Calling Danish consumers: the rules in 2026

Cold sales calls to Danish consumers are banned unless the consumer asked for the call. Four product types are exempt: books, newspaper and magazine subscriptions, insurance, and rescue or patient transport subscriptions. Even then, people on the Robinson list may not be called. Calls to businesses are generally allowed, with exceptions for sole traders.

Denmark is stricter than most of Europe here. If your experience is from markets where cold calling is allowed unless someone has opted out, reverse your default: in Denmark, calling consumers is not allowed unless one of the conditions below is met.

The main rule

Section 4(1) of the Consumer Contracts Act (forbrugeraftaleloven) says a business may not, without a prior request, call a consumer with a view to making a sale, immediately or later (source).

Three consequences:

• "Immediately or later" means you can't call to ask permission to call back with an offer.
• The sale doesn't stick. A promise made by a consumer during an unlawful call is not binding (section 5).
• It applies to everyone, not only people on the Robinson list.

The same section bans unsolicited doorstep visits. Door-to-door selling is not a workaround.

The four exceptions

The ban doesn't apply to calls about (section 4(2)):

1. ordering books,
2. subscriptions to newspapers, weeklies and periodicals,
3. arranging insurance,
4. subscriptions to rescue services or patient transport.

The call must stay on that product. The Consumer Ombudsman says a call that also sells or promotes other products becomes unlawful (source).

The Robinson list

Within the exceptions, you may not call anyone on the Robinson list, the CPR register's quarterly list of people who have opted out of marketing, unless they asked you to call (Marketing Practices Act s. 10(4)-(5)). You also may not call anyone who has told you directly that they don't want calls.

The first time you call someone, you must tell them clearly that they can opt out of marketing from you, and opting out must always be easy and free (section 10(6)).

See The Danish Robinson list explained for call centres.

What valid consent looks like

Everything outside the four exceptions, such as energy, telecom, alarms, solar panels or financial products beyond insurance, needs the consumer's prior request. The Consumer Ombudsman describes this as an explicit and unambiguous request to be called by that business (source).

Its guidance on consent collected through competitions and web forms sets out, among other things (guidance):

• The consent text must name the business that will call. "Selected partners" isn't enough.
• It must say the channel (phone) and the products.
• It can't be hidden in terms and conditions.
• You must be able to document how and when consent was given, and should keep that documentation until two years after last use.
• Unused consent will probably lapse after one year.
• If you bought the consent, you are still responsible for it being valid.

That last point is where most cases start.

What it costs to get wrong

Recent cases from the Danish Consumer Ombudsman:

When	Company	Fine	What happened
Jan 2026	Modstrøm (electricity)	DKK 400,000	27 consumers called without valid consent, 8 misled (source)
Jul 2025	Verisure (alarms)	DKK 635,000	57 consumers and two businesses called without consent, plus misleading marketing (source)
Apr 2025	Grøn Elforsyning (electricity)	DKK 700,000	27 consumers called without valid consent, 17 misled (source)

In July 2026 the company behind Grøn Elforsyning, now ENLY, was reported to the police again, this time for calling 47 consumers on the basis of consents bought from partners (source). Note how few consumers it takes: 27 calls were enough for DKK 700,000.

Calling businesses

Sales calls to businesses are generally lawful in Denmark, even without consent. Two exceptions:

• Sole traders (enkeltmandsvirksomheder) are natural persons. If the owner is on the Robinson list or has opted out, you may not call.
• Companies with advertising protection in the CVR business register: you may not use their CVR data for direct marketing. See Danish company ad protection (CVR).

Robocalls, email and SMS

Automated calling systems that play a message, email and SMS all generally need prior consent (Marketing Practices Act section 10(1)), regardless of the Robinson list.

Checklist for a Danish calling campaign

1. Is the product one of the four exceptions? If not, does every person have valid, documented consent naming you?
2. Does the call stay on that product?
3. Has the list been checked against the latest Robinson list, right before calling?
4. Have people who opted out with you been removed?
5. Are sole traders and protected companies handled?
6. Can you show when and against which edition the list was checked?

Robinsontjek takes care of points 3, 5 and 6, built into your dialer. Write to us and we'll set the check up for you.

Questions and answers

Is insurance always exempt?

Calls about arranging insurance are exempt from the cold-call ban, but not from the Robinson list. If the call drifts into loans or other products, the exemption no longer covers it.

Does the client or the call centre get fined?

Cases have named the brand whose products were sold, and lead companies have been reported to the police for their part. Assume both can be held responsible.

Robinsontjek is a private company, not an authority. This guide summarises Danish sources in English and is not legal advice.