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Nuisance calls are up there with spam emails and junk mail as one of the scourges of modern life. Whether it’s an automated voice urging you to claim compensation for payment protection insurance or a message from an accident claims company, cold calls are insistent and incessant.

If you’re sick of these unsolicited calls then you’re not alone. A new report from AXA Insurance has found that one-in-five people receives a nuisance phone call each day. As someone who works from home for some of the week, I know that my landline rings at least twice daily with these unwanted advances. As for my mobile, there’s a minimum of one compensation-chasing claimant on any given day.

Despite efforts by the government, insurance firms and consumer groups to crack down on this nefarious practice, the public is still being bombarded with more than 12 million nuisance calls every day. According to AXA, in addition to the one-in-five of us who are pestered day-in, day-out, a further half receive at least one call a week.