Green Telecom Limited

Code of Practice for Sales and Marketing of Fixed-Line Telephone Services

Introduction and overview

The purpose of our Code of Practice is:

• to show that Green Telecom Limited (“our”, “us”, and “we”) refer to GREEN
TELECOM LIMITED Registered Company Number 3139356 who adopts
responsible best-practice selling techniques when marketing our fixed line-
telecommunications services 1 (“services”);
• to help our customers and potential customers understand our services and the
behavior to be expected from our representatives;
• to show that we provide our customers with higher standards of protection than
consumer law requires; and
• to set out clearly what is good practice in the sales and marketing of our services, as
reassurance to our customers.

The code applies to the sales and marketing of our services to domestic and small
business customers 2 (“you” and “your” refer to customers) and covers all aspects of the
sales process. We aim to avoid mis-selling and misrepresentation and to ensure that
you fully understand the services and the terms of the contracts we offer you.

All our sales and marketing staff and agents are briefed on this code and we routinely
monitor compliance with it. If you feel that any representative of Green Telecom Limited
has breached the terms of the code, please report your concerns to:
Mr Steve Hayden
Green Telecom Limited, Seven, The Power House, Higham Mead, Chesham, HP5
2AH Telephone: 0800 9555 300
Email: [email protected] who has responsibility for compliance with this code,
and for handling associated complaints.

1
“Fixed line telecommunications services” means narrowband calls and lines services provided to
domestic and small business customers by means of indirect access, carrier-preselection, wholesale line
rental or wholesale calls.
2
“Domestic and small business customer” means a customer or potential customer for the services who is
an individual or an undertaking for whom fewer than ten individuals work (whether as employees or
volunteers or otherwise).

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Copies of this code are available free of charge in various formats on request, including
via our website www.greentelecom.co.uk. The code has been prepared in line with
guidelines published by Ofcom, the industry regulator, on 13 April 2005.

Sales, marketing, advertising and promotional activity

We make customers aware of and promote our services by various methods. In all
cases, we act responsibly and try to comply with relevant legislation.

We will respect your wishes if you have registered with any relevant preference service,
including the Mailing Preference Service, the Telephone Preference Service, the Fax
Preference Service and the E-mail Preference Service.

All our advertising and promotion activity keeps to the principles of the British Codes of
Advertising and Sales Promotion. In addition, we ensure that advertising and
promotional literature is clear, unambiguous, accurate and fair, does not contain false or
misleading information about price, value or service and does not denigrate other
companies.

Recruitment and sales training

To ensure that our employees act responsibly at all times, we follow strict procedures in
the selection and training of staff who have direct sales and marketing contact with
customers. We also ensure that all our sub-contractors and agencies use equivalent
selection and training procedures and remuneration (payment) systems.

When recruiting new sales staff, we take up references and carry out relevant
background checks. We also consider whether applicants are suitable for this type of
work, recognising that our sales people will be seen as the ‘public face’ of our company
and the industry in general.

We train our sales and marketing employees to ensure they have a good understanding
of our services and of industry practice generally and do not give our customers
inaccurate or misleading advice.

We also ensure that our sales staff are familiar with the relevant aspects of consumer
protection law, the content and interpretation of this code and the benefits it provides to
customers.

Our remuneration systems for sales and marketing personnel are designed to
discourage misleading or exploitative sales practices.

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Customer contact

Our sales staff are given clear guidelines on contacting residential customers at home,
particularly during the hours of darkness. They must not visit you before 8am or after
8pm, and must not telephone before 8am or after 9pm, unless you ask them to.

Representatives involved in face-to-face sales and marketing have business cards or

badges that clearly display our company name and the representative’s own
identification number. The identity badge also displays the representative’s name and
photograph and a date showing the validity of the card. Information on the card is clear
and easy to read without close examination.

On making contact, our representatives will immediately identify themselves, state our
company name, the purpose of the call and how long it should take. If visiting or meeting
in person, they will show you their identity card.

Our representatives are trained to be courteous, to use appropriate language and to

offer clear and straightforward explanations. They must offer only factual and accurate
information about our services and contracts and must not misrepresent our services or
those of other companies. They must check that if you enter into a contract you fully
understand the terms and are sure that this is what you want to do.

Our representatives will cease contact with anyone who indicates that the contact is
inconvenient, unwelcome, inappropriate or too long. At your request, the discussion will
be ended immediately and, if making a doorstep call, the representative will leave your
premises immediately.

Our representatives will not abuse the trust of vulnerable customers, for example people
who are elderly or who have special needs, or whose first language is not English.

When visiting sheltered housing, nursing homes or residential care facilities, our
representatives will make contact with the warden or other person in authority before
approaching a customer.

We will not aim sales or marketing activity at people who are under the legal age for
entering into contracts.

To ensure we maintain these standards, we keep the records of our sales and marketing
activity for at least six months. Records include the date and the approximate time of the
contact with you. To help us deal with any complaints or queries, all such records clearly
identify the salesperson(s) who made the call or visit.

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Entering into a contract

We check that the person entering into a contract with us is authorised to sign a contract
for services and be responsible for bills at the premises in question.

Our order forms and contract forms are designed to ensure that you understand that you
are entering a contract, and each document states this immediately next to where you
sign.

We will tell you that you have the right to change your mind during the switchover period
and that there is no cost for cancellation during this period.

In all cases we will give you the following information:

• confirmation of our company’s identity and full contact details;

• a description of the service you have chosen, including how it works, the cost and
payment terms;
• arrangements for providing the service, including how we deal with the order and, as
accurately as possible, when it is likely to start;
• your right to cancel and how to use it;
• how long the charges will remain valid; and
• the minimum period of contract, and minimum contract charges, if any.

Our representatives have a full summary of our tariffs, which you can ask to see.

Where our representative meets you in person, they will give you the information in
writing. When you sign an order form, or enter into a written contract, you will also get a
copy of the order form or contract, as well as information about any after-sales services
or guarantees and arrangements for ending the contract.

You will get this information at the same time as you sign, or within 5 working days,
unless you received it in writing before signing the contract.

Orders placed with us by distance-selling methods (such as phone, fax or internet)

comply with distance-selling regulations. As with order forms, our telephone scripts are
designed to ensure that you understand that you are entering into a contract and will be
sent the information detailed above.

In the case of internet orders, a well signposted and easy-to-see hyperlink to this
information is prominently displayed and the information is readily available for
downloading and printing.

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Regardless of our method of selling, you may cancel orders and end contracts by
telephone, in writing, by fax or by e-mail to

Telephone 0800 9555 300

Address: Seven, The Power House, Higham Mead, Chesham. HP5 2AH
Email [email protected]

Contract review

Our standard procedures minimise the risk of errors or mis-selling on our part when
taking orders or making contracts during face-to-face or telephone selling.

We confirm orders by sending a notification of transfer letter to the customer in

accordance with the industry-agreed process. The letter, which is clearly dated, gives
details of the transfer, including the date of transfer, and information on any services and
features which may be affected by the transfer. The letter also provides contact details
for any questions.

We contact all customers entering into a new contract to confirm that you understand
that you have entered into a contract, are happy to proceed with the contract and are
content with the way in which we conducted the sales and marketing.

This check is generally incorporated into the order confirmation letter but is always
completed not more than 5 working days after a contract is agreed. Where we contact
you directly, this is done by a person not involved with our sales and marketing activities,
who will tell you who they are.

The letter may be sent electronically if you have applied online and have confirmed
online that you wish future correspondence to be sent electronically.

We will terminate the contract without charge or other penalty to you if we find that you
did not understand the contract or it was not what you intended or if it was finalised
before the expiry of the switchover period, and you wish to cancel..

We keep our contract procedures under review and take steps to prevent the recurrence
of any problem identified through audit (see below).

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Audit

We carry out regular audits of the systems, procedures and documents we use in sales
and marketing.

Customer complaints procedure

Complaints about sales and marketing are dealt with under the procedures set out in our
Consumer Code of Practice.

Our complaints procedure sets out how you may complain, and this includes complaints
about Green Telecom Limited sales and marketing. It specifies what to do next if you
believe the complaint has not been dealt with satisfactorily.

You should first direct your complaint to Green Telecom Limited. If we cannot resolve
the complaint to your satisfaction, you may contact

OTELO – Office of the Telecommunications Ombudsman

POBox 730, Warrington. WA4 6WU
0845 050 1614
www.otelo.org.uk

You can also ask for advice from your local Trading Standards Department or Citizens
Advice Bureau.

Status of this code

By law, all companies marketing services to customers must issue a code of practice for
sales and marketing.

Compliance with this code does not guarantee that it complies with any other legal
requirement.

Non-compliance with this code does not affect the validity of any contract between the
company and the consumer, unless the law states otherwise.

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Useful addresses

Ofcom - Riverside House, 2a Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1 9HA. Tel: 020 7981
3000/ 0845 456 3000. www.ofcom.org.uk
Direct Marketing Association - DMA House, 70 Margaret Street, London W1W 8SS
Tel: 020 7291 3308 www.dma.org.uk
Federation of Communication Services (FCS) – Burnhill Business Centre, Provident
House, Burrell Row, Beckenham, Kent BR3 1AT. Tel: 020 8249 6363 www.fcs.org.uk

If you wish to find details of your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau or Trading
Standards department you can search on the following websites

Citizens Advice – www.citizensadvice.org.uk

Institute of Trading Standards Administration – www.tradingstandards.gov.uk

This code has been licensed by The Federation of Communication Services

Limited 2005
Licence number 005166

Published May 2009. Correct at the time of printing. © The Federation of Communication Services Limited 2005

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