So how could the guilty firms be made to pay?

MONEY Mail is calling for a new consumer protection law which would make sure that customers never spend any longer than ten minutes on hold to Britain’s biggest businesses.

It would then be up to individual regulators to fine companies who are found to not comply.

Regulators currently enforce rules and impose sanctions, however they do not monitor or penalise companies for their call waiting times.

WHO WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE?

GOVERNMENT bodies such as HMRC are overseen by agencies, though none have the power to issue fines. We want to see the Government do more to hold these bodies accountable.

The FCA would monitor all major financial service providers, while Ofgem would be responsible for energy suppliers. Watchdog Ofcom would oversee telecoms giants such as BT and Sky.

HOW MUCH COULD THEY FINE?

FINES could run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. Ofgem can already fine energy suppliers up to 10 pc of their turnover if they break licensing conditions. The FCA can issue unlimited fines to firms in its remit. Ofcom says it fines companies a fixed sum or a percentage of turnover, depending on the scale of the breach.

HOW WOULD WE MONITOR IT?

MONEY MAIL believes that businesses should publish their average call waiting times daily so breaches of the time limit could be tracked.

WHAT DO REGULATORS SAY?

THE FCA says it has already proposed a new consumer duty designed to ensure that customers do not face ‘unreasonable’ barriers when they contact financial service providers. But our proposal goes further by specifying a time limit on how long callers can expect to wait.

Ofgem says it would have to launch a consultation on any changes to the rules.

Ofcom agrees that companies must prioritise delivering a high standard of customer service.

Government bodies such as HMRC, whose fines the taxpayer would only end up paying, should be held to higher standards and senior executives held accountable for unacceptable call waiting times.