Woman Argues Car Dealership’s Telemarketing Is Illegal Without Consent Under TCPA

A woman from Florida alleges Kia of Vera Beach auto dealership violated federal privacy laws by calling her without consent under TCPA.

Plaintiff Gayle Mahr has filed legal action alleging violations against the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by a car dealership that she says contacted her without her permission. She alleges Kia of Vero Beach and its parent company SS & M Automotive Inc. used automated dialers and prerecorded messages to contact her and other consumers without express prior consent.

Mahr alleges that she and other consumers received unwanted calls to their cellphones, using prerecorded messages that promoted the company’s goods and services. She argues the Kia dealership invaded their privacy, with the calls and voice messages taking time out of her daily life to answer or listen to respectively.

The continuous barrage of calls eventually spurred Mahr to file legal action against the Kia dealership and its parent company.

Overview of TCPA Requirements

The TCPA was passed by Congress in 1991 to help consumers combat aggressive telemarketers. Under the TCPA, companies are prohibited from using certain automated equipment to send unwanted faxes, texts, or calls to consumers unless they have given their express prior consent to being contacted that way. In addition, the law prohibits companies from calling consumers outside of reasonable daytime hours or contacting consumers who do not wish to be contacted.

While using automated dialing systems is common business practice in the United States, it is important for companies to understand whether or not the people they call have given consent that qualifies for TCPA compliance.

Consent under TCPA requires that a company first get express consent in writing from a consumer before using an automated dialing system to initiate a phone call or text for solicitation purposes. This means the consumer must affirmatively opt into receiving these messages, which is important for companies operating in the United States to understand.

Consent under TCPA can be revoked at any time. Furthermore, consumers who ask the company not to contact them must be added to the company’s do not call list, and the companies must honor this request for at least five years.

Mahr alleges that she had never consented to receiving autodialed calls from Kia of Vero Beach. This would mean that each of the calls the dealership made to her allegedly violated the TCPA. Each violation can translate to up to $1,500 in statutory damages if the plaintiff can show the violation was made knowingly of willfully.

Due to how many consumers may have been affected by these unwanted calls, Mahr is also seeking to represent a putative Class of consumers that may have experienced similar privacy violations from the car dealership.

Mahr’s TCPA lawsuit alleges the Kia dealership did this to try to gain an advantage on their competitors by being the first to contact potential customers.

Mahr’s claim is seeking damages for all TCPA violations, which includes violations against her privacy and other potential Class Members.

This TCPA Lawsuit is Mahr v. SS & M Automotive, Inc. D/B/A Kia of Vero Beach, Case No. 2:19-cv-14109-DMM, in the U.S. District Court of Southern Florida.

Join a Free Car Dealership TCPA Violations Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

You may be eligible to join this lawsuit investigation into car dealership TCPA violations under the following circumstances:

• You did NOT provide express permission in writing to the car dealership to receive the calls or messages.
  You did NOT purchase a vehicle from the dealership that is contacting you.

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