Welcome to The Advertising Protection Agency (TAPA)

The Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 is a UK law that states all organisations including charities, voluntary organisations and political parties do not make sales or marketing calls to telephone numbers unless they have the owner's consent to do so. Under this regulation, if a telephone number is registered on to the official central opt out register, it is a legal requirement that organisations do not call these numbers.

The Advertising Protection Agency (TAPA) is the UK's independent organisation set up to provide legal assistance to UK businesses that are being targeted by unlicensed marketing firms that coerce the selling of advertising space through purported sponsorship publications on behalf of charities, the emergency services and schools. TAPA also provides assistance to businesses involved in disputes with advertising firms from any other sector of the advertising industry.

TAPA monitors the trading practices and the number of complaints being received against advertising firms. When complaints received against any such firm achieve a level of concern in the interest of public safety, TAPA provides a report to its associates at Companies Investigation Branch, Trading Standards and the Police where necessary to achieve an official investigation in to the trading and accounting practices of these firms.

The TAPA Opt Out Scheme

The TAPA Opt Out Scheme is an independent business consumer initiative administered by The Advertising Protection Agency. TAPA prevents unsolicited advertising sales telephone calls being made to UK businesses that do not wish to receive these types of sales calls and provides representation to UK businesses that are involved in contractual disputes with advertising firms. The TAPA Opt Out Scheme provides its members with legal representation where necessary.

The TAPA Opt Out Scheme´s nucleus is ´The TAPA Opt Out Ledger´. This is the alphabetically indexed register where UK businesses can enter their details to broadcast their legal entitlement to not receive unsolicited sales telephone calls from advertising firms. When businesses appoint TAPA, their details are automatically entered on to The TAPA Opt Out Ledger.

The TAPA Opt Out Ledger is broadcasted on this website for advertising firms endeavouring to operate fairly and ethically that respect the wishes and legal rights of businesses that do not wish to receive these telephone calls to edit their data accordingly against the businesses registered on there. The TAPA Opt Out Ledger is indexed in alphabetical order to ensure verification checks are carried out quickly and easily.

Millions of businesses across the UK find themselves victims of various advertising sales scams or find themselves inundated with unsolicited advertising sales requests or payment demands for advertising they do not wish to receive. Many others find themselves legally bound to uncompromising terms and conditions of contract that was not highlighted to them at the point of sale resulting in severe financial consequences for businesses where in cases advertising firms illegally debit payments from retained card details they where not legally permitted to.

The prevention of these unsolicited sales telephone calls ensures that businesses do not fall victim to any advertising sales scams where for example they may be sent an invoice for advertising services they have not requested or may be coerced in to accepting an alleged pre-booked advertisement that they have not actually agreed to and may be harassed in to forwarding payments to advertising firms. The prevention of these telephone calls enables TAPA´s members to enjoy uninterrupted working practice.

TAPA´s primary function is to prevent unsolicited advertising sales telephone calls being made to UK businesses that do not wish to receive these types of sales calls. TAPA is the legally appointed representatives of the businesses registered on The TAPA Opt Out Ledger and investigates any unsolicited advertising sales approaches made verbally or in writing to these businesses to ensure they do not become victims of unfair trading practices.

If registered businesses find themselves in receipt of any unsolicited advertising sales telephone calls or improper demands for payment at any time, TAPA will make representation on behalf of these businesses where necessary to ensure that the firms responsible withdraw their demands and do not make any further unsolicited approaches to these businesses at any time. TAPA achieves this objective by subsidising the cost of legal representation to registered businesses where necessary.

TAPA´s secondary function is to monitor the trading practices of advertising firms that our organisation receives complaints against. If advertising firms do not edit their call data against the businesses entered on to The TAPA Opt Out Ledger, complaints will be made against these firms to TAPA by its members. TAPA issues written notice to advertising firms it receives complaints against to allow them the opportunity to edit their call data against the businesses entered on to The TAPA Opt Out Ledger before TAPA takes action against such firms. If firms persist to contact members of TAPA and further complaints are issued against these firms, action will be taken against these firms at this stage.

Where the number of complaints TAPA receives against any one particular advertising firm achieves a level of concern in the interest of public safety, TAPA will present a report to Companies Investigation Branch (CIB) where the concern is regarding a limited company or to Trading Standards where the concern is regarding a non-limited status firm, detailing our findings together with copies of the complaints we have received from registered businesses. In more serious cases, TAPA will instigate criminal proceedings through the Police.

The above government agencies will give consideration to any reports they receive from TAPA. Reports issued by TAPA are reviewed with the appropriate resolve. When an advertising firm is the subject of a government investigation and sufficient evidence is found to suggest the firms´ accounting or trading practices are in breach of their legal obligations, a case is usually brought to the High Court regarding the offending firm to wind it up and put the firm in to involuntary insolvency. Investigations that are actioned usually result in firms being wound up.