What if a consumer asks a specific division of a corporation not to call?
- denying or interfering with a person’s Do Not Call rights.
- calling outside the permissible hours.
- abandoning an outbound telephone call.
- placing an outbound telephone call delivering a prerecorded message to a person without that person’s express written agreement to receive such calls, and without providing an automated interactive opt-out mechanism.
- failing to transmit Caller ID information.
- using threats, intimidation, or profane or obscene language.
- causing any telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass.
The Do Not Call Provisions
The original TSR contained a provision prohibiting calls to any consumer who previously asked not to get calls from or on behalf of a particular seller. Amendments to the TSR retain that provision, and also prohibit calls to any numbers consumers have placed on the National Do Not Call Registry maintained by the FTC.
The Entity-Specific Do Not Call Provision
It is a TSR violation to call any consumer who has asked not to be called again (the “entity-specific Do Not Call” provision). A telemarketer may not call a consumer who previously has asked not to receive any more calls from or on behalf of a particular seller or charitable organization. It also is a TSR violation for a seller that has been asked by a consumer not to call again to cause a telemarketer to call that consumer. Sellers and telemarketers are responsible for maintaining their individual Do Not Call lists of consumers who have asked not to receive calls placed by, or on behalf of, a particular seller. Calling a consumer who has asked not to be called potentially exposes a seller and telemarketer to a civil penalty of $46,517 for each violation.