PhonepayPlus today published its Annual Report for 2009/10. Read on to find out what they had to say about it:
‘The report highlights a successful year in improving the consumer experience of premium rate services, with complaints about services down by a significant 52%. To help achieve this, PhonepayPlus worked closely with industry to improve compliance. We also enforced rigorously against those very few providers who caused harm to consumers. This has improved the reputation of premium rate services for the benefit of both consumers and industry, with the market – worth£810 million in 2009 – still one of the largest in the world.
The report also details developments in the premium rate services market and takes an in-depth look at some of PhonepayPlus’ key operational areas, including investigations, industry relations, research and monitoring and consumer support.
Paul Whiteing, PhonepayPlus’ Chief Executive, said:
“We are extremely proud to look back on the year and see what we have achieved for the consumer by a combination of working collaboratively with industry and taking effective enforcement action where we needed to. As we worked with industry to build customer-friendly, compliant services, our firm, no-nonsense stance against the few unscrupulous providers has had a demonstrable effect.
“However, we are anything but complacent about the challenges ahead. The industry we regulate has felt the impact of the recession and we know we must continue to work with organisations across the industry to ensure that consumers continue to get a fair deal.
“This coming year will also see some of the most significant changes to our Code of Practice and the way we regulate, with the proposed introduction of a stripped-down, flexible, consumer-focused new Code and a Registration Scheme that will see almost every premium rate provider registered with us for the first time.
“We look forward to working with both industry and consumers to build on the successes of last year.”‘
To minimise costs, PhonepayPlus has printed a limited number of reports. However, a user-friendly version is available to view on the PhonepayPlus website.
