PECR and AI calls in the UK
The UK has one rule for live marketing calls and a stricter one for automated calls that play “sounds which are not live speech”. The regulator has not said where an AI voice agent sits.
This is not legal advice
This guide quotes the law and the regulators’ own pages and says where they are silent. It cannot tell you whether your campaign is lawful: that depends on who you call, where your list came from and what you say. For a decision that matters, ask a solicitor (UK) or an advogado (Portugal). Every source below was read on 4 October 2026; laws and guidance change, so check the date before you rely on it.
The short answer
UK marketing calls are governed by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR). PECR has two different rules for phone marketing: one for live calls and a much stricter one for automated calls. Which one applies to an AI voice agent is the question every AI calling business has to answer, and the regulator has not answered it directly.
Live calls: regulation 21
A live marketing call may be made unless the person has told you not to call, or the number is on the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) or Corporate TPS (CTPS) register and has been for at least 28 days (regulation 21(3)). You must also show a caller ID, or the number of a line on which you can be contacted (regulation 21(A1)), and give your name; on a live call you give an address or freephone number if the person asks (regulation 24).
The ICO describes a live call as one “where a live person is speaking to the person they are calling”.
Automated calls: regulation 19
Regulation 19 covers calls made by an automated calling system “transmitting sounds which are not live speech”. Those calls need the person’s prior consent to automated marketing calls from you. This applies to business numbers as well as to individuals.
Where does an AI voice agent sit?
We searched the ICO’s guidance on 4 October 2026 and found no page that deals with AI or synthetic voices in marketing calls. What the ICO has done is treat “avatar” calls (scripted lines recorded by voice actors and played by call-centre agents) as automated calls that need consent. It said so in a warning on 25 September 2025 and repeated it in a fine in July 2026.
An AI agent that listens and answers in real time is not a recording played at someone. It is also not a person. Until the ICO publishes guidance, anyone running AI calls is relying on their own reading of regulation 19, and the lack of AI-specific guidance is not an exemption. The careful approach is to treat it as an open question, get advice for your own campaign, and keep the things that are certain: screen against the TPS and CTPS, honour every objection at once, show a number people can call back, and say who is calling.
What it costs to get it wrong: the fine went up in 2026
The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 raised the maximum PECR fine for marketing calls to the “higher maximum amount” in the Data Protection Act 2018: £17.5 million or 4% of worldwide annual turnover, whichever is higher. That part came into force on 5 February 2026. The same change means calls that were attempted but did not connect can now count.
Be aware that some ICO guidance pages still say “up to £500,000” (they carry a banner saying they are under review). The legislation is what applies.
One more change: on 30 September 2026 the Information Commissioner’s Office became the Information Commission. It says it is still known as the ICO.
A recent example
On 27 August 2026 the ICO fined Elderly Aids Ltd £190,000 for 758,053 marketing calls to numbers registered with the TPS. Screening is the duty that catches businesses out.
Checklist for an AI calling campaign in the UK
- Screen every UK number against the TPS and the CTPS, for B2B lists too, and keep your own do-not-call list.
- Treat any “don’t call me” as final, on every channel, straight away.
- Show a caller ID people can ring back, and give your company name on every call.
- Get advice on regulation 19 for your own campaign: the ICO has not ruled on AI voices.
- Keep records of where each number came from and when it was screened.
- Read the GDPR guide: PECR sits on top of UK GDPR, not instead of it.
How FoxEra Calls helps (and what it does not do for you)
In FoxEra Calls nothing dials until you approve a campaign; each contact is rung at most once a day across all campaigns; a request not to be called stops further calls to that number; and calls stay inside the calling hours you set. For UK lists you can request a TPS and CTPS check on an uploaded file (1.4p per UK number in the app today; numbers are held from calling until the check is done). The legal decision about whether and whom to call stays with you.
Sources (read 4 October 2026)
- PECR 2003, regulation 19 (automated calls) (read 4 October 2026)
- PECR 2003, regulation 21 (live calls) (read 4 October 2026)
- PECR 2003, regulation 24 (information to give) (read 4 October 2026)
- PECR 2003, Schedule 1 (penalties, as amended) (read 4 October 2026)
- The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (Commencement No. 6) Regulations 2026, S.I. 2026/82 (read 4 October 2026)
- ICO: what are live direct marketing calls? (read 4 October 2026)
- ICO: what are PECR? (read 4 October 2026)
- ICO news, “Warning over robo calls”, 25 September 2025 (ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/media-centre/news-and-blogs/)
- ICO enforcement action against Elderly Aids Ltd, 27 August 2026 (ico.org.uk/action-weve-taken/enforcement/)
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Are AI cold calls legal in the UK?
PECR does not mention AI. Live marketing calls are allowed to numbers that are not on the TPS or CTPS and have not objected; automated calls that play “sounds which are not live speech” need prior consent. The ICO has not published guidance on AI voice agents, so get advice for your own campaign.
What is the maximum PECR fine in 2026?
Since 5 February 2026, £17.5 million or 4% of worldwide annual turnover, whichever is higher, under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025. Some ICO guidance pages still show the old £500,000 figure.
Does PECR apply to B2B calls?
Yes. Business numbers can register with the CTPS (companies) or the TPS (sole traders and most partnerships), and the ICO says B2B lists must be screened against both.
Who enforces PECR now?
The Information Commission, which replaced the Information Commissioner’s Office on 30 September 2026 and is still known as the ICO.