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TCPA Overview
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) is an amendment to the Communications Act of 1934 and passed by the Congress in 1991. According to the Federal Communications Commission, the amendment was a federal effort to regulate telemarketer solicitation calls — live or through the use of an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS) — to consumers. Unwanted faxes and text messages later became problematic.
Beginning Efforts of the TCPA
The TCPA set up several new rules to control the trifecta of privacy invasion through ATDS calls, spam faxes, and text messages. One of the first requirements set up by the Act required a business that engaged in telemarketing to establish a protocol for maintaining their own internal do-n0t-call list specific to their organization.
In 2003, the National Do Not Call Registry became law. This gave consumers a way to register their landlines and cell phone numbers to state their preferences to not be contacted by companies with efforts to sell something or to collect debts.
Definition and Rules Concerning the Use of ATDS
An ATDS has the ability to store phone numbers programmed into its system and call those numbers automatically. Some of these systems have the ability to produce automatic calls using a sequential or random phone number generator. Often, these have been combined with a pre-recorded voice when someone answers the call.
The TCPA established rules governing “prerecorded voice messages and automatic telephone dialing systems including those that deliver text messages.” The rules vary depending on whether the call is placed a “business or residential landline telephone, a cell phone, or some other category of protected telephone lines such as toll-free lines, emergency lines, or those lines servicing hospitals, nursing homes, or paging systems.”
The TCPA prohibits:
- Calls to any of the emergency telephone lines associated with fire protection, law enforcement, poison control, a hospital or other health care facility, doctor or physician’s service office. This includes to generalized emergency number known as 9-1-1
- Calls to the telephone line of any guest room or patient room of a hospital, health care facility, elderly home, or similar facility
- Calls to any telephone number assigned to any specialized paging, cellular, or radio service in which the called would be expected to pay for the contact through their contract
The law also does not allow prerecorded voice messages and autodialed calls, whether live or prercorded, to cell phones, with three exceptions:
- Calls made for emergency purposes
- Calls made with the prior express consent of the called party
- Calls made to collect debts owed to or guaranteed by the United States.
- No faxes could be sent a recipient without first having an established prior business relationship
- Access to the fax number was derived from established business relationship or public communication in which fax number was purposefully released.
Newly Established Rules
In 2012, rules were added to the TCPA which expanded its reach. Among those were that companies could no longer hide behind the “established business relationship” shield when it comes to robocalls. Prior written permission to receive calls must be given by the customer being contacted at all times.
Secondly, telemarketing companies have to have an opt-out menu as part of their call which allows the called to stop continual efforts to reach them.
Legal Consequences for Violating the TCPA
Those placing unsolicited ATDS calls to sell goods or services, attempting to collect debts, or sending unsolicited text messages and faxes can be taken to court.
Violations can result in $500 in statutory damages award for each call that is made to a plaintiff whose name appears on the National Do Not Call Registry and for each call made in violation of the TCPA. These penalties may be tripled if the person called is able to prove willful intent on the part of the caller to violate the law. Damage awards can and often do lead to substantial settlements in TCPA class action lawsuits.
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142 thoughts onWhat Is the TCPA?
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I have been called more times than I can count!
It literally starts at 7:00a.m. Call after call they don’t stop no matter what you say to them . I’ve even had some call me right back after hanging up on them and call me names. I know it sounds crazy! And it is. I don’t answer my phone anymore. One-day I had 8 calls in a row from a pre-recorded message from my pharmacy for the same perception I went there thinking I had 8 and there was one. I don’t know if that’s apart of this . But it sure does get my feathers ruffled when the only phone calls I get are from the same solicitor’s over and over again. Like Medicare I must have gotten at least 50+since they put this new medical change into the plan and they just keep on no matter how many times you tell them not to. Omg!!! It’s so stressful. Please somebody stop them
I had received in the upwards of 25 plus direct TV calls saying I owed money for a bill when I wasn’t even a customer ever and when I asked to be put through to a manager I was then hung up on most of the time.
I Qualify 4 This class Action. Please ADD Me
I received about 50 calls and messages a day, asked several times to be put on do not call list they continue to talk call and see messages over two years of this I block calls they call on a different number, I am a senior citizen and sick of it!!!
I GET 3 OR 4 CALLS DAILY from companies trying to convince me to change my medicare coverage. It is sickening!! THEY WILL NOT STOP EVEN THGOUGH I ASK THEM TO REMOVE MY NUMBER FROM THEIR LIST.
I am 73 years old and am on the “Do Not Call Registry.” I receive calls daily from Medicare Rewards. If I don’t answer the phone, they leave me a voicemail with a call-back number. They are so annoying. I would love your help in getting them to stop calling me.
Add me up to 5 calls a day
I have plenty of companies who violate this law on a daily basis especially through text message. What can I do? They need to pay if they’re breaking the law.
Please add me! I got these call often
I also get calls like this but never got a claim number.
I got calls on my old phone number from Direct TV saying I owed them money! I did not. When I asked them how,they had no explanation,then attempted to get me to sign up with Direct TV. The businesses are scammers….
I believe these people know when you’re on your phone because as soon as I turn my phone on I get call after call from different companies and spam calls.
me too they r just one of many too much spam daily the same people different number
Calls daily I have asked to stop calling me .
Please add me to do not call list . I get spam calls daily even after I block their numbers