Telemarketing is popular because it is an inexpensive way to market products. Costs are low for the telemarketer, but high on the individual who may be annoyed, inconvenienced, or even psychologically harmed by numerous pre-recorded (or robo) calls throughout the day. You have the right to be free from unwanted automated telephone calls and faxes. 

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) of 1991 and other related laws regulate unwanted telemarketing calls, junk faxes, and unwanted text messages to cell phones at the recipient’s cost. The TCPA and other regulations make it illegal for debt collectors and advertisers of products and services to make calls using automatic telephone dialing systems or artificial or prerecorded voice systems to cell phones or to residential phone lines without consent of the called parties.  Those making calls are required to:

1. Make calls between 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m., local time.
2. Maintain a “Do Not Call” (DNC) list, which must be honored for 5 years.
3. Provide their name, the name of the person or entity on whose behalf the call is being made, and a telephone number or address at which that person or entity may be contacted.  In addition:
4. Calls cannot be made to residences with artificial voices or recordings unless there is consent or an existing business relationship.
5. Calls cannot be made with artificial voices or recordings to cell phones or to any service in which the recipient is charged for the call.
6. Prerecorded or autodialed calls cannot engage two or more lines of a multi-line business or to any emergency number.
7. Unsolicited advertising faxes are prohibited.
8. If there is a violation of the TCPA, individuals or businesses are entitled to collect damages directly from the sender in the amount of $500 to $1,500 for each violation, or recover actual monetary loss, whichever is higher.

If you've received unwanted faxes or automated telephone calls from a debt collector or a company advertising a product or service, you may be entitled to sue.  Keep copies of faxes and voice messages and maintain a call log of when the calls or faxes were received.  Also, you may make a recording of messages that were left on your phone, creating a document with date, time of day and the message that was left.  CONTACT US to discuss whether a lawsuit can be pursued.

Recent Cases

Watson v. NCO Group, Inc., 462 F. Supp. 2d 641 (E.D. Pa. 2006)
Debt collector who made dozens of  automated “robo-call” debt collection calls to a consumer who owed no debt ,violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).