FRSB rules Diabetes UK broke Code of Fundraising Practice
Howard Lake | 14 November 2015 | News
The Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB) has judged that a fundraising campaign by Diabetes UK breached the Code of Fundraising Practice.
The Board stated that the charity’s pedometer fundraising campaign had breached four clauses of the Code, established by the Institute of Fundraising.
The campaign used TV, radio and print advertising to invite people to use their mobile phones to text 85080 to receive “your free Diabetes guide and pedometer”.
The complaint
The complainant raised concerns about a telephone fundraising call she received from Diabetes UK after responding by text to the charity’s advertisement for a free pedometer and diabetes guide.
She received a text confirming her request for a pedometer from the charity, which did not include any opportunity to opt in or out of future SMS messages or fundraising/marketing approaches, as is required.
She was then contacted by a fundraiser from telephone fundraising agency Listen Ltd on behalf of the charity to arrange delivery of the pedometer and to ask for a regular donation of £10 a month. She felt that the fundraiser who made the call had put her under pressure to donate and had been patronising when she stated she couldn’t afford to give because she was out of work due to ill health.
Four breaches
The adjudication report states that the campaign broke:
• Data Protection, Processing, (clause L14.7c): “Donors/contacts MUST NOT be misled or deceived as to how their information will be used and how the organisation may contact them in future.”
• Digital Media, SMS and MMS, (clause 9.6.2 (f): “Reply by SMS OUGHT to be an option for opting out and be clear in all communications.”
• Data Protection, Consent, (clause L14.5.2 (a) (i): “Personal data shall be processed fairly and lawfully.”
• The Telephone Preference Service, Marketing Calls, (clause 8.2.3 c): “Marketing calls under the guise of administrative calls OUGHT NOT to be made but supporters’ marketing preferences can be verified during a genuine administrative call.”
The Board concluded that the complainant was misled as to how her contact details would be used by the charity, and agreed that she should have been given the opportunity to opt out of future fundraising and marketing approaches when contacted by text.
Since the telephone call was delivered by Listen Ltd, the FRSB judged that it had also breached clause 8.2.3 c. of the Code.
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Non-breach
With regard to the allegation of undue pressure, the FRSB Board decided that that call had not breached:
• General Principles, Requesting Donations, (Code clause 1.3.1b): “Fundraisers OUGHT NOT to pressurise donors or potential donors but may use reasonable persuasion.”
Actions to be taken by Diabetes UK
The FRSB expects Diabetes UK to take the following actions, with immediate effect:
• Include clear and conspicuous opportunities for respondents to opt out of any future contact from the charity in respect of any future campaigns it initiates;
Issue an apology to the complainant for misleading her;
• Check all telephone numbers selected for telemarketing against the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) register for all future campaigns.
The regulator also recommends that the charity:
• Issues a prominent apology on the home page of the charity’s website to the campaign’s 25,000 other respondents who were also likely to have been misled by the charity’s actions.
Actions for Listen Ltd
The FRSB expects Listen Ltd to ensure that its charity clients:
• always obtain the proper consents from the public to receive a fundraising call before making those calls.
• its fundraisers only use wording approved by its charity clients and treat the public with respect at all times.
Listen Ltd issued a statement, saying:
“We are pleased that the complaint relating to an allegation of undue pressure being applied during a call has not been upheld.
“The FRSB did not inform us of the second allegation regarding consents, and we did not therefore have any opportunity to respond before an adjudication was reached. Nevertheless, we have noted the regulator’s recommendations”.
Andrew Hind, Chair of the Fundraising Standards Board, said:
“Diabetes UK’s pedometer campaign was not solely designed to assist the public by raising awareness of diabetes. It also had a clear motive to solicit contact details for a subsequent fundraising approach to those who responded. As a result, we have concluded that the charity’s campaign misled the public.
“Many campaigns offer resources to the public that support a charity’s objectives and it can be an effective way to attract potential new donors. But it is vital that charities make it abundantly clear to respondents how their contact details might be used and that relevant permissions are both sought and obtained.”
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.