Hi,
can anybody help me in getting a presentation on ethics at work place
which should contain the following :
i.e., ethics at work place or
business ethics at work place
what is the role of HR in ethics at work place.
regards,
saroj
From India, Delhi
can anybody help me in getting a presentation on ethics at work place
which should contain the following :
i.e., ethics at work place or
business ethics at work place
what is the role of HR in ethics at work place.
regards,
saroj
From India, Delhi
Hi I am a consultant in the field of business ethics, vision and values and CSR. I also teach business ethics partr time. Pl get in touch Saju Kurian 9845153430 Saju Kurian
From India, Bangalore
From India, Bangalore
check out the code of ethics meant for professional managers from All India Management Association, shud be avl on their website.
in a similiar vein various professional bodies have their code of ethics eg Instt of engrs, Pest control association of India, American society of heating refrigeration n airconditioning etc...
if you want to set one for your company, read "Global Reporting Initiative" or Social Accountability SA 8000 .....
ethics cant be forced rather they are a snapshot of ur organsiation's culture.... delve deep into the culture n find out the prevalent values..
next take steps to weed ut undesirable n strengthen the required ones...
remember value is not a set of staements mounted on a board in the reception area...
feel free to ask implementation difficulties
surya
From India, Delhi
41in a similiar vein various professional bodies have their code of ethics eg Instt of engrs, Pest control association of India, American society of heating refrigeration n airconditioning etc...
if you want to set one for your company, read "Global Reporting Initiative" or Social Accountability SA 8000 .....
ethics cant be forced rather they are a snapshot of ur organsiation's culture.... delve deep into the culture n find out the prevalent values..
next take steps to weed ut undesirable n strengthen the required ones...
remember value is not a set of staements mounted on a board in the reception area...
feel free to ask implementation difficulties
surya
From India, Delhi
am encl the ethics of my former workplace...
This is just an indicator to show how how much we care for your employees, cutsomers n like....
surya vrat
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BT’s code of practice
for sales and marketing
The purpose of our code of practice
1 Ofcom is the regulator for the telecommunications
(or ‘phone’ as we will say here) industry.
2 Ofcom has told companies who provide phone services
(‘phone companies’) to produce a code of practice (which we
will call a ‘code’). The code will apply to phone companies
who sell and market phone services to residential customers
(also called consumers) or small businesses (defined by
Ofcom as a business employing 10 or fewer employees).
We, BT, are one of these phone companies.
3 Phone companies must produce a code to cover situations
where a customer transfers their phone call service or phone
line service (or both) from one phone company to another.
An example is a transfer to or from us to another phone
company.
4 The transfer in question must be for the customer’s ordinary
fixed phone line, which is sometimes called a ‘narrowband’
or ‘dial-up’ line. This does not apply to transfers for mobile,
cable or ‘broadband’ lines. Broadband is a high-speed
connection to the internet through your phone line. With
broadband, you can use your phone and internet at the
same time. You cannot use your phone and internet at the
same time with a narrowband line.
5 All phone companies, including us, who supply these calls
or lines must have their code in place, and keep to it, by 26
May 2005. Each code must reflect certain guidelines set by
Ofcom (‘Ofcom’s guidelines’). However, phone companies
can adopt other standards of behaviour on top of those set
out by Ofcom. This is what we have done in our code.
6 Ofcom has the power to take action against a phone
company to enforce the code in cases where:
• a phone company has no code in place;
• a code does not properly reflect Ofcom’s guidelines; or
• a phone company fails to keep to those parts of its code
that reflect Ofcom’s guidelines.
Ultimately, Ofcom may fine the phone company concerned.
7 This is our code.
8 Our code sets out the standards of behaviour that we, our
employees and other people acting on our behalf (called
‘salespeople’ here) will keep to in marketing and selling
our phone services to our residential and small-business
customers. This code applies to transferring customers’
call services or lines (or both), as described in paragraph
3 above. Unlike other phone companies, our code also
applies when we provide you with a new or extra phone line.
Finally, our code applies when we provide you with a new
broadband line, or transfer your existing broadband line to BT.
9 Our code sets the standard of behaviour you can expect
from us whenever we contact you for sales or marketing
purposes. This code also describes some of our internal
procedures for recruiting and training salespeople (please
see appendix 1 for details).
Mis-selling
10 Ofcom introduced the need for codes because, in its view,
phone companies mis-selling fixed-line phone services is a
significant problem in the UK. Ofcom felt that the previous
protection (in 2004) was not good enough. There is no
legal definition of ‘mis-selling’. In general terms, BT and
other companies understand mis-selling to refer to sales
and marketing practices that are misleading, deceitful or
where the phone company applies too much pressure on
you to transfer. Most people agree that these practices are
unacceptable, and most of them are illegal.
11 One of the worst types of mis-selling is ‘slamming’.
Slamming happens when another phone company places
an order to transfer your phone calls service or your line (or
both) to themselves without your knowledge or permission.
Ofcom takes this practice very seriously. We are allowed to
cancel transfer orders if our customers believe that they have
been slammed.
12 As well as slamming, there are other types of mis-selling.
For example, a phone company could make exaggerated
claims about the savings you could make if you transfer
to them. Or, a phone company could apply too much
pressure on you to transfer, or even mislead you about their
relationship with another phone company. To reduce the
chance of you becoming a victim of mis-selling, you may find
it helpful to refer to the tips in appendix 2.
13 Most mis-selling in the UK arises from transferring call
services over narrowband lines, or transferring the lines
themselves, from us to other phone companies. The phone
services industry has set processes in the UK that apply to
these transfers. The processes have not stopped the growth
of mis-selling. Fortunately, most phone companies treat
their customers and potential customers fairly and honestly.
However, some phone companies, and salespeople working
for otherwise trustworthy phone companies, do not.
14 We take mis-selling very seriously. We are working with
Ofcom and the rest of the industry to reduce the mis-selling
of phone services. In light of the alarming increase in misselling
phone services, we believe that we should take the
lead in promoting responsible behaviour.
15 That is why we have extended our code to cover broadband.
It is also why we have decided that our code should cover not
only customer transfers but extra and new lines as well.
16 Our code is set out in detail below. We pride ourselves on
meeting all the standards placed on us, whether these are
legal, set by Ofcom or internal processes. We will regularly
review our processes and systems, and the performance
of our salespeople, to make sure that we continue to do
the things we say we will. Chris Waring, Head of Group
Regulatory Compliance, is responsible for making sure that
we keep to our code. If you would like to comment on the
code, or our complaints procedure, please e-mail Chris at
. Or, you can write to Chris at ppA6,
BT Centre, 81 Newgate Street, London EC1 7AJ.
Recruiting and training our sales people
17 We take great care in making sure that we recruit the right
salespeople. In many respects, they are the public face of
BT. It is very important to us that you have confidence in
them, and that they treat you fairly and politely. So, we
take all necessary steps to make sure that our salespeople
are professional, straightforward and trustworthy. When
we allow other companies we work with to promote and sell
our services to you, we make sure that they have the same
qualities. As you would expect, as a minimum we make
thorough checks on everyone who applies to become a
salesperson with us.
18 Once we are happy we have the right salespeople, we make
sure that they have all the training and briefing they need,
to give you all the information you need. As well as providing
initial training, we provide updates and refreshers for our
salespeople. These give them information on a whole range
of issues, such as our latest products and services, new legal
requirements, how we deal with complaints and, of course,
new codes of practice.
19 We recognise that these are parts of our business that you
don’t normally see. If you would like more details about how
we recruit and train our salespeople, please see appendix 1.
Customer contact
20 Most of our contact with customers, especially with
residential customers, takes place over the phone.
However, you may contact us in other ways. You can look
at the products and services featured on our website at
http://www.bt.com and order on-line. And, of course, there
may be circumstances in which we meet you face-to-face.
A. Phone calls
21 If we call you, we will let you know who we are at the
beginning of the call. We will also let you know why we
are calling, and how long we expect the call to last. If
you do not want us to continue, we will of course end the
call immediately. We will also take care not to abuse the
trust of potentially vulnerable customers by making sales
presentations to them.
22 We will not call before 8am or after 9pm, unless you have
asked us to.
23 We will give you accurate descriptions of the services we are
promoting. We will explain the main details and the price
(including extra charges) of the services. In some cases, we
may also refer to the services offered by phone companies
that compete with us. If so, the information will be factual.
Any comparisons we make will be fair and unbiased.
24 We will of course be happy to answer any questions you may
have.
25 If you show an interest in any of the services we are offering,
we will let you know about any cancellation rights that may
apply. If you are a residential customer, you will be able to
cancel without charge at any time up until we provide the
service. If you are a business customer, you can usually
cancel up until we provide the service. However, you may
have to pay us any costs for the work that we have done in
preparing to provide the service.
26 We will let you know when you are making a contract with
us. By law, contracts do not need to be signed (or even
made in writing). So, in many cases, when you order a phone
service over the phone and we agree to provide it, a contract
is made between us there and then which we must both
keep to.
B. On-line at www.bt.com
27 You will be able to access the same range of information
as described above. If you order a phone service from us,
we will send you an acknowledgement quickly.
C. Face-to-face
i Residential customers
28 If you are a residential customer, there may be some limited
situations in which you have face-to-face contact with us for
sales and marketing purposes. However, please note that it
is not our current policy to promote and sell our services to
residential customers by visiting your home when you have
not asked us to. This is sometimes called ‘doorstepping’ or
‘doorstep selling’. We think that, unless you have agreed
to a visit from us, it is not appropriate for us to visit you.
We are trying to persuade the rest of the phone industry to
take this view too. So, please be wary if anyone visiting your
home offers you phone services and claims to be from or
linked to us.
29 However, you can rest assured that if we do visit you, we
will take appropriate steps to make sure that you can be
certain that the salesperson represents us, and that they will
deal with you in a professional way. We will take reasonable
steps to keep ourselves informed of any local authority or
password schemes that relate to doorstep selling. We will
also take care not to abuse the trust of potentially vulnerable
customers by making sales presentations to them.
30 We will not visit you before 8am or after 8pm, unless you
have asked us to.
31 Each of our representatives will have an identity badge.
This will show his or her name and the name of their company.
The badge will also show a photograph of the representative
and a unique identification number. This information will be
displayed clearly (and can be provided in Braille if you ask).
32 If the timing of the visit is not convenient, or if at any stage
you want to end the discussion, we will of course leave your
home immediately.
33 We will give you an accurate description of our phone
services. We will explain the main details and the price
(including extra charges) of our services. In some cases,
we may also refer to services offered by phone companies
that compete with us. If so, the information will be factual.
Any comparisons we make will be fair and unbiased.
34 We will of course be happy to answer any questions you
may have.
35 If you show an interest in any of the phone services we are
offering, we will let you know about any cancellation rights
that may apply. As a residential customer, you will be able
to cancel without charge at any time up until we provide the
service. You may also have the legal right to change your
mind up until about seven days after we have visited you.
ii Business customers
36 For business customers, we believe that visits from other
traders promoting their services are a normal part of
everyday business. So, we may visit our customers’ business
premises to promote our phone services without making an
appointment. If we do this, we will apply the same standards
of behaviour as we would for our residential customers.
37 As a business customer, you can usually cancel your contract
up until we provide the phone service. You may have to pay
us any costs for the work that we have done in preparing to
provide the phone service.
Entering into contracts
38 As we have explained above, by law, contracts do not have
to be signed or even made in writing. Standard terms and
conditions (called ‘conditions’ here) apply to all the phone
services we provide for residential customers. You should be
aware that a contract can be made without you having to fill
in an order form or sign a contract (although if you order online,
we may ask you to confirm that you accept the relevant
conditions).
39 For business customers, in many cases you will have to fill
in an order form and sign a contract. We will make sure that
any forms you have to sign are straightforward. We will also
make sure that the purpose of each form is clear to you. In
particular, any forms that are part of a contract will contain
clear wording to tell you this (next to the signature box, if any).
40 If someone wants to enter into a contract with us, we will
take reasonable steps to make sure that they are 18 or over.
If the contract in question is to transfer a phone service
to BT, we will try to get confirmation that the person we
are dealing with is either the account holder or someone
authorised to make the order.
41 When you enter into a contract with us, we will let you know
how you can use any cancellation rights that you may have.
42 You can get a copy of many of our conditions at www.
www.bt.com. You can find our price list for
phone services at <link no longer exists - removed>
homepage.htm. If you would like written details of our
prices, please ring us on 0800 800 150 for residential
customers and 0800 800 154 for business customers.
Preference services
43 ‘Preference’ services allow you to say that you do not want
to be contacted by certain organisations offering you certain
services or goods by, for example, phone, fax or post.
We will of course respect your wishes if you have registered
for the telephone preference service, the mailing preference
service or the fax preference service. In each case, if we
do not have your permission to contact you, we will not
do so for marketing purposes. Also, we will not send you
marketing e-mails if you have told us that you do not want
to receive them.
Advertising
44 Our advertising will be legal, decent, honest and truthful.
It will meet the British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion
and Direct Marketing, which is managed by the Advertising
Standards Authority. It will also meet the Radio Advertising
Standards Code and the TV Advertising Standards Code.
Finally, as one of the founder members of the Direct
Marketing Association, we will meet their Direct Marketing
Code of Practice.
Transferring calls and narrowband lines
45 As we explained in paragraph 9, these transfers to and from
BT will follow set processes in the phone industry (which also
apply to transfers between other phone companies). We will
of course follow these processes carefully. If you transfer
from BT, we will send you a standard letter confirming the
transfer. We have agreed the content of this letter with
Ofcom and the industry. You will also receive a letter from
the phone company which you are transferring to. Our letter
will also include a BT number for you to ring if you believe
you have been slammed (see paragraph 11).
46 If you transfer to BT, we will send you a letter by first-class
post within five days of accepting your order. The letter
will include details of the phone service and the lines to
be transferred. It will also include the date for providing
the service, and information about how you may end the
contract once the service has begun. You should also be
aware that under the industry-agreed process, you are
allowed to cancel your order without charge up until shortly
before the transfer is due to take place. This right applies no
matter whether you are a residential customer or a business
customer. This right is separate from any legal rights you
may have to cancel.
Our legal responsibilities
47 Finally, we will keep to all our legal responsibilities that
apply to sales and marketing. The law is there to protect
you. In appendix 3, we have put together some answers to
frequently asked questions about rights and responsibilities.
These of course apply no matter which phone company has
contacted you. So, just in case you become a victim of misselling,
you may find this information helpful. However, this
information is provided for general background purposes
only. You should get your own legal advice where necessary.
Complaints
48 We will do everything we can to follow our code at all times.
However, despite our best efforts, things can sometimes go
wrong. If they do, we want to know so we can put them right
as quickly as possible. So, if you have a complaint about our
sales or marketing activity, please call us on the appropriate
number:
• If you are a residential customer, please phone
0800 800 150 Monday to Saturday, 8am to 8pm.
• If you are a business customer, please phone
0800 400 400 Monday to Saturday, 8am to 6pm.
Our customer service advisers will try to sort out the problem
while you are still on the line.
49 If you prefer to put your complaint in writing, please
address it to the Customer Service Manager, BT Customer
Correspondence Centre, Durham, DH98 1BT. We will
normally respond to your letter by phone. We will gladly
confirm any particular points in writing, if you want us to.
50 Our customer service advisers will aim to deal with your
complaint as quickly as possible. If you are not happy with
the way we have handled your complaint, please ask to
speak to the manager. The manager will review it and try to
sort out the matter. If, after contacting the manager, you
feel that we have not dealt with your complaint properly,
you should ask for your case to be reviewed by a more senior
manager.
51 If you are still not satisfied with the way in which we have
dealt with your complaint, you may contact our Complaint
Review Service. You can contact this service on the following
numbers:
• Residential customers – 0800 545 458
• Business customers – 0800 555 257
If you prefer, you can write to the Complaint Review Service.
Please phone the appropriate number for the address.
As you can see, we aim to deal with your problems without
outside help. However, you may of course refer your
complaint to a court.
52 If you are not satisfied with the outcome of our review of
your complaint you may be able to refer the matter to Otelo.
Otelo is the Office of the Telecommunications Ombudsman.
Otelo provides an independent service for dealing with
disagreements relating to most products and services that
we offer to residential customers and small businesses.
Otelo also deals with those services we offer to disabled
people (including free directory enquiries, access to our
TextDirect textphone service, and the national phone relay
service, Typetalk).
53 Otelo can award compensation in individual cases. It may
investigate complaints in the following circumstances.
• You receive a final ‘deadlock’ letter from us (after we have
completed our own internal investigation) which means
that we have responded to your complaint but you are
not happy with our response . You must then refer the
complaint to Otelo within six months of receiving the
deadlock letter.
• You have not received a deadlock letter, but at least 12
weeks have passed since you made the complaint. You must
refer the complaint to Otelo within nine months of first making
your complaint to us.
54 Otelo’s contact details are as follows.
Otelo (Office of the Telecommunications Ombudsman)
PO Box 730
Warrington
WA4 6WU
Phone: 0845 050 1614 or 01925 430049
Fax: 0845 050 1615
E-mail enquiries to
Website: www.otelo.org.uk
Appendix 1– Recruitment and training
Recruitment
We take the recruitment of salespeople very seriously. As well
as keeping to current employment law, we check the following
when recruiting new salespeople.
• Behaviour and appearance.
• Any criminal offences (through a basic disclosure certificate).
• Photographic proof of identity.
• Qualifications (where necessary).
• Proof of entitlement to work in the UK.
• Proof of National Insurance number.
• Proof of address and written references for the past three years.
We keep our salespeople’s sales records (including all recordings
and notes on sales) for at least six months, even if they leave BT.
Also, if any of our salespeople leave us, we will take items such
as identification badges from them, and remove their access to
our systems.
For salespeople not based in the UK, we will apply the same
procedures as long as they do not break any relevant local laws.
All reward and payment systems for our salespeople are
documented and are designed to encourage responsible and
ethical sales practices.
Induction training
All of our salespeople receive thorough training to make them
aware of our range of products and services, and to make sure
they know about our legal responsibilities. Everyone dealing
with sales and marketing receives appropriate training. In our
contact centres, there are also regular briefings and refresher
training to provide updates. This training includes:
• arrangements for competition in supplying phone services
in the UK;
• the different phone options we provide and how these differ
from other competing phone products (price comparisons
with the services of other phone companies are done by
a dedicated team who are fully trained);
• the process for ordering the phone service;
• the relevant principles of consumer protection law;
• the prices we charge and other relevant conditions of
service (this includes methods of payment, the length
of the contract, and any fees for cancelling the agreement);
• the nature, and cost, of any extra services on offer;
• the process for cancelling the contract both during the
cooling-off period and at any time after the service has
started;
• our code and the benefits provided; and
• the procedure for handling customer complaints.
Appendix 2 – Tips on how to avoid
mis-selling
This code outlines the high standards that you can expect from
us when marketing and selling our fixed-line phone services.
Unfortunately, some phone companies, and salespeople
working for otherwise trustworthy phone companies, may not
treat their customers and potential customers as fairly and
honestly as we do.
To help you avoid becoming the victim of mis-selling and other
dishonest sales practices here are some tips.
If a salesperson visits you at home
• Ask to see the salesperson’s identity card and make a note
of his or her name and the company they represent.
• Call the company concerned if you’re not sure to confirm
the identity of the salesperson.
• Tell the salesperson if you don’t want to hear about their
offer, and don’t invite them in if you don’t want to.
• Don’t sign anything if you don’t want to, or be pressurised
if the offer is only available if you sign up immediately.
• If you do agree to something, be careful about what forms
you are given to sign – be certain that you are only signing
for the service that you want.
• Ask how the savings being claimed are worked out and what
calls of the type you make will cost.
• If you are a residential customer, make sure you get a
written notice telling you about your right to cancel.
• Make it clear whether you are accepting or refusing the offer.
If a salesperson phones you
• Make a note of the salesperson’s name and the company
he or she represents, and the time and date of the call.
• Ask the caller to be very precise about what savings he or
she claims you will make – ask how the savings are worked
out and what calls of the type you make will cost.
• Don’t give out your bank account details to confirm your
identity.
• Be careful giving out your bank account details over the
phone unless you are certain who you are dealing with and
why they need the details (for example, paying by direct
debit).
• If you just want information on products, services or call
costs, say so clearly and never give out your bank account
details. Phone companies should give you details of their
service, without you having to order anything.
• Make it very clear whether you are accepting or refusing the
salesperson’s offer.
Appendix 3 – Questions and answers
about your general legal rights
The questions and answers below relate to issues that may
arise in selling and marketing fixed-line phone services. They
apply no matter which phone company has contacted you. So,
just in case you become a victim of mis-selling, you may find
this information helpful. However, it is provided for general
background purposes only. You should get your own legal
advice where necessary.
1 Can a contract be made without me signing anything?
Yes. Contracts can be and are often made over the phone,
face-to-face or on-line without you having to sign anything.
2 Do I have to be given any information before I enter into a
contract?
Only if you are a consumer (residential customer), and have
had no face-to-face contact with the phone company (for
example, if a contract is made over the phone or on-line).
Then, the phone company must give you some important
information before you enter into a contract. This includes
a description of the phone service, the price, your right to
cancel and any minimum term that applies. Most of this
information has to be confirmed in writing.
3 When do I have a right to cancel?
If you are a consumer (residential customer), you will
normally have a legal right to cancel without charge unless
the contract was made at the phone company’s normal
business premises. The cancellation period will normally be
for seven calendar days or seven working days, depending
on how and where the contract was made. You have no such
legal rights as a business customer.
However, under industry-agreed processes, both consumers
and business customers have the right to cancel without
charge up until shortly before the transfer is due to take
place, when transferring calls or narrowband lines to or
from BT. Clearly, this may be very significant for business
customers.
4 I was told I was dealing with a company that was ‘part of
BT’ or ‘associated with BT’. It turns out I was dealing with
a completely different company. What can I do?
There should be no problem if you still have a right to cancel
when you realise what has happened (see question 3) you
can simply cancel the contract. If not, you may still be able
to end it. Contract law says that if you have entered into
a contract as a result of a ‘misrepresentation’, you are
entitled to end it – but you will have to act quickly or you
may lose the right. This principle applies equally to other
misrepresentations of fact if they persuade you to enter into
a contract.
5 Can the terms and conditions apply if I haven’t seen them?
Yes. You may often have an opportunity to see the terms
and conditions before entering into a contract, but they may
still apply even if you don’t.
6 Am I bound by all the terms and conditions in a phone
company’s standard contract?
Not necessarily. Just because a condition is included does
not automatically mean that the phone company will be able
to rely on it. Some conditions may be challenged because
they are ‘unfair’. There are many types of condition that may
be considered to be unfair in consumer contracts. The scope
for unfairness in business contracts is considerably less.
Offices worldwide
The services described in this publication are subject to availability
and may be modified from time to time. Services and equipment
are provided subject to British Telecommunications plc’s respective
standard conditions of contract. Nothing in this publication forms
any part of any contract.
© British Telecommunications plc 2006
Registered office: 81 Newgate Street, London. EC1A 7AJ
Registered in England No. 1800000.
Designed by Unigraph Limited 22661/05/06.
Printed in England.
PHME 50315
From India, Delhi
This is just an indicator to show how how much we care for your employees, cutsomers n like....
surya vrat
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BT’s code of practice
for sales and marketing
The purpose of our code of practice
1 Ofcom is the regulator for the telecommunications
(or ‘phone’ as we will say here) industry.
2 Ofcom has told companies who provide phone services
(‘phone companies’) to produce a code of practice (which we
will call a ‘code’). The code will apply to phone companies
who sell and market phone services to residential customers
(also called consumers) or small businesses (defined by
Ofcom as a business employing 10 or fewer employees).
We, BT, are one of these phone companies.
3 Phone companies must produce a code to cover situations
where a customer transfers their phone call service or phone
line service (or both) from one phone company to another.
An example is a transfer to or from us to another phone
company.
4 The transfer in question must be for the customer’s ordinary
fixed phone line, which is sometimes called a ‘narrowband’
or ‘dial-up’ line. This does not apply to transfers for mobile,
cable or ‘broadband’ lines. Broadband is a high-speed
connection to the internet through your phone line. With
broadband, you can use your phone and internet at the
same time. You cannot use your phone and internet at the
same time with a narrowband line.
5 All phone companies, including us, who supply these calls
or lines must have their code in place, and keep to it, by 26
May 2005. Each code must reflect certain guidelines set by
Ofcom (‘Ofcom’s guidelines’). However, phone companies
can adopt other standards of behaviour on top of those set
out by Ofcom. This is what we have done in our code.
6 Ofcom has the power to take action against a phone
company to enforce the code in cases where:
• a phone company has no code in place;
• a code does not properly reflect Ofcom’s guidelines; or
• a phone company fails to keep to those parts of its code
that reflect Ofcom’s guidelines.
Ultimately, Ofcom may fine the phone company concerned.
7 This is our code.
8 Our code sets out the standards of behaviour that we, our
employees and other people acting on our behalf (called
‘salespeople’ here) will keep to in marketing and selling
our phone services to our residential and small-business
customers. This code applies to transferring customers’
call services or lines (or both), as described in paragraph
3 above. Unlike other phone companies, our code also
applies when we provide you with a new or extra phone line.
Finally, our code applies when we provide you with a new
broadband line, or transfer your existing broadband line to BT.
9 Our code sets the standard of behaviour you can expect
from us whenever we contact you for sales or marketing
purposes. This code also describes some of our internal
procedures for recruiting and training salespeople (please
see appendix 1 for details).
Mis-selling
10 Ofcom introduced the need for codes because, in its view,
phone companies mis-selling fixed-line phone services is a
significant problem in the UK. Ofcom felt that the previous
protection (in 2004) was not good enough. There is no
legal definition of ‘mis-selling’. In general terms, BT and
other companies understand mis-selling to refer to sales
and marketing practices that are misleading, deceitful or
where the phone company applies too much pressure on
you to transfer. Most people agree that these practices are
unacceptable, and most of them are illegal.
11 One of the worst types of mis-selling is ‘slamming’.
Slamming happens when another phone company places
an order to transfer your phone calls service or your line (or
both) to themselves without your knowledge or permission.
Ofcom takes this practice very seriously. We are allowed to
cancel transfer orders if our customers believe that they have
been slammed.
12 As well as slamming, there are other types of mis-selling.
For example, a phone company could make exaggerated
claims about the savings you could make if you transfer
to them. Or, a phone company could apply too much
pressure on you to transfer, or even mislead you about their
relationship with another phone company. To reduce the
chance of you becoming a victim of mis-selling, you may find
it helpful to refer to the tips in appendix 2.
13 Most mis-selling in the UK arises from transferring call
services over narrowband lines, or transferring the lines
themselves, from us to other phone companies. The phone
services industry has set processes in the UK that apply to
these transfers. The processes have not stopped the growth
of mis-selling. Fortunately, most phone companies treat
their customers and potential customers fairly and honestly.
However, some phone companies, and salespeople working
for otherwise trustworthy phone companies, do not.
14 We take mis-selling very seriously. We are working with
Ofcom and the rest of the industry to reduce the mis-selling
of phone services. In light of the alarming increase in misselling
phone services, we believe that we should take the
lead in promoting responsible behaviour.
15 That is why we have extended our code to cover broadband.
It is also why we have decided that our code should cover not
only customer transfers but extra and new lines as well.
16 Our code is set out in detail below. We pride ourselves on
meeting all the standards placed on us, whether these are
legal, set by Ofcom or internal processes. We will regularly
review our processes and systems, and the performance
of our salespeople, to make sure that we continue to do
the things we say we will. Chris Waring, Head of Group
Regulatory Compliance, is responsible for making sure that
we keep to our code. If you would like to comment on the
code, or our complaints procedure, please e-mail Chris at
BT Centre, 81 Newgate Street, London EC1 7AJ.
Recruiting and training our sales people
17 We take great care in making sure that we recruit the right
salespeople. In many respects, they are the public face of
BT. It is very important to us that you have confidence in
them, and that they treat you fairly and politely. So, we
take all necessary steps to make sure that our salespeople
are professional, straightforward and trustworthy. When
we allow other companies we work with to promote and sell
our services to you, we make sure that they have the same
qualities. As you would expect, as a minimum we make
thorough checks on everyone who applies to become a
salesperson with us.
18 Once we are happy we have the right salespeople, we make
sure that they have all the training and briefing they need,
to give you all the information you need. As well as providing
initial training, we provide updates and refreshers for our
salespeople. These give them information on a whole range
of issues, such as our latest products and services, new legal
requirements, how we deal with complaints and, of course,
new codes of practice.
19 We recognise that these are parts of our business that you
don’t normally see. If you would like more details about how
we recruit and train our salespeople, please see appendix 1.
Customer contact
20 Most of our contact with customers, especially with
residential customers, takes place over the phone.
However, you may contact us in other ways. You can look
at the products and services featured on our website at
http://www.bt.com and order on-line. And, of course, there
may be circumstances in which we meet you face-to-face.
A. Phone calls
21 If we call you, we will let you know who we are at the
beginning of the call. We will also let you know why we
are calling, and how long we expect the call to last. If
you do not want us to continue, we will of course end the
call immediately. We will also take care not to abuse the
trust of potentially vulnerable customers by making sales
presentations to them.
22 We will not call before 8am or after 9pm, unless you have
asked us to.
23 We will give you accurate descriptions of the services we are
promoting. We will explain the main details and the price
(including extra charges) of the services. In some cases, we
may also refer to the services offered by phone companies
that compete with us. If so, the information will be factual.
Any comparisons we make will be fair and unbiased.
24 We will of course be happy to answer any questions you may
have.
25 If you show an interest in any of the services we are offering,
we will let you know about any cancellation rights that may
apply. If you are a residential customer, you will be able to
cancel without charge at any time up until we provide the
service. If you are a business customer, you can usually
cancel up until we provide the service. However, you may
have to pay us any costs for the work that we have done in
preparing to provide the service.
26 We will let you know when you are making a contract with
us. By law, contracts do not need to be signed (or even
made in writing). So, in many cases, when you order a phone
service over the phone and we agree to provide it, a contract
is made between us there and then which we must both
keep to.
B. On-line at www.bt.com
27 You will be able to access the same range of information
as described above. If you order a phone service from us,
we will send you an acknowledgement quickly.
C. Face-to-face
i Residential customers
28 If you are a residential customer, there may be some limited
situations in which you have face-to-face contact with us for
sales and marketing purposes. However, please note that it
is not our current policy to promote and sell our services to
residential customers by visiting your home when you have
not asked us to. This is sometimes called ‘doorstepping’ or
‘doorstep selling’. We think that, unless you have agreed
to a visit from us, it is not appropriate for us to visit you.
We are trying to persuade the rest of the phone industry to
take this view too. So, please be wary if anyone visiting your
home offers you phone services and claims to be from or
linked to us.
29 However, you can rest assured that if we do visit you, we
will take appropriate steps to make sure that you can be
certain that the salesperson represents us, and that they will
deal with you in a professional way. We will take reasonable
steps to keep ourselves informed of any local authority or
password schemes that relate to doorstep selling. We will
also take care not to abuse the trust of potentially vulnerable
customers by making sales presentations to them.
30 We will not visit you before 8am or after 8pm, unless you
have asked us to.
31 Each of our representatives will have an identity badge.
This will show his or her name and the name of their company.
The badge will also show a photograph of the representative
and a unique identification number. This information will be
displayed clearly (and can be provided in Braille if you ask).
32 If the timing of the visit is not convenient, or if at any stage
you want to end the discussion, we will of course leave your
home immediately.
33 We will give you an accurate description of our phone
services. We will explain the main details and the price
(including extra charges) of our services. In some cases,
we may also refer to services offered by phone companies
that compete with us. If so, the information will be factual.
Any comparisons we make will be fair and unbiased.
34 We will of course be happy to answer any questions you
may have.
35 If you show an interest in any of the phone services we are
offering, we will let you know about any cancellation rights
that may apply. As a residential customer, you will be able
to cancel without charge at any time up until we provide the
service. You may also have the legal right to change your
mind up until about seven days after we have visited you.
ii Business customers
36 For business customers, we believe that visits from other
traders promoting their services are a normal part of
everyday business. So, we may visit our customers’ business
premises to promote our phone services without making an
appointment. If we do this, we will apply the same standards
of behaviour as we would for our residential customers.
37 As a business customer, you can usually cancel your contract
up until we provide the phone service. You may have to pay
us any costs for the work that we have done in preparing to
provide the phone service.
Entering into contracts
38 As we have explained above, by law, contracts do not have
to be signed or even made in writing. Standard terms and
conditions (called ‘conditions’ here) apply to all the phone
services we provide for residential customers. You should be
aware that a contract can be made without you having to fill
in an order form or sign a contract (although if you order online,
we may ask you to confirm that you accept the relevant
conditions).
39 For business customers, in many cases you will have to fill
in an order form and sign a contract. We will make sure that
any forms you have to sign are straightforward. We will also
make sure that the purpose of each form is clear to you. In
particular, any forms that are part of a contract will contain
clear wording to tell you this (next to the signature box, if any).
40 If someone wants to enter into a contract with us, we will
take reasonable steps to make sure that they are 18 or over.
If the contract in question is to transfer a phone service
to BT, we will try to get confirmation that the person we
are dealing with is either the account holder or someone
authorised to make the order.
41 When you enter into a contract with us, we will let you know
how you can use any cancellation rights that you may have.
42 You can get a copy of many of our conditions at www.
www.bt.com. You can find our price list for
phone services at <link no longer exists - removed>
homepage.htm. If you would like written details of our
prices, please ring us on 0800 800 150 for residential
customers and 0800 800 154 for business customers.
Preference services
43 ‘Preference’ services allow you to say that you do not want
to be contacted by certain organisations offering you certain
services or goods by, for example, phone, fax or post.
We will of course respect your wishes if you have registered
for the telephone preference service, the mailing preference
service or the fax preference service. In each case, if we
do not have your permission to contact you, we will not
do so for marketing purposes. Also, we will not send you
marketing e-mails if you have told us that you do not want
to receive them.
Advertising
44 Our advertising will be legal, decent, honest and truthful.
It will meet the British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion
and Direct Marketing, which is managed by the Advertising
Standards Authority. It will also meet the Radio Advertising
Standards Code and the TV Advertising Standards Code.
Finally, as one of the founder members of the Direct
Marketing Association, we will meet their Direct Marketing
Code of Practice.
Transferring calls and narrowband lines
45 As we explained in paragraph 9, these transfers to and from
BT will follow set processes in the phone industry (which also
apply to transfers between other phone companies). We will
of course follow these processes carefully. If you transfer
from BT, we will send you a standard letter confirming the
transfer. We have agreed the content of this letter with
Ofcom and the industry. You will also receive a letter from
the phone company which you are transferring to. Our letter
will also include a BT number for you to ring if you believe
you have been slammed (see paragraph 11).
46 If you transfer to BT, we will send you a letter by first-class
post within five days of accepting your order. The letter
will include details of the phone service and the lines to
be transferred. It will also include the date for providing
the service, and information about how you may end the
contract once the service has begun. You should also be
aware that under the industry-agreed process, you are
allowed to cancel your order without charge up until shortly
before the transfer is due to take place. This right applies no
matter whether you are a residential customer or a business
customer. This right is separate from any legal rights you
may have to cancel.
Our legal responsibilities
47 Finally, we will keep to all our legal responsibilities that
apply to sales and marketing. The law is there to protect
you. In appendix 3, we have put together some answers to
frequently asked questions about rights and responsibilities.
These of course apply no matter which phone company has
contacted you. So, just in case you become a victim of misselling,
you may find this information helpful. However, this
information is provided for general background purposes
only. You should get your own legal advice where necessary.
Complaints
48 We will do everything we can to follow our code at all times.
However, despite our best efforts, things can sometimes go
wrong. If they do, we want to know so we can put them right
as quickly as possible. So, if you have a complaint about our
sales or marketing activity, please call us on the appropriate
number:
• If you are a residential customer, please phone
0800 800 150 Monday to Saturday, 8am to 8pm.
• If you are a business customer, please phone
0800 400 400 Monday to Saturday, 8am to 6pm.
Our customer service advisers will try to sort out the problem
while you are still on the line.
49 If you prefer to put your complaint in writing, please
address it to the Customer Service Manager, BT Customer
Correspondence Centre, Durham, DH98 1BT. We will
normally respond to your letter by phone. We will gladly
confirm any particular points in writing, if you want us to.
50 Our customer service advisers will aim to deal with your
complaint as quickly as possible. If you are not happy with
the way we have handled your complaint, please ask to
speak to the manager. The manager will review it and try to
sort out the matter. If, after contacting the manager, you
feel that we have not dealt with your complaint properly,
you should ask for your case to be reviewed by a more senior
manager.
51 If you are still not satisfied with the way in which we have
dealt with your complaint, you may contact our Complaint
Review Service. You can contact this service on the following
numbers:
• Residential customers – 0800 545 458
• Business customers – 0800 555 257
If you prefer, you can write to the Complaint Review Service.
Please phone the appropriate number for the address.
As you can see, we aim to deal with your problems without
outside help. However, you may of course refer your
complaint to a court.
52 If you are not satisfied with the outcome of our review of
your complaint you may be able to refer the matter to Otelo.
Otelo is the Office of the Telecommunications Ombudsman.
Otelo provides an independent service for dealing with
disagreements relating to most products and services that
we offer to residential customers and small businesses.
Otelo also deals with those services we offer to disabled
people (including free directory enquiries, access to our
TextDirect textphone service, and the national phone relay
service, Typetalk).
53 Otelo can award compensation in individual cases. It may
investigate complaints in the following circumstances.
• You receive a final ‘deadlock’ letter from us (after we have
completed our own internal investigation) which means
that we have responded to your complaint but you are
not happy with our response . You must then refer the
complaint to Otelo within six months of receiving the
deadlock letter.
• You have not received a deadlock letter, but at least 12
weeks have passed since you made the complaint. You must
refer the complaint to Otelo within nine months of first making
your complaint to us.
54 Otelo’s contact details are as follows.
Otelo (Office of the Telecommunications Ombudsman)
PO Box 730
Warrington
WA4 6WU
Phone: 0845 050 1614 or 01925 430049
Fax: 0845 050 1615
E-mail enquiries to
Website: www.otelo.org.uk
Appendix 1– Recruitment and training
Recruitment
We take the recruitment of salespeople very seriously. As well
as keeping to current employment law, we check the following
when recruiting new salespeople.
• Behaviour and appearance.
• Any criminal offences (through a basic disclosure certificate).
• Photographic proof of identity.
• Qualifications (where necessary).
• Proof of entitlement to work in the UK.
• Proof of National Insurance number.
• Proof of address and written references for the past three years.
We keep our salespeople’s sales records (including all recordings
and notes on sales) for at least six months, even if they leave BT.
Also, if any of our salespeople leave us, we will take items such
as identification badges from them, and remove their access to
our systems.
For salespeople not based in the UK, we will apply the same
procedures as long as they do not break any relevant local laws.
All reward and payment systems for our salespeople are
documented and are designed to encourage responsible and
ethical sales practices.
Induction training
All of our salespeople receive thorough training to make them
aware of our range of products and services, and to make sure
they know about our legal responsibilities. Everyone dealing
with sales and marketing receives appropriate training. In our
contact centres, there are also regular briefings and refresher
training to provide updates. This training includes:
• arrangements for competition in supplying phone services
in the UK;
• the different phone options we provide and how these differ
from other competing phone products (price comparisons
with the services of other phone companies are done by
a dedicated team who are fully trained);
• the process for ordering the phone service;
• the relevant principles of consumer protection law;
• the prices we charge and other relevant conditions of
service (this includes methods of payment, the length
of the contract, and any fees for cancelling the agreement);
• the nature, and cost, of any extra services on offer;
• the process for cancelling the contract both during the
cooling-off period and at any time after the service has
started;
• our code and the benefits provided; and
• the procedure for handling customer complaints.
Appendix 2 – Tips on how to avoid
mis-selling
This code outlines the high standards that you can expect from
us when marketing and selling our fixed-line phone services.
Unfortunately, some phone companies, and salespeople
working for otherwise trustworthy phone companies, may not
treat their customers and potential customers as fairly and
honestly as we do.
To help you avoid becoming the victim of mis-selling and other
dishonest sales practices here are some tips.
If a salesperson visits you at home
• Ask to see the salesperson’s identity card and make a note
of his or her name and the company they represent.
• Call the company concerned if you’re not sure to confirm
the identity of the salesperson.
• Tell the salesperson if you don’t want to hear about their
offer, and don’t invite them in if you don’t want to.
• Don’t sign anything if you don’t want to, or be pressurised
if the offer is only available if you sign up immediately.
• If you do agree to something, be careful about what forms
you are given to sign – be certain that you are only signing
for the service that you want.
• Ask how the savings being claimed are worked out and what
calls of the type you make will cost.
• If you are a residential customer, make sure you get a
written notice telling you about your right to cancel.
• Make it clear whether you are accepting or refusing the offer.
If a salesperson phones you
• Make a note of the salesperson’s name and the company
he or she represents, and the time and date of the call.
• Ask the caller to be very precise about what savings he or
she claims you will make – ask how the savings are worked
out and what calls of the type you make will cost.
• Don’t give out your bank account details to confirm your
identity.
• Be careful giving out your bank account details over the
phone unless you are certain who you are dealing with and
why they need the details (for example, paying by direct
debit).
• If you just want information on products, services or call
costs, say so clearly and never give out your bank account
details. Phone companies should give you details of their
service, without you having to order anything.
• Make it very clear whether you are accepting or refusing the
salesperson’s offer.
Appendix 3 – Questions and answers
about your general legal rights
The questions and answers below relate to issues that may
arise in selling and marketing fixed-line phone services. They
apply no matter which phone company has contacted you. So,
just in case you become a victim of mis-selling, you may find
this information helpful. However, it is provided for general
background purposes only. You should get your own legal
advice where necessary.
1 Can a contract be made without me signing anything?
Yes. Contracts can be and are often made over the phone,
face-to-face or on-line without you having to sign anything.
2 Do I have to be given any information before I enter into a
contract?
Only if you are a consumer (residential customer), and have
had no face-to-face contact with the phone company (for
example, if a contract is made over the phone or on-line).
Then, the phone company must give you some important
information before you enter into a contract. This includes
a description of the phone service, the price, your right to
cancel and any minimum term that applies. Most of this
information has to be confirmed in writing.
3 When do I have a right to cancel?
If you are a consumer (residential customer), you will
normally have a legal right to cancel without charge unless
the contract was made at the phone company’s normal
business premises. The cancellation period will normally be
for seven calendar days or seven working days, depending
on how and where the contract was made. You have no such
legal rights as a business customer.
However, under industry-agreed processes, both consumers
and business customers have the right to cancel without
charge up until shortly before the transfer is due to take
place, when transferring calls or narrowband lines to or
from BT. Clearly, this may be very significant for business
customers.
4 I was told I was dealing with a company that was ‘part of
BT’ or ‘associated with BT’. It turns out I was dealing with
a completely different company. What can I do?
There should be no problem if you still have a right to cancel
when you realise what has happened (see question 3) you
can simply cancel the contract. If not, you may still be able
to end it. Contract law says that if you have entered into
a contract as a result of a ‘misrepresentation’, you are
entitled to end it – but you will have to act quickly or you
may lose the right. This principle applies equally to other
misrepresentations of fact if they persuade you to enter into
a contract.
5 Can the terms and conditions apply if I haven’t seen them?
Yes. You may often have an opportunity to see the terms
and conditions before entering into a contract, but they may
still apply even if you don’t.
6 Am I bound by all the terms and conditions in a phone
company’s standard contract?
Not necessarily. Just because a condition is included does
not automatically mean that the phone company will be able
to rely on it. Some conditions may be challenged because
they are ‘unfair’. There are many types of condition that may
be considered to be unfair in consumer contracts. The scope
for unfairness in business contracts is considerably less.
Offices worldwide
The services described in this publication are subject to availability
and may be modified from time to time. Services and equipment
are provided subject to British Telecommunications plc’s respective
standard conditions of contract. Nothing in this publication forms
any part of any contract.
© British Telecommunications plc 2006
Registered office: 81 Newgate Street, London. EC1A 7AJ
Registered in England No. 1800000.
Designed by Unigraph Limited 22661/05/06.
Printed in England.
PHME 50315
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