Do the Companies You Deal With Violate Phone Call Recording Laws?

If your calls were recorded without your permission, the company that called you could be in violation of California phone call recording laws.

TGI Fridays and other restaurants receive calls from customers or would-be customers on a daily basis. In California, these calls cannot be recorded without permission.  The California Invasion of Privacy Act prohibits the secret recording of any phone call, whether it is an incoming or outgoing call.

Even if a business is located in another state, California’s phone call recording laws may apply if the business is in telephonic contact with a person in California.

California is what is referred to as a “two-party state,” indicating that all people on the line must give permission for a call to be recorded. Some other states require only one person on one end of the phone to acknowledge and permit the call to be recorded.

Phone Call Recording Laws Protect Privacy

Traditionally, customer service representatives are the “voice” of a company. When you call the customer service line of a business like TGI Fridays, the interaction you have with the person answering the phone can make a difference in whether you want to do business with that company.

This interaction over the phone is a vital part of doing business, and savvy business owners know this. That’s why so many businesses have decided to record phone calls, both incoming and outgoing. The businesses want to be sure they have hired people who are welcoming customers to their business and not turning them off by displaying rude behavior, giving inaccurate information, or being ignorant of the answers consumers need.

By listening to recorded calls, businesses can coach their phone representatives and identify inadequacies in their training processes. No matter what their final goal, though, a company cannot violate phone call recording laws.

A customer can give consent without saying a word. If a recorded voice indicates that calls might be recorded and the customer chooses to continue to stay on the line, the customer effectively has provided consent.

In other instances, a customer hears a beeping sound that indicates recording has begun. If the customer does not hang up after the beep has sounded, then that customer has provided implied consent.

Other businesses besides TGI Fridays that are suspected of violating phone call recording laws include:

• AMF Bowling
• American Airlines
• British Airways
• Czech Airlines
• Fisher & Paykel
• Malaysia Airlines
• Miele
• Pei Wei Asian Diner
• 99 Cents Only Stores

Any business found liable for violating California’s phone call recording laws could be subject to damages of $5,000 per violation or three times the actual amount of the damages incurred.

Join a FREE California Call Recording Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you live in California and you did not receive a warning when calling a toll-free number, your call may have been recorded in violation of California law, and you may be entitled to compensation. See if you qualify to file a California call recording class action lawsuit.

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