Not sure if this is the right category but

[Kathyan]

if a company records your conversation with them, do they have to tell you that they are doing so beforehand?

[wiggal]

As far as I am aware yes.
When i used as a credit controllor, i remember a time when a bloke was having ago and then half way through said he was recording the conversation. I then passed him on to my supervisor and said he was recording it, but he didnt tell her till half way through like with me, so she told him she was terminating the call as he had not let her know it was being recorded!
That is as far as I know, but im no law person!

[riskman]

Yes - if they wish to use the recording for any 'legal' purpose afterwards...

[Buenchico]

Wiggal's answer refers to a telephone call. It's a legal requirement that anyone recording a telephone call must notify the caller. (That's why you see and hear statements such as 'calls may be recorded for training purposes').

However, there's no such legislation regarding recording normal conversations. I used to be a union rep. I always kept a tape recorder in my pocket when representing members. It came in useful on several occasions when employers later produced 'minutes' of a meeting which didn't accurately record what was said.

I've also worked in journalism and recorded many conversations, both with and without permission. I still carry a tape recorder with me and I frequently use it to record conversations. (If you chat to me in a pub, there's a very good chance that I'll record the conversation, without your knowledge. Also, I often record conversations with shop employees, again without their knowledge, so that I've got evidence of their product claims).

It's perfectly lawful for an employer to record conversations with an employee. It might actually be in the employee's interests that an accurate record is kept of what is said.

Chris

[Kathyan]

Thanks Chris, but this is not employer/employee related. My daughter went to sign a credit agreement and the conversation was apparently recorded, but they didn't tell her they were doing so.

[Buenchico]

Thank for the acknowledgement.

As I stated, the only restriction on recording conversations relates to phone calls. It's perfectly legal to record any other conversation without the participants' knowledge, including those relating to credit agreements.

Chris