Ben Dewhurst

This case was brought against an associated individual under paragraph 5.8.12 of the 15^th edition of the Code of Practice.

The Tribunal was asked to consider imposing a prohibition against Mr Ben Dewhurst pursuant to paragraph 5.8.5(g) of the Code.

The case related to a previous adjudication against Connect You Limited (the “Merchant provider”) (case reference 188306). The case related to an Information, Connection and Signposting Service (“ICSS”) provided by the Merchant (“the Service”) and was adjudicated on 17 March 2023. The Tribunal that considered the case on 17 March 2023 recommended consideration of a prohibition of Mr Dewhurst, a director of the Merchant provider and contact on the Phone-paid Services Authority’s (“PSA”) Registration Scheme for the Merchant provider since it registered on 16 December 2019.

The Tribunal decided to prohibit Mr Dewhurst from providing, or having any involvement in, any premium rate service in the UK. However, the Tribunal determined that a period of three years was an appropriate and proportionate length for the prohibition taking into consideration the sanction imposed on 17 March 2023 in relation to the prohibition imposed on the Merchant and the actions of Mr Dewhurst. The Tribunal accepted that during the course of the investigation he had, at times, attempted to achieve compliance, albeit incompletely, and engaged with the PSA to this end. This had to be balanced against the severity of the breaches and the limited value the Service offered to consumers.

Administrative charge recommendation: 100%.