Can a bank or other business refuse to take my Relay UK call?
The Equality Commission advises that refusing to take calls from disabled people that involve a third party, is likely to be a breach of the Equality Act.
Also, the Information Commissioner has said that taking calls via a relay service would not be a breach of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and has made the following statement:
“The GDPR does not prevent individuals from contacting organisations using services such as textphone, NGT* or even using a sign language interpreter. The matter at hand is not one of consent, but that the organisation should have the appropriate security in place to protect against unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data, as outlined in Article 5, principle (f) of the GDPR.
The same level of security should be in place for a customer using the above services as for one who is not. The organisation must have appropriate processes in place to authenticate the customer, regardless of if they are using one of the above services, before processing any personal data.”
Letter to UK Council on Deafness from the Information Commissioner’s Office, October 2018
You can find more information on this on the Ofcom website.
*Now Relay UK
Will Relay UK work with my Braille reader?
If you can use your Braille reader with Text Relay you’ll be able to use it with Relay UK.
Are the relay assistants the same people as Next Generation Text Relay?
Yes, the relay assistants on Relay UK are the same ones that were on Next Generation Text Relay.
Is a call using Relay UK confidential?
Yes. Sometimes we record conversations facilitated by the Relay Assistant but only in the following situations:
- An emergency call
- For quality measurement and training
- When one party is abusive to the relay personnel
- Where there is a technical problem that needs investigation
Relay Assistants may not have writing materials at their workstations (except by specific arrangement, e.g. if they are asked to complete a form as part of a feedback trial).
Relay service employees must sign a confidentiality agreement which states that they will be dismissed and may be prosecuted if they discuss or use any information from the conversations they relay. This does not cover comments directed at the Relay Assistant or discussions between a party and the Relay Assistant.
Will a Blackberry or Windows Phone work with Relay UK?
No, the Relay UK app isn't supported on Blackberry and Windows Phones.