I have received a letter from the National Bank of Belgium telling me that I have been selected to take part in a telephone survey. Is this letter genuinely from the Bank?

Yes. The National Bank of Belgium collects a range of data to assess the economic situation in Belgium. One of these data-gathering exercises involves questioning a panel of households in order to compile an indicator of consumer confidence. So, you are one of the 8 000 households that are selected at random each month to take part in this survey. This does not necessarily mean that you will definitely be contacted as only some of these households will actually be involved in the monthly survey. If our call centre phones you, we highly recommend that you answer the questions that you will be asked. It will only take a few minutes of your time and we appreciate your feedback. Absolute anonymity is of course guaranteed. Besides, you could even be rewarded with a small gesture of thanks for your participation (a prize draw with 100 winning participants).