Canada’s national telecommunications regulator has declared that the rules governing unsolicited telemarketing apply to financial advisors and insurance agents, too.

Back in 2008, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission issued a bulletin exempting financial advisors from telemarketing rules when contacting their existing clients. The CRTC reiterated that stance regarding insurance advisors in 2009. However, earlier this year the regulator said it was reconsidering its position, and invited public consultation on the issue.

After re-examining the issue, the CRTC ruled Thursday that not all telecommunications by advisors should be exempt from the telemarketing rules, “since existing clients may not expect to be called in all circumstances”. Calling clients about their existing investments is different from calling them to pitch new products, the regulator found.

In its decision, the CRTC said that while financial advisors and insurance agents have an obligation to communicate with their clients in certain circumstances, there is no obligation to do it by telephone. And, there is no evidence that this obligation requires them to communicate with clients outside of the telemarketing rules — by calling outside certain hours, not identifying themselves during the call, and not accepting do not call requests from their clients.

The CRTC points out that every other industry is subject to these rues, and found there’s no reason why the financial industry should be exempt.

As a result, the CRTC amended its interpretation and ruled “that unsolicited telecommunications made by investment or financial advisors and insurance agents or brokers to existing clients to sell or promote their respective products or services constitute telemarketing telecommunications under the rules. Consequently, the rules are to apply equally to the financial and insurance industries, and in the same way they apply to all other industries.”

Advisors can still contact existing clients who are registered on the National Do Not Call List under the existing business relationship exemption, but they will have to abide by the telemarketing rules when making telemarketing and other unsolicited communications with these clients, it added.