Bosses should be sent to jail if their companies are found to be behind nuisance calls, according to an influential consumer group.

Which? says some directors are avoiding financial sanctions by putting their businesses into liquidation when fines are levied against them.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has fined 22 companies since it was handed tough new powers in 2015 – but only four have paid the full amount due.

Which? says the solution is to make directors personally accountable to help end the problem.

Research the organisation carried out among more than 2,000 adults revealed that four out of five continue to receive nuisance calls, despite government attempts to clamp down on them.

About the same proportion of respondents supported the idea of holding individual directors responsible in the eyes of the law for the actions of their employees.

Many calls and texts come from claims handling companies, often falsely stating that they have been informed the person on the other end of the phone has been in an accident.

Mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance is another favourite target for nuisance callers.

“These calls are not only inconvenient but they can also encourage people to sign up for services of an inferior quality or that they simply don’t need.

“Elderly people are often particularly vulnerable and can sometimes be intimidated by being bombarded with unwanted calls.

“Signing up for the Telephone Preference Service should mean you do not receive unsolicited sales calls – but all too often the law is simply ignored.

“Even stiff fines have failed to deter the worst offenders. A jail sentence would undoubtedly send out a clear message that such abuses cannot be tolerated.

“If a cold caller says they have been informed you’ve been in an accident, they’re lying. And my advice is that if you have been injured, you should always see a qualified solicitor who will ensure you are awarded the compensation you deserve.”

Paul Henderson, a personal injury specialist at Macks Solicitors, believes it is unlikely that prison sentences will be introduced.

However, he believes much more should be done to stop the cold callers in their tracks.

“What would help in my view would be tightening and restructuring of company law to make it harder for businesses to simply collapse, avoid debt and start up again under a new name,” he said.

“Perhaps the telephone companies could also play their part by doing more to block the numbers used by the worst offenders.”