When robocalls break the law
- Prerecorded or artificial-voice calls to your cell phone without your prior express consent. For sales calls, the company needs your prior express written consent.
- Prerecorded sales calls to your home phone without your written consent.
- Calls that continue after you told the caller to stop.
- Calls that don’t identify who is calling or give a way to opt out, as federal rules require.
What the law allows
Each unlawful robocall can be worth $500, and up to $1,500 if the caller acted willfully or knowingly 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(3). Unlike some other claims, a single prerecorded call can be enough.
Debt collectors, “car warranty” sellers, solar and insurance marketers, and lead generators are frequent offenders. If you don’t know who is calling, we can often find out.
What to do now
- Don’t delete anything. Screenshot each text so the sender’s number, date, and time show.
- Save voicemails and note the date, time, and caller ID of each robocall.
- Write down whether you ever gave the company your number, and when you replied “STOP.”
- Check your Do Not Call registration date at donotcall.gov.
- Don’t reply with anything but “STOP,” and don’t click links in spam messages.
Questions
What if I don’t know who called?
Save the number, the date, and any voicemail. Lawsuits can be used to identify the company behind a number.
Do calls to a landline count?
Yes. Prerecorded telemarketing calls to a residential line generally require prior express written consent.