HOW TO HIRE · BUSINESS & PROFESSIONAL

How to hire telemarketing and lead generation in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No licence applies, but marketing calls must follow PECR and be screened against the TPS. Here are the checks and the questions for a telemarketing agency.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring telemarketing and lead generation in five steps

  1. Decide what a good lead isThe job title, company size, area and the next step (a meeting, a demo, a callback) that counts as a qualified lead.
  2. Ask how lists are screenedEvery number checked against the TPS and Corporate TPS before calls, and your own do-not-call list honoured.
  3. Hear the script and sample callsListen to recorded calls from another campaign and approve the script for yours.
  4. Agree the day rate and the minimumCalling days or hours, any set-up fee, and the shortest commitment the agency will take.
  5. Get weekly reportsCalls made, conversations, leads and appointments, with notes you can check.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No licence is needed to run a telemarketing or lead generation agency in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. What is regulated is the calling itself, under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, and the personal data used to do it.

Ask the agency to explain in writing how it complies with PECR on every campaign.

TPS and Corporate TPS screening (PECR)

Regulations 21, 21A and 21B of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations set the rules for live sales calls: no call to someone who has told you to stop, and no call to a TPS or Corporate TPS number unless that person has agreed to hear from you specifically. Callers must say who is calling and show a number.

Ask how often call lists are screened against the TPS and CTPS, and to see the screening record. ico.org.uk →

Automated calls, emails and texts need consent (PECR)

Regulation 19 of PECR is stricter: an automated call that plays a recorded sales message is only allowed where the person has consented to exactly that kind of call. General marketing consent is not enough. Under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, marketing emails and texts to individuals need specific consent, apart from the soft opt-in for your own past customers. Emails to companies are allowed, with an opt-out.

Confirm in writing that the campaign uses live callers only, unless you hold specific consent for recorded calls. If the telemarketing agency sends follow-up emails or texts, agree who sends them and on what consent. ico.org.uk →

ICO fee and data handling

A telemarketing agency processes names and numbers, so it must pay the ICO data protection fee unless exempt. Bought-in data needs particular care about where it came from.

Check the agency is on the ICO register and ask where any purchased data was sourced. gov.uk →

VAT

Telemarketing and lead generation are standard-rated, so a registered agency adds 20% to the calling days, the set-up fee and any data it buys for you. Registration becomes compulsory once a telemarketing agency has VAT-taxable turnover over £90,000 in any rolling 12 months; from then VAT must be charged and shown as a separate line on the invoice.

Ask the telemarketing agency for the VAT number with the contract and for calling days, data and VAT shown apart. gov.uk →

“How do you screen numbers against the TPS and Corporate TPS for telemarketing calls?”

A good answer: Every list screened before calling and again during long campaigns, with a record kept. A telemarketing agency that says business numbers never need checking has not read the rules.

“Will callers say they are calling for my business, with a number shown?”

A good answer: Yes: a named caller, your business name and a number displayed, as PECR requires.

“Where does the calling data come from?”

A good answer: Your own customer list, or a named data supplier with consent records. Vague answers about data are a reason to stop.

“What counts as a qualified lead, and how is it checked?”

A good answer: Your criteria written into the brief, with call notes or recordings you can review for each lead.

“Can I listen to sample telemarketing calls before we start?”

A good answer: Recordings from a similar campaign and a draft script for yours.

“What is the minimum commitment and notice period?”

A good answer: A clear number of calling days or weeks, and how to stop if the leads are poor.

“Do you send emails or texts as part of lead generation?”

A good answer: If so, only on proper consent, or to business addresses with an opt-out, under PECR.

Getting the quote right

  • Day or hourly rate, number of calling days and any set-up fee
  • Who actually attends to the calls: the agency's employed callers or subcontracted call centres, named
  • Data: supplied by you, bought by the agency, and screening against the TPS and CTPS included
  • What counts as a qualified lead or appointment
  • Reporting frequency and call notes or recordings provided
  • Minimum commitment and notice period
  • The VAT number, and VAT at 20% on calling days, set-up and data

Walk away if

  • No TPS or Corporate TPS screening, or "business numbers don't count"
  • Recorded-message calls without specific consent
  • Cannot say where the calling data came from
  • No sample calls or script to approve
  • Payment per lead with no definition of a lead
  • A long minimum term before any results
LOW
£150
TYPICAL
£300
HIGH
£500

What telemarketing and lead generation costs: £150–£500 per day

Telemarketing and lead generation is priced per calling day or hour, sometimes with a set-up fee and a minimum number of days. Telemarketing & Lead Generation price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Telemarketing agencies near you, with the badges that matter shown

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Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. BriefTarget audience, offer, what counts as a lead, and the script agreed.
  2. Data and screeningLists prepared and screened against the TPS, Corporate TPS and your own suppression list.
  3. PilotA short run of calling days to test the script and the data.
  4. CallingThe campaign runs, with callers naming your business and showing a number.
  5. Reporting and handoverLeads passed to your sales team with notes, and weekly figures.

TPS
The Telephone Preference Service, the register of people who do not want marketing calls.
Corporate TPS
The equivalent register for business numbers.
PECR
The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, the UK rules on marketing calls, texts, emails and cookies.
Qualified lead
A prospect who meets the criteria you set, such as role, budget and interest.
Suppression list
Your own list of people and numbers that must not be contacted.
Appointment setting
Calling to book meetings for your sales team rather than selling on the call.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the screening recordsIf a complaint reaches the ICO, you will want proof the lists were screened and opt-outs honoured.
Check a sample of leads yourselfCall a few back. A lead that does not remember the call was not qualified.
Update your do-not-call listAnyone who asked not to be called again goes on your own suppression list for future campaigns.
Leave an honest reviewSay what the telemarketing agency did well and what could be better, once the work is finished. A problem goes through the make-it-right step first, so they can put it right.

STEP 1Start with the telemarketing agencyA short, dated message works best: the problem, the proof and the remedy you want from the telemarketing agency. Your rights come from the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which requires a trader to use reasonable care and skill and gives you repeat performance or a price cut where they did not.
STEP 2Make-it-right on LocufyGive the telemarketing agency fewer than four stars and Locufy offers to pass the complaint on first. The make-it-right step is followed through before you publish.
STEP 3The consumer helplinesNobody licenses telemarketing agencies, so the route is consumer advice: Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland. They can refer the telemarketing agency to Trading Standards.
STEP 4Take it to small claimsFor money the telemarketing agency owes you, the small claims courts handle claims up to £10,000 in England and Wales, up to £5,000 through simple procedure in Scotland and up to £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring telemarketing and lead generation: questions people ask

No licence is needed in any UK nation. The calls must follow PECR, and the agency must handle personal data lawfully.

Live marketing calls to a number registered with the TPS or Corporate TPS are not allowed unless the person has specifically consented to calls from you, so lists must be screened first.

Only to people who have specifically consented to automated calls from you. General consent to marketing is not enough under PECR.

£150–£500 per day, with a typical figure of £300. Specialist business-to-business callers, appointment setting and bought data push the day rate up. Read the telemarketing and lead generation price guide for the factors, or search your town above for telemarketing agencies nearby.

The calls are made to market your business, so both you and the agency should take the rules seriously. Agree compliance and screening in the contract.

Usually several weeks, priced per calling day or per hour, often after a short pilot.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in business & professional

How to hire: Market ResearchHow to hire: Business ConsultantHow to hire: Recruitment AgencyHow to hire: Management ConsultantHow to hire: Startup AdvisorHow to hire: Grant & Bid WriterHow to hire: GDPR / Data Protection ConsultantHow to hire: HR ConsultantAll 701 hiring guides →

Telemarketing agencies near you

Telemarketing agencies in LondonTelemarketing agencies in ManchesterTelemarketing agencies in BirminghamTelemarketing agencies in GlasgowTelemarketing agencies in BelfastAll telemarketing agencies on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. ICO — telephone marketing (PECR)
  2. ICO — electronic mail marketing (PECR)
  3. gov.uk — pay the data protection fee
  4. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  5. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue
  6. gov.uk — make a court claim for money: court fees
  7. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  8. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register