With the FCC's order last year re-interpreting an already confusing Telephone Consumer Protection Act, we thought they might take back the Reassigned Numbers statute - as it was difficult for businesses to keep track of number changes on consent calls. We also felt it would be tough to make a class action out of something that wasn’t. Meaning Reassigns are a “not that” number. But neither has happened. Looking back – what could the FCC have done but declare companies placing the calls responsible for reassigns. So reassigned suits and class actions have doubled down lately - with no further relief in sight.
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Four witnesses testified at last Friday's House meeting on modernizing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. The issue: New phone legislations continue to miss the "bad actors" only to end up challenging legitimate companies trying to follow the laws. The best and latest thoughts here? New technology catching spammers via call "signatures" on both ends of a call seems to hold the most promise. Much like email spam filtering, you're catching them in the act, rather than chasing after the fact!
"This is Monica. I’m calling from the factory warranty department."
Monica – are you an Avatar?"Yes, I’m a live person pressing responses because of my inability to speak with you directly."
Monica – you know there is no Factory Warranty Department. That’s not even a company. You’re scamming me.
No answer. I guess there wasn’t a tab for that response.
Ringless Voicemail allows you to directly deposit a message on a voicemail server. The recipient is not billed for the call, so it doesn’t appear on their monthly statement, and they're not interrupted by the message. This form of discreet, cost effective cell phone penetration has been popular since it’s inception five years ago. But what about additional Do Not Call and TCPA Protections? What else can the Ringless Voicemail Drop user do to stay out of trouble?
Ringless Voicemail - depositing a voice message directly onto a cell voicemail server, bypassing the wireless network - has discovered the advantages of a TCPA Litigator Scrub. Although Ringless has certain TCPA benefits: 1. The recipient is never interrupted, so no complaints! 2. The recipient isn't billed 3. Voicemail is regulated outside the TCPA as an "Enhanced Information Service" 4. The message never touches the wireless network at all - Lately, Ringless has discovered the extra TCPA protection of "Litigator Scrub". That is, eliminating the 90,000 previous call prohibition court filers before each campaign.
We continue to get confused calls from professional phone marketers on Ringless. One guy was bent on using the FOTI message with recipients name rather than the more common Zortman message without. (An outdated worry.) Another wedged between his hesitant attorney and not being able to cost effectively penetrate his cell phone inventory. (Hint: the Attorney is still in business.) I’ve been involved with Ringless or “Voicemail Drops” since its inception with inventor David King in Atlanta for the last 5 years. We’ve seen a lot, and actually have amassed a bit of a track record at this point.
Predatory Attorneys are having a compliance field day with dialers. Power dialers, predictive dialers and hosted dialers. For businesses, call centers, and financial institutions. Luckily, there's an easy solution to help eliminate calling these previous TCPA court filers before it's too late.
Lead Aggregators tout Litigator Scrub as vital for TCPA Compliance. Solving the problem of unknowingly contacting previous professional consumer litigants. The ones causing up to 20% of class action lawsuits under the ordinance. The ones fueling a 45% jump in Do Not Call and TCPA suits this year. The ones setting traps to get on lead broker and aggregator lists you may be purchasing for your call center.
I finally realized why the lawyers we turn to for Telephone Consumer Protection Act advice don’t know about third party squeaky clean get-out-of-jail-free TCPA solutions. Because they're not allowed to sell them. They sell advice. And that advice can be tough to implement: like creating a company-specific in-house DNC list that'll hold up under legal scrutiny, or scrubbing against the various State "mini TCPA" laws and Do Not Call Lists, as they're constantly changing. So what are TCPA lawyers good at, and when SHOULD we turn to them.
Recently, a Costco member completed a home improvement information request on site, asking for a callback to two numbers. The member then turned around and prosecuted the home improvement company, claiming incomplete consent language on the method of callback. Both numbers were listed on court records as previous TCPA filers, so legal action could have been easily avoided had the leads been examined for former claimants.
