DMA pitch in at All-Party Parliamentary Group on Corporate Responsibility

As a UK leader in codes of good business practice, the DMA understands and advocates the need to treat all consumers—regardless of disability, illness, age or social situation—with the respect and care that allows them to make responsible decisions.

All of the thousand-strong DMA members sign up to the DMA code, which mandates that they implement processes to deal with vulnerable customers.

The speakers at the APPG event came from the food and gambling industries, politics and charity. Particularly poignant was the presentation from the Alzheimer’s Society representative, who spoke about the problems people with dementia face when trying to do administration. Despite the fact that a person with dementia may be in sound mind at the time of acting, the fact that they have dementia means those who are dealing with them—particularly banks—often disregard what they are saying. This takes away power and autonomy, which can contribute to loneliness and isolation and add to the problems of dementia.

The discussion was fruitful, with many understanding the need for greater care when interacting with vulnerable consumers. The main issue seemed to be spreading word to businesses and individuals. There is, inevitably, a cost to doing these trainings, and many companies have yet to consider doing so. Nonetheless, it was clear that more companies are recognising the issues and seeking to address them.

The DMA will continue to work in this area to spread the word about vulnerable consumers. The DMA’s Vulnerable Consumers Taskforce meets monthly to discuss the issues and recommend the best way ahead. It works with charities and experts to find out the pertinent issues and how to tackle them.

Furthermore, the DMA is working in the field of Neurodiversity, which seeks to cater for those with differing neurological dispositions such as ADHD and Asperger’s. Often, working environments and hiring processes do not respect these differences and treat candidates with these problems unfairly even when they may be particularly adept at the jobs they are applying for, such as data management or analytics. Our initiatives seek to help businesses create environments explore these issues and adapt their businesses to give all candidates a fair chance of employment and a working space that caters to their needs.

Read about our January event on Neurodiversity here.