Since January 1, 2022, registration for the free service to combat cold calling Bloctel, valid until now for a period of three years, is renewed by tacit agreement.
Good news for consumers whose phone numbers have fallen into unsavory hands and who are crumbling all day under commercial solicitations and unsolicited solicitations! Since 1er January 2022, any registration made on Bloctel, the free service for combating cold calling, will be renewed automatically – ie renewed by tacit agreement – every three years. The persons concerned will receive a message informing them of the procedure, but also of the possibility offered to them of terminating their subscription to the service at any time. Until now (and for all registrations made until the deadline of December 31, 2021), the telephone numbers (landlines and mobiles) listed on Bloctel were for a maximum period of three years, at which time it was necessary to re-register for the service. A decree published on November 28, 2021 in the Official Journal came to modify article R. 223-3 of the consumer code and regulate the new procedure.
Bloctel: the free service against telephone canvassers
For the record, the Bloctel service was set up in the context of compliance with the Law No. 2014-344 of March 17, 2014 relating to consumption, allowing anyone to refuse to be canvassed by a professional with whom they have no current contractual relationship. Professionals are therefore prohibited from canvassing a consumer registered on the Bloctel list, but this principle still suffers some exceptions listed by law. It is, for example, possible to be canvassed: by professionals with a view to supplying newspapers, periodicals or magazines, polling institutes or non-profit associations (as long as it is not commercial prospecting). A professional can also canvass a potential client if the person has communicated his telephone number in such a way “free, specific, informed and unequivocal to be recalled”.
Since its launch on 1er June 2016, the success of the Bloctel platform has not been denied. And this, despite some technical hiccups Remarks. Thus, last October, the platform remained unavailable for several weeks. This breakdown was linked to a maintenance operation that had been planned for a long time concerning a change of service provider. The DGCCRF (General Directorate for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control) having entrusted Opposetel with the task of managing the opposition list Bloctel, in place of the former service provider Worldline.
Telephone canvassing: a practice under close surveillance
Today, despite Bloctel, many professionals continue to cross the red line in terms of cold calling at the risk of being ordered to pay an administrative fine, the amount of which can easily reach several tens of thousands of euros. From a legislative point of view, the Naegelen law of July 24, 2020 came to strengthen the system for combating abusive telephone canvassing, in particular by prohibiting any canvassing for the sale of equipment or the carrying out of work for housing with a view to achieving energy savings or energy production renewables, and more generally for everything related to energy renovation.
The DGCCRF monitors abuses in this area very closely and does not hesitate to sanction (sometimes very heavily) offenders. On October 18, 2021, the departmental director for the protection of the populations of Ille-et-Vilaine thus imposed two fines (one of 460,000 euros, the other of 65,000 euros) to two companies operating in this sector. It should be noted that during a cold call, the law provides that the caller must present himself clearly, precisely and understandably on the telephone and must also remind the consumer of his right to register with Bloctel, if he does not want to be the subject of commercial prospecting.
In 2020, the DGCCRF inspected more than 1,500 establishments for compliance with the provisions governing cold calling. These checks led the DGCCRF to sanction 108 canvassers for non-compliance with the procedure for opposing cold calling, by imposing a total fine of 4.3 million euros. This amount has doubled compared to 2019 and should increase further in 2021, specifies the DGCCRF, which also indicates that in this type of case it systematically publishes the administrative police measures taken against companies. breaches, on its website and on its social networks. Finally, since registration for the Bloctel service only concerns canvassing by telephone call, the Ministry of the Economy and Finance reminds that in the event of receipt of fraudulent SMS, the consumer can transfer it to the 33,700consult the website SignalSpamor report the premium rate number on the site Surmafacture.frthe reverse directory of premium rate numbers.