How to Complain to Ofcom: TV, Radio, Phone and Online Safety

You can make an Ofcom complaint about something you saw or heard on UK TV, radio or certain on-demand video services, and, if you were directly affected, about unfair treatment or an unwarranted invasion of privacy in a program. Ofcom also regulates phone, broadband and postal services, but it doesn’t resolve individual billing or service disputes, and under the Online Safety Act it doesn’t handle complaints about individual social media posts.

Knowing which kind of complaint you have decides where it goes and what’s possible. This guide explains Ofcom’s main complaint routes, what outcomes to expect, and where to go instead when Ofcom isn’t the right body. It’s general information, not legal advice.

What Ofcom handles, and what it doesn’t

Your issue	Who handles it
Offensive, harmful or misleading content in a TV or radio program	Ofcom (standards complaint), after the BBC for BBC programs
You were treated unfairly, or your privacy was invaded, in a program	Ofcom (fairness and privacy complaint), if you were directly affected
A problem with your phone, broadband or mobile provider	Your provider first, then an approved dispute resolution scheme
A post, video or comment on social media	The platform, and the police if it’s a crime. Not Ofcom.
An article in a newspaper or magazine	The publication, then usually IPSO or IMPRESS
A TV or radio advert	Generally the Advertising Standards Authority
Unsolicited marketing calls and texts	Generally the Information Commissioner’s Office

If your problem is a newspaper story, our guide to making an IPSO complaint covers that route.

Complaints about TV and radio content

Ofcom enforces the Broadcasting Code, which sets standards for programs on UK-licensed TV and radio channels. Anyone can make a standards complaint: you don’t need to be in the program. Standards complaints cover things like:

• harmful or offensive material, judged against generally accepted standards and context,
• protection of under-18s, including content broadcast when children are likely to be watching,
• due impartiality and due accuracy in news, and impartiality on matters of political controversy,
• crime, disorder and incitement,
• commercial references and product placement within programs.

Ofcom assesses complaints against the Code and decides whether to investigate. It doesn’t investigate every complaint, and a large number of complaints about one program doesn’t by itself mean a breach. Context matters a great deal: a late-night drama is judged differently from a daytime show.

BBC programs

For most complaints about BBC content, the BBC’s own complaints process comes first. If you’re unhappy with the BBC’s final response, you can then take a standards complaint to Ofcom. Fairness and privacy complaints about BBC programs can generally be made to Ofcom directly. Check Ofcom’s guidance for the current process.

Fairness and privacy complaints

This is the route that matters most for someone’s reputation. The Broadcasting Code requires broadcasters to avoid unjust or unfair treatment of individuals and organizations in programs, and to avoid unwarranted infringement of privacy, both in the program and in how it was made.

Only the person affected, or someone authorized to act on their behalf, can make a fairness or privacy complaint. Examples of what these can cover:

• a documentary that presented facts about you in a way that was materially misleading,
• a program that made serious allegations without giving you a proper opportunity to respond,
• filming you secretly, or broadcasting footage of you in a sensitive situation, without justification,
• broadcasting your address or identifying details without good reason.

Broadcasters can justify some intrusions, for example by showing a public interest in the program that outweighed your privacy. Ofcom weighs those arguments. It looks at what was actually broadcast and at the steps the program makers took, such as how they sought your consent and whether they gave you a right of reply.

How to make a fairness or privacy complaint

1. Note the details. Channel, program name, date and time of broadcast, and exactly what you object to. If you can, get a recording.
2. Collect your evidence. Correspondence with the program makers, any consent forms you signed, and documents that show what was wrong.
3. Complain promptly. Ofcom expects complaints to be made soon after broadcast and may decline late ones. Check its current time limits.
4. Use Ofcom’s complaint form on its website, choosing the fairness and privacy route.
5. Respond to Ofcom’s questions. Ofcom first decides whether to entertain the complaint. If it does, it asks the broadcaster to respond and usually shares responses with both sides before making a decision.

Ofcom generally won’t consider a fairness or privacy complaint if the matter is the subject of legal proceedings in the UK, or if a legal claim would be more appropriate. If you’re thinking about suing for defamation or misuse of private information, talk to a solicitor before choosing a route. Our guide to UK defamation law explains that option.

Phone, broadband and mobile complaints

Ofcom sets the rules phone and broadband providers must follow, including requirements for a clear complaints process. But it doesn’t settle individual disputes over bills, contracts or faults. The route is:

1. Complain to your provider using its published complaints process, and keep records.
2. Go to an alternative dispute resolution scheme if the complaint isn’t resolved after eight weeks, or sooner if the provider gives you a “deadlock” letter saying it can’t resolve it. Your provider must tell you which approved scheme it belongs to. The service is free for consumers.
3. Tell Ofcom about the problem as well if you want. Ofcom uses these reports to spot patterns and decide whether to investigate a provider, but it won’t resolve your personal complaint.

Ofcom also collects reports about nuisance and silent calls. If the calls are unsolicited marketing, the Information Commissioner’s Office is usually the body that acts; our guide on making an ICO complaint explains how.

Ofcom and the Online Safety Act

Since the Online Safety Act 2023, Ofcom has also regulated social media sites, search engines and other online services. This is where many people get stuck. Ofcom regulates the systems platforms use to deal with illegal and harmful content. It doesn’t handle complaints about individual posts, and it can’t order a particular post, video or account to be removed on your behalf.

For a specific post:

• report it to the platform using its reporting tools, choosing the closest category,
• use the platform’s complaints process if your report isn’t dealt with, which the Act requires services to offer,
• report it to the police if it’s a crime, such as threats, stalking or intimate image abuse.

You can still tell Ofcom if you think a service is failing its duties, for example if it has no working reporting tool or ignores reports of illegal content. Ofcom uses that information to decide where to act. Our guide to the UK Online Safety Act explains what platforms now have to do and how to use those duties.

A worked example

This is an illustrative scenario, not a real client.

Aisha runs a small building firm in Birmingham. A consumer TV program films a segment about a disputed job and broadcasts her company name and a clip of her refusing to comment at her front door. The segment says she “disappeared with the deposit.” She refunded the deposit before filming, and has the bank record.

1. She notes the channel, date and time, and records the segment from the broadcaster’s catch-up service.
2. She gathers her emails with the production team, which show she told them about the refund before broadcast.
3. She complains to the broadcaster, which stands by the segment.
4. She makes a fairness and privacy complaint to Ofcom, explaining that a material fact was left out after she provided it, and that filming at her home was unwarranted.
5. While Ofcom considers it, she posts an accurate, calm statement on her company website so customers searching her firm’s name see her side.

The outcome depends on Ofcom’s assessment of the evidence and the broadcaster’s response. A complaint about the separate social media clips of the segment would go to the platforms, not Ofcom.

Common mistakes

• Complaining to Ofcom about a social media post. Report it to the platform and, if it’s a crime, the police.
• Making a fairness complaint for someone else without their authority. Only the person affected, or their representative, can.
• Waiting too long. Content complaints have time limits and recordings get harder to find.
• Expecting compensation. Ofcom’s remedies are findings, published decisions and broadcaster sanctions, not payouts.
• Skipping your phone provider’s process. Dispute resolution schemes expect you to complain to the provider first.

When to get help

If a program or clip is now showing up when people search your name, the Ofcom decision is only part of the job. Our content removal service can review where the material has spread and which platforms or publishers are likely to act on it.

Frequently asked questions

How do I make an Ofcom complaint?

Use the complaint forms on Ofcom’s website. Choose a standards complaint for offensive or harmful program content, or a fairness and privacy complaint if you were directly affected by a program. For BBC content, most standards complaints go to the BBC first.

Can Ofcom remove a post from social media?

No. Under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom regulates how platforms handle illegal and harmful content, but it doesn’t deal with complaints about individual posts. Report the post to the platform, use its complaints process, and contact the police if it’s a crime.

Can Ofcom help with my broadband bill?

Not directly. Complain to your provider first. If it’s not resolved within eight weeks, or the provider issues a deadlock letter, you can take it to the provider’s approved dispute resolution scheme, which is free for consumers.

Does Ofcom deal with newspaper complaints?

No. Complaints about newspapers and magazines go to the publication and then usually to IPSO or IMPRESS, depending on which regulator the title belongs to.