMA is putting the solar power industry’s telemarketing practices under the microscope as a result of a high number of complaints from consumers. Instyle Solar is the first targeted investigation finalised as part of this campaign,’ said ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin.
“The rules are simple: telemarketers must not call any number on the Do Not Call Register unless they can demonstrate consent. If they cannot demonstrate consent, the ACMA will take action."