TL;DR
- Register your mobile number with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) to opt out of unsolicited marketing calls from legitimate UK businesses.
- Report marketing-call breaches to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which enforces PECR and can fine organisations up to £500,000.
- Report persistent nuisance or silent calls to Ofcom via its online reporting tool; Ofcom investigates call-centre and abandoned-call rule breaches.
- Many mobile operators offer free call-filtering or spam-alert features; third-party apps such as those listed by Ofcom also help.
- TPS does not stop scam calls, overseas diallers, or calls from organisations you have separately consented to hear from.
The difference between nuisance calls and scam calls
Nuisance calls on mobile broadly divide into two categories with different legal frameworks behind them. The first is unsolicited direct-marketing calls — calls from companies trying to sell or promote something without your consent. These are regulated under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR), enforced by the Information Commissioner's Office. The second category covers fraudulent or scam calls, including impersonation of banks or government departments, which fall primarily under criminal law rather than PECR.
Understanding which type of call you are receiving shapes which authority to contact. A call from a double-glazing firm you never gave your number to is a PECR matter. A call from someone claiming to be HMRC threatening arrest is a fraud matter best reported to Action Fraud (actionfraud.police.uk) or by texting 7726 (SPAM) to your operator to flag the originating number.
Registering with the TPS
The Telephone Preference Service is the UK's statutory opt-out register for unsolicited live marketing calls. Any individual — including on a personal mobile number — can register free of charge at tpsonline.org.uk or by calling the TPS registration line. Once registered, legitimate UK businesses operating under PECR are legally required to screen their call lists against the TPS register before dialling. Registration takes up to 28 days to take full effect.
The TPS covers voice calls only; it does not cover SMS marketing, automated recorded calls (which require prior explicit consent under PECR regardless of TPS status), or calls from overseas organisations not subject to UK law. If you receive marketing calls after the 28-day period from a business that should have checked TPS, that business is likely in breach of PECR and you can complain to the ICO.
Reporting to the ICO
The ICO is the authority responsible for enforcing PECR in Great Britain. Its remit covers direct-marketing calls, texts, and emails, including calls made to TPS-registered numbers without consent. You can submit a complaint via the ICO's online portal at ico.org.uk. You will need to provide the date and time of the call, the number displayed (or a description if it was withheld), and what the call was about.
The ICO does not investigate every individual complaint but uses complaint data to identify patterns, open formal investigations, and issue fines. Under PECR, the ICO can impose monetary penalties of up to £500,000 on organisations that make unsolicited marketing calls in breach of the regulations. In 2023 and 2024, the ICO published several enforcement actions naming companies fined for high-volume PECR breaches; details are on the ICO enforcement register at ico.org.uk/action-weve-taken/enforcement.
Reporting to Ofcom
Ofcom regulates the UK's electronic communications networks and has specific rules on abandoned and silent calls under its Statement on Persistent Misuse of an Electronic Communications Network or Service. Ofcom requires that organisations using predictive diallers keep their abandoned-call rate below three per cent of live calls per campaign per day. When a call is abandoned, the caller must play a brief information message rather than simply hanging up, and must not call the same number with an abandoned call more than once in 72 hours.
To report nuisance or silent calls to Ofcom, use the online reporting tool at ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/phone-calls/nuisance-calls. Ofcom can investigate operators and organisations whose network usage amounts to persistent misuse, and can ultimately require operators to bar access to their networks. Ofcom publishes annual reports on nuisance calls and silent calls, and its enforcement actions are listed on its website.
| Route | Who runs it | What it covers | What it can do |
|---|---|---|---|
| TPS registration | CTPS Ltd (mandated by ICO) | Unsolicited live marketing calls from UK businesses | Places a legal duty on callers to screen your number; does not block calls itself |
| ICO complaint | Information Commissioner's Office | PECR breaches — marketing calls, texts, robocalls | Investigates patterns; can fine organisations up to £500,000 |
| Ofcom report | Ofcom | Silent/abandoned calls, persistent misuse of networks | Can direct operators to take action; can pursue persistent misuse cases |
| 7726 (SPAM) SMS | Mobile operators / GSMA scheme | Suspicious texts and calls (number forwarded to operator) | Operators analyse and can block originating numbers across their network |
| Action Fraud report | National Fraud Intelligence Bureau / City of London Police | Fraudulent or scam calls | Refers intelligence to police; informs national fraud picture |
What mobile operators can offer
UK mobile operators have progressively added network-level and app-level tools to help customers manage unwanted calls. Some operators offer a call-screening or spam-identification feature that flags likely nuisance numbers before you answer; others provide the ability to block withheld numbers or specific number ranges through account settings. Specific features and whether they are included in your plan or charged separately vary by operator, so check with your provider directly or via their website.
Beyond operator-provided tools, Ofcom publishes guidance on third-party call-blocking apps, including crowd-sourced databases that flag numbers reported by other users. These apps can be particularly useful for mobile users because mobile numbers are not systematically published in directories, making it harder for the TPS alone to protect against bulk-dialling campaigns that use random number generation.
PECR rules on marketing calls in brief
Under PECR, organisations wishing to make live marketing calls to individuals must either have the individual's prior consent or must have a pre-existing customer relationship and screen against the TPS. Automated recorded marketing calls (often called robocalls) require explicit prior consent regardless of TPS status — there is no soft opt-in route for recorded messages. Calls to numbers on the TPS without meeting one of the lawful grounds are a direct breach, and the ICO's published enforcement record shows fines have been issued to companies across a wide range of sectors.
The rules apply to calls made to UK-based individuals from any UK-established organisation. Where calls originate overseas, enforcement becomes more complex, but UK operators retain the ability to block specific number ranges under Ofcom's persistent-misuse framework, and international cooperation arrangements exist for the most serious cases.
What this means in practice
Priya, a nurse in Leicester, started receiving three or four calls a week from unfamiliar numbers after purchasing a new SIM. Some played a recorded message about a car accident claim; one was completely silent for several seconds before disconnecting. She registered her mobile number with TPS and waited 28 days. The recorded-message calls continued, so she submitted an ICO complaint for the PECR breach (recorded marketing calls require prior consent). She also reported the silent calls to Ofcom via its reporting tool, noting the dates and the displaying numbers. She forwarded two suspicious numbers to 7726. Within a few weeks, one of the numbers she had reported to 7726 began showing a spam warning on her handset — her operator had flagged it across their network. The recorded-message calls eventually stopped, likely because the originating company had been contacted as part of a wider ICO enforcement sweep.
Related Guides
How we verified this
This article was compiled using Ofcom's published Statement on Persistent Misuse of an Electronic Communications Network or Service, the Information Commissioner's Office guidance on PECR and its enforcement register, the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 as published on legislation.gov.uk, and TPS registration information from tpsonline.org.uk.
Disclaimer: Kaeltripton.com is an independent UK editorial publisher. We are not regulated by Ofcom or the FCA and we do not sell or arrange mobile services, insurance, or financial products. This content is for general information only and is not legal, financial, or technical advice. Rules, prices, and operator policies change. Verify the current position with Ofcom, GOV.UK, the ICO, or your provider before acting. ICO registered ZC135439. Last reviewed: 2026-06-05.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I report nuisance calls on my mobile?
For unsolicited marketing calls, submit a complaint to the ICO at ico.org.uk — provide the number, date, and nature of the call. For silent or abandoned calls, use Ofcom's online reporting tool at ofcom.org.uk. For suspicious texts or potential fraud numbers, forward the number to 7726 (SPAM) by text, which routes the information to your mobile operator's anti-spam team. For calls you believe are fraudulent, report to Action Fraud as well.
What is the TPS?
The Telephone Preference Service is the UK's statutory opt-out register that allows individuals to indicate they do not wish to receive unsolicited live marketing calls. It is mandated under PECR and maintained by CTPS Ltd on behalf of the direct marketing industry. Businesses subject to PECR are legally required to screen their call lists against the TPS register before making marketing calls. Registration is free and available at tpsonline.org.uk.
Does registering with TPS stop nuisance calls on mobile?
TPS registration creates a legal obligation for legitimate UK businesses to stop calling you for marketing purposes without consent, but it does not technically block calls. It will not stop scam calls, overseas diallers operating outside UK jurisdiction, automated robocalls (which are prohibited to all numbers regardless of TPS status), or calls from organisations to whom you have previously given explicit consent. Persistent calls after 28 days of registration from UK businesses are a PECR breach reportable to the ICO.
What is the ICO's role in nuisance calls?
The ICO enforces PECR, which governs unsolicited marketing communications including phone calls and texts. It receives complaints from the public, identifies patterns of high-volume non-compliance, and can open formal investigations. Where breaches are found, the ICO has powers to issue enforcement notices and monetary penalties of up to £500,000. The ICO publishes its enforcement actions and fines on its website, and these provide a deterrent to organisations making large-scale unauthorised marketing calls.
Can my mobile operator block nuisance calls?
Operators have the ability to flag, filter, or block certain number ranges at the network level, and some do this using intelligence gathered from the 7726 SPAM-reporting scheme and their own fraud-detection systems. Individual account-level call-blocking features vary by operator — some include spam-alert services or the ability to block withheld numbers. Contact your operator to find out which tools are available on your plan. Third-party call-blocking apps using crowd-sourced databases can also supplement operator-level tools.
