Was Your Call Recorded by TGI Friday’s?

If you are on the phone with a company, you may be unaware that your telephone call may be recorded. There are companies that may be unlawfully recording the calls of customers.

Federal law states that one party must be aware if a call is being recorded. However, many states have gone one step further and instituted laws that require both parties be made aware of any recording.

According to California law, if a phone call is recorded, say if you call a company like TGI Friday’s, both parties must be made aware of the recording. The most common way to make a person aware of the fact that a call is recorded is by verbally notifying them at the beginning of the call.

Many times, when a customer calls a company for customer service, there is a verbal warning in the form of a message that may say something such as, “This call may be recorded or monitored for quality-assurance purposes…”

This allows the company to comply with both state and federal laws regarding call recording. But there are times that companies fail to do this. TGI Friday’s may be one of these companies that has failed to notify customers that they are being recorded. If so, TGI Friday’s may be violating the rights of customers that call their customer service line.

Under California law, if TGI Friday’s or any other company violates this law, the potential damages are $5,000 per call violation. If a company has made a regular practice of this violation, the possible damages could be astronomical.

There have been companies that have had to pay multi-million dollar settlements for these types of violations.

The reason California has such laws in place is to protect the privacy rights of their citizens. The California Invasion of Privacy Act is the law that has been put in place to protect the privacy of Californians.

If a company, like TGI Friday’s, does record a call, it is not for ill purposes. It is most often for the purposes of improving customer service and training. However, companies may be in violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act.

How to Protect Yourself

When you make a phone call to TGI Friday’s or any other company, and you are not made aware that your phone call may be recorded, it is always a good idea to ask the customer service agent if your call is being monitored or recorded.

Also, when a debt collection company or other company calls you, again, it is always in your best interest to ask if the phone call is being recorded.

If you called TGI Friday’s and you were not made aware that your call was being recorded, your privacy may have been violated. You may have cause for legal action.