Member Article

Businesses urged to prepare for call recording legislation

A NORTH EAST-based telecoms and IT company is urging businesses across the region to be prepared for change as new legislation around phone recording is set to be introduced.

CCS, which works with household names across the UK, has seen an increase in companies seeking guidance around phone recording since the revised legislation was announced but has warned that many businesses still are not fully aware of what the changes will mean.

Coming into effect in January 2018, the revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) will bring greater regulation to the financial services sector, including stricter rules around call recording.

The new changes, which will not be affected by Brexit despite being EU legislation, will mean all firms that provide financial services to clients which are intended to lead to transactions will now have to record conversations. These transactions include shares, bonds, units in collective investment schemes, commodity traders and derivatives.

Penalties for failure to comply or the misuse of data will also increase from the current maximum fine of £500,000 to potentially four percent of annual turnover for businesses.

Chris Lee, managing director of CCS, has warned North East businesses to be aware of the changes or risk being fine. He said: “Current regulations around phone recording only apply to city traders and many businesses simply aren’t aware of the changes to the law that are happening. While there is still time before the changes come into effect, installing this kind of telecoms system takes some planning and shouldn’t be a snap decision.

“Despite this being EU legislation Brexit will have no impact on it whatsoever. In the lead up to the introduction of MiFID II, businesses will need to undergo a review of their compliance across phone, email and SMS. It is important for firms to demonstrate that they have the correct policies, procedures and management oversight in place to deal with the new legislation around phone recording.”

Established in 1986, CCS supplied and installed the first mobile phone for business in the North East and currently provides a variety of B2B telecommunications and IT technology, including mobile phones, IT products and services, desktop support and telephony platforms.

For advice and guidance around MiFID II and what it will mean for the region’s businesses contact CCS on 0191 534 0140.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by CCS .