Nuisance Calls, Spam Texts and the TPS: Your Rights Under PECR

UK marketing calls, texts and emails are restricted by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR), and registering with the free Telephone Preference Service (TPS) stops most legitimate marketing calls after 28 days, but it does not, and cannot, stop scam calls or fraud, which come from callers who ignore the law rather than comply with it.

What PECR actually restricts

The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR) regulate direct marketing by phone, text and email across the UK. Regulation 21 covers live marketing calls: a caller must not make or instigate such a call where the subscriber has told the caller not to, or where the number is on "the register kept under regulation 26," which is the Telephone Preference Service, or TPS (legislation.gov.uk: PECR, regulation 21). Recorded, automated marketing calls are covered separately by regulation 19 and need your prior consent whether or not you are on the TPS (legislation.gov.uk: PECR, regulation 19).

Regulation 21(A1) adds a separate rule that applies to every direct marketing call, whether or not the number is TPS registered: the caller must either not hide its caller ID or display a number on which it can be contacted. A marketing call showing no number at all, on this rule, is itself a breach, independent of TPS registration.

The TPS, and what it does not stop

TPS registration is free, and regulation 21(3) confirms directly the well known "up to 28 days" rule: a caller is not in breach of the register based restriction if the number has been listed for less than 28 days, so a fresh registration takes a little time to take full effect.

What TPS registration does not do matters just as much. Regulation 21 only restricts calls made "for direct marketing purposes." By its own wording it cannot, and does not, stop scam calls, fraud calls, survey calls, or calls from anyone you separately gave consent to under regulation 21(4). The ICO's own guidance treats them separately too: it offers the TPS as the way to stop live and automated marketing calls, and sends complaints about fraud and scams to Report Fraud or Police Scotland (ICO: nuisance calls and messages). If you are getting scam or fraud calls specifically, TPS is not the tool for that; Report Fraud (formerly Action Fraud), or Police Scotland if you are in Scotland, is the right route instead.

Marketing texts and emails: opt in, and the soft opt-in

Regulation 22 covers marketing by "electronic mail," which PECR treats as including text messages as well as email. The default rule is opt in: a business needs your prior consent before sending marketing texts or emails. The main exception is the "soft opt-in" in regulation 22(3): it applies where the business got your details during a sale or a sale negotiation, the marketing is only for that business's own similar products or services, and you were given a free, simple way to opt out both when your details were collected and in every later message.

A new charity specific version of the soft opt-in, regulation 22(3A), took effect from 5 February 2026 as part of the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA), letting a charity market on the same soft opt-in logic where it obtained your details because you expressed interest in, or support for, its charitable purposes (legislation.gov.uk: PECR, regulation 22).

The fines rose sharply from 5 February 2026

From 5 February 2026, the regulator's maximum PECR fine rose from £500,000 to whichever is greater of £17.5 million or 4% of the offending organisation's global turnover, confirmed directly in the regulator's own commencement statement on the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, which says the Act gives the ICO power to "issue fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR)" (ICO: statement on the commencement of the Data (Use and Access) Act (DUAA)). That brings PECR penalties broadly into line with UK GDPR's own fine scale, a substantial jump from the old cap.

The 30 September 2026 change to the regulator, and why it is still the ICO

The regulator that enforces PECR is known as the ICO. Under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, the office of Information Commissioner is abolished and its functions transfer by law to a new body called the Information Commission, with 30 September 2026 fixed as the date this takes legal effect (legislation.gov.uk: The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (Commencement No. 9 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026; legislation.gov.uk: Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, section 118). The regulator's own announcement confirms that despite this legal change, it will continue to be known day to day as the ICO (ICO: ICO governance changes confirmed for 30 September 2026). In practice, calling the regulator the ICO remains correct both before and after that date.

How to report a nuisance call or spam text

You can report both live and automated marketing calls to the ICO online, and reporting is free (ICO: nuisance calls and messages). Reporting will not get you personal compensation: the ICO's enforcement produces fines passed to the government's Consolidated Fund (ICO: how we are funded), and a stopped number or a fined company, not a payment to you. If a call is silent or disconnects immediately, that specific problem is handled by Ofcom rather than the ICO. If the call or text is a scam or fraud attempt, report it to Report Fraud, or to Police Scotland if you are in Scotland, rather than to the ICO.

For more on your data protection rights, see the UK GDPR guide and how to complain to the ICO. For related UK data privacy topics, see the UK data privacy hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does registering with the TPS stop all marketing calls?

No. TPS registration restricts calls made for direct marketing purposes, and takes up to 28 days to take full effect. It does not, and cannot, stop scam calls, survey calls, or calls from someone you separately gave consent to.

How do I report a nuisance call or spam text?

You can report live and automated marketing calls and spam texts to the ICO online, for free. Silent or abandoned calls are handled by Ofcom instead. Scam or fraud calls should be reported to Report Fraud (formerly Action Fraud), or Police Scotland if you are in Scotland.

Can I get compensation for a nuisance call?

Not through reporting it. The ICO's enforcement leads to fines passed to the government's Consolidated Fund and, potentially, the offending company changing its practices, but it does not pay compensation to the person who reported the call.

What is PECR?

The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003, the UK rules governing marketing calls, texts and emails, including the TPS register and the opt in requirement for marketing texts and emails.

What is the Information Commission, and is it still called the ICO?

Legally, yes, with effect from 30 September 2026: the office of Information Commissioner is abolished and its functions transfer to a new body called the Information Commission. The regulator has said it will continue to be known as the ICO day to day, so calling it the ICO remains correct both before and after that date.