The Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) in Germany has issued a reminder to telemarketers regarding their legal obligations when making outbound calls. The agency emphasizes the importance of protecting consumer rights and preventing unwanted telemarketing calls.
Telemarketers must obtain prior consent from consumers before making any telemarketing calls. The consent must be freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous. Telemarketers must also provide clear and accurate information about the products or services they are promoting.
Furthermore, the Federal Network Agency has established a "Robinson List" that consumers can register for to avoid receiving telemarketing calls. Telemarketers are required to check the Robinson List before making any telemarketing calls to ensure that they are not calling a consumer who has registered to be on the list.
Telemarketers are also required to identify themselves, the company they represent, and the purpose of the call at the beginning of the conversation. Telemarketers must respect a consumer's decision not to purchase a product or service and not use aggressive or misleading tactics to convince them otherwise.
In addition to these regulations, telemarketers are prohibited from making calls outside of certain hours. For instance, they are not allowed to call before 8 am and after 9 pm on weekdays or before 9 am and after 9 pm on weekends and public holidays.
The Federal Network Agency takes compliance with these regulations seriously and can impose fines for violations. The fines can range from €10,000 to €300,000, depending on the severity and frequency of the violation.
Telemarketers need to stay informed and comply with these regulations to avoid penalties and maintain a positive reputation with consumers. For more information on the current telemarketing regulations in Germany, visit the Federal Network Agency website at https://www.bundesnetzagentur.de/SharedDocs/Pressemitteilungen/DE/2022/20221129_TK-Aktueller-Hinweis.html
One crucial regulation to keep in mind while making calls to Germany with a German CallerID is that the numbers will appear as Anonymous to the receiver. This change is becoming increasingly common worldwide; France introduced a similar change in 2019. The primary objective behind this change is to safeguard the privacy of German citizens and ensure that they receive only the calls they have authorized.
What calls does it affect?
FROM is German, PAID is UK (or another country) – FROM will be suppressed and forwarded as “anonymous”
FROM is German, PAID is German – FROM will be suppressed and forwarded as “anonymous”
FROM is UK (or another country), PAID is German – UK number will be displayed
Nevertheless, if your business is compliant with the regulations, and you already have a company registered in Germany, we have a German direct route which we can use to route our customers' calls. However, it is required to whitelist the German numbers used as CallerID first.
To whitelist German numbers, the customer can use the following link to fill out the form with the necessary information: https://landing.megacall.es/german-cli/
Once we receive the information, we will ask our German carrier to whitelist the number. This can take 1-3 working days to apply. Once the numbers are whitelisted and everything is ready, we will advise the customer so they can start sending their traffic.
Was this article helpful?
That’s Great!
Thank you for your feedback
Sorry! We couldn't be helpful
Thank you for your feedback
Feedback sent
We appreciate your effort and will try to fix the article