Lycamobile

How ethical and sustainable is Lycamobile? 

Lycamobile is a low-ranking brand in The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Ratings and Comparison Tables.

Lycamobile is a mobile phone network owned by the Lycamobile Group and receives a low Good Shopping Guide score in our Ethical Mobile Phones Network Ratings Table. Although Lycamobile has not yet met our Ethical Benchmark, we hope to see the brand make progress in the future.

In which areas does Lycamobile perform well? 

Lycamobile performs well in our Nuclear criteria; our research did not discover any involvement in the nuclear industries or nuclear investments. Unlike some other mobile phone networks, neither Lycamobile nor its subsidiaries were found to invest in or participate in any military or defence activity. Lycamobile also scored well for its Animal Welfare.

Lycamobile’s website does have some evidence of charitable endeavours; for example, the company has donated to Alzheimer’s Research UK as part of a charity partnership, with the aim of raising awareness of dementia in communities of Global Majority ethnicities.

In which areas does Lycamobile perform poorly?

Despite Lycamobile’s progress, there is still room for improvement. The brand was marked down under our criteria for Political Donations. Lycamobile has so far donated £2,158,212.00 to parties including the Conservative and Unionist Party (A.K.A Conservative Party) and the Liberal Democrats.

After the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) discovered extended and widespread consumer data failures that may have put people at risk, Lycamobile was fined $604,800 (AUD). The ACMA investigation discovered 4,207 instances in which Lycamobile failed to adhere to ID check requirements before enrolling prepaid mobile customers, as well as 245,902 instances in which the company failed to provide accurate customer information to a database used by police, fire, and ambulance services. It is vital that emergency services have access to accurate data. Mobile phone networks that fail in this risk people’s lives.

Lycamobile has also run into trouble with HMRC. The company is believed to have avoided paying at least £60 million in taxes. This has resulted in a tribunal for Lycamobile and a poor rating for our Criticisms criterion!

How can Lycamobile brand improve its Ethical Rating?

The Good Shopping Guide score results from multiple ethical criteria in relation to Lycamobile. To reach our minimum Ethical Benchmark and qualify for Ethical Accreditation, Lycamobile has some issues to resolve, including its donations to political parties, its tax avoidance, and its commitment to public safety and welfare.

If your mobile phone network brand values ethics and sustainability, why not check out The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Accreditation? Increase customer and investor confidence and stand out from the greenwash.