Unwanted automated calls, robotexts, and prerecorded messages aren’t just annoying, but they violate federal law when businesses fail to obtain proper consent or ignore do-not-call requests. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) protects consumers from invasive telemarketing practices and being contacted at unreasonable hours. The TCPA provides legal remedies when companies cross the line. Under the TCPA and related FTC regulations, telemarketing calls or texts may not be made before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. (local time of the consumer) unless the consumer has provided prior express consent to receive calls outside those hours.
If telemarketers, debt collectors, or other businesses have bombarded you with illegal calls or texts, you have the right to fight back and recover statutory damages of $500 to $1,500 per call or text.
At Scarfone Law, we represent consumers nationwide in TCPA lawsuits against companies that violate your privacy through illegal calling practices. Our TCPA lawyers understand federal telecommunications law and hold businesses accountable for violations that disrupt your daily life. Whether you’ve received dozens of robocalls despite being on the National Do Not Call Registry, been texted by marketers without permission, or faced relentless calls using automatic dialing systems, we can help you pursue justice.
Contact Scarfone Law today to discuss your TCPA case and learn how we can help you stop illegal calls while recovering statutory damages.
Understanding the Telephone Consumer Protection Act
Congress enacted the TCPA in 1991 to protect consumers from unwanted telemarketing calls. The law restricts how businesses can contact consumers by telephone, establishing strict rules about automated calling systems, prerecorded messages, text messages, and fax advertisements.
The TCPA gives consumers powerful legal tools to fight back. Businesses that break TCPA rules face liability of $500 to $1,500 per violation, meaning companies making hundreds of illegal calls can face substantial financial consequences. These statutory damages create strong incentives for compliance while providing meaningful compensation to harmed consumers.
Common TCPA Violations
TCPA lawsuits arise from various illegal calling and texting practices.
Common TCPA Violations
TCPA lawsuits arise from various illegal calling and texting practices:
Illegal Text Messages Sent During Quiet Hours
- Marketing or promotional texts sent before 8:00 a.m
- Text messages delivered after 9:00 p.m
- Automated reminder or follow-up texts sent overnight
- Each text message sent during quiet hours can constitute a separate TCPA violation, carrying statutory damages of $500 per text, or up to $1,500 per text when violations are willful or knowing
Calls or Texts After Saying STOP or Revoking Consent
- Consumers can revoke consent to receive calls and texts at any time
- Once you tell a company to STOP calling, continued calls or texts violate the TCPA
- Many businesses ignore STOP requests or fail to implement adequate opt-out procedures
Text Message Marketing Without Permission
- Businesses cannot send promotional texts using automated systems without prior express written consent
- This written consent requirement is stricter than the standard for voice calls
- Many companies send mass marketing texts to consumers who never agreed to receive them, creating particularly invasive violations
Robocalls to Cell Phones Without Consent
- The TCPA prohibits calls to cell phones using automatic dialing systems or prerecorded voices without prior express consent
- Simply being a customer doesn’t create consent for robocalls
- Companies violate the TCPA when they call your cell using automated systems without permission, regardless of whether you answer
Calls to Numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry
- Telemarketers must check the Do Not Call registry regularly and avoid calling registered numbers
- Calls to numbers on the registry for at least 31 days violate both FTC rules and the TCPA
- These violations occur even when calls are made manually rather than through automated systems
Prerecorded Calls to Residential Lines Without Consent
- The TCPA requires prior express written consent before companies can deliver prerecorded messages to home phones
- Telemarketing calls using prerecorded messages to residential landlines without written consent violate federal law
Who Can Be Held Liable in TCPA Cases?
TCPA liability can extend to multiple parties involved in illegal calling campaigns.
Direct callers who make or send the communications face primary liability. This includes telemarketing companies, sales organizations, and businesses conducting their own calling campaigns.
Businesses on whose behalf calls are made can face liability even when they hire third-party telemarketers. Companies cannot escape TCPA liability simply by outsourcing calling operations. When calls promote a company’s products or services, that company may be liable for violations committed by contractors acting on its behalf.
Determining all liable parties requires investigating the business relationships and calling arrangements behind illegal communications. TCPA attorneys examine these relationships to identify every entity that should be held accountable.
Damages Available in TCPA Lawsuits
The TCPA provides statutory damages that don’t require proving actual financial harm. For each violation, courts can award $500 in damages. When violations are willful or knowing, courts can treble damages to $1,500 per violation.
This statutory damages structure creates significant liability for companies that make numerous illegal calls. Courts can also award injunctive relief, ordering companies to stop illegal calling practices, ensuring that violations don’t continue while litigation proceeds.
TCPA Lawsuits
Your TCPA lawyer will investigate who made illegal calls, what calling technology was used, whether you consented to receive communications, and whether you revoked any consent. They can then prepare a complaint against the proper parties for the proper violations.
Many TCPA cases involve class actions when companies have engaged in widespread calling campaigns affecting numerous consumers. Class actions allow groups of similarly situated consumers to pursue claims together, creating efficiency and leverage against well-funded corporate defendants. Individual TCPA lawsuits are also common, particularly when consumers have been subjected to extensive calling campaigns.
Companies facing significant damage exposure frequently prefer settling to avoid litigation costs and risks. Your attorney negotiates settlements that provide fair compensation while potentially requiring defendants to reform calling practices. When settlements cannot be reached, TCPA cases proceed to trial, where juries or judges determine liability and calculate appropriate damages.
Consent Does Not Excuse Quiet Hours Texting
Even when a consumer has previously interacted with a business, that does not automatically authorize late-night or early-morning text messages. Consent to receive texts is limited and can be revoked at any time. Businesses that continue sending texts during quiet hours, or after consumers request that messages stop, violate federal law
Why You Need a TCPA Attorney
TCPA litigation involves technical legal questions about call technology, consent requirements, and statutory interpretation, making experienced legal representation essential. Companies facing TCPA liability retain sophisticated counsel who raise complex defenses and seek to minimize damages.
TCPA lawyers understand the technological aspects of automated calling systems, the legal standards for valid consent, the procedural requirements for TCPA lawsuits, and effective strategies for proving violations and calculating damages.
Without legal representation, consumers often struggle to prove TCPA violations, identify proper defendants, or overcome the defenses that companies raise. Attorneys level the playing field, ensuring that consumers can effectively vindicate their rights under federal telecommunications law.
Taking Action Against Violations with Nationwide TCPA Representation
If you’ve been subjected to unwanted robocalls, illegal text messages, or other communications that violate the TCPA, you have legal options. Don’t simply block numbers or ignore the problem; take action to hold violators accountable while recovering compensation.
- Document all illegal communications by saving voicemails and text messages, recording dates and times of calls, noting message content, and preserving caller ID information. Contact the companies making calls and clearly state that you revoke consent and request that calls stop.
- Consult with a TCPA attorney who can evaluate your situation, determine whether violations occurred, and explain your options. TCPA cases often involve contingency-fee arrangements in which attorneys are paid from settlements or judgments rather than requiring upfront legal fees.
The TCPA is a federal law that applies throughout the United States, and Scarfone Law represents clients nationwide who have been harmed by TCPA violations, pursuing cases against companies regardless of where they’re located. Whether you’re in Florida, California, New York, Texas, or anywhere else in the country, we can help you pursue TCPA claims. Our attorneys handle all aspects of TCPA litigation and work with clients remotely when necessary.
Contact Scarfone Law for TCPA Representation
Illegal robocalls and text messages violate federal law and invade your privacy. You don’t have to tolerate ongoing calling campaigns from businesses that ignore legal restrictions. The TCPA gives you powerful tools to fight back, recover damages, and stop illegal calls.
Contact Scarfone Law today to discuss your TCPA case with experienced attorneys who hold businesses accountable for violations of telecommunications law. We represent consumers nationwide in TCPA lawsuits and fight for the compensation you deserve.
