What Is TCPA Compliance?
The TCPA, also known as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, was put in place to ensure consumers aren’t consistently bothered by marketing telephone calls they do not want to receive. Believe it or not, there was a day and a time where a telephone may ring off the hook throughout the day from marketers that were looking to garner your business. The TCPA was implemented to prevent this, so consumers weren’t constantly inundated with annoying phone calls throughout the day.
Comply With Confidence
Several steps can be taken to ensure that TCPA compliance is strictly adhered to. Ensuring that your information is accurate and updated is critical. Taking the extra action to verify all of the contact information you have gathered can save you time and money and help maintain compliance with the TCPA.
Overview of Rules
To ensure you remain with TCPA compliance, you must understand the main requirements of this act. They are as follows:
Be Conscious of the National Do Not Call Registry
If a person has opted to be added to the National Do Not Call Registry and you decide to call them anyway, you could place yourself in a position to face substantial fines and penalties. Being conscious of this list and whether a number has been placed on it is essential.
Avoid Recordings or Simulated Voices
When a person picks up the phone, they expect to speak with a live person. The reality is that to ensure that TCPA compliance is maintained, the best thing to do is to avoid artificial voice calls unless you receive written consent ahead of time.
Be Aware of the Time and Day
The TCPA mandates that marketing phone calls can only be made during certain hours of the day. Permissible calling times vary by state. Many states also prohibit marketing calls on Sundays and certain holidays.
Screen for Phone Number Changes
The FCC recently launched its Reassigned Numbers Database (RND) which allows callers to query whether a phone number has been permanently disconnected or reassigned since the consumer provided consent. Calls to reassigned numbers are frustrating to consumers who did not request them and are a waste of time and money for marketers. Using the RND is not required, but the FCC is strongly incentivizing marketers to use it by providing TCPA safe harbor for calls made to reassigned numbers that were queried and received a result indicating that the number had not been reassigned.
What We Do
The BrokerCalls™ team is always conscious of remaining within TCPA compliance when we seek leads and provide them to our clients. Our primary focus is on helping you build and grow your business by providing leads interested in moving forward with your services now. Instead of spending countless hours on the phone speaking with people who may or may not be ready to move forward with what you have to offer, we help you narrow down your window by putting together a lead generation strategy that will get you the type of leads that you want generate.
“We focus on providing quality TCPA compliant leads to our customers through a rigorous vetting procedure and continuous monitoring through our in-house QA team. We can only succeed when our customers succeed,” said Chesney Brooke, BrokerCalls™’ QA and Compliance Officer.
How BrokerCalls™ Does It
BrokerCalls™ takes a personalized approach to lead generation strategy. We take the time to understand the goals of each one of our clients, and we are conscious of developing a lead generation plan that will give them the results they’re looking to achieve. When you work with BrokerCalls™, we will provide you with leads that you can respond to on your own terms.
When you receive leads from us, you have the option to field these calls in real-time. If you decide to go this route, our team will transfer calls to you once they have gone through a screening process. Taking these calls in the moment can help to keep a potential client interested and give you a better opportunity to close the deal.
With years of experience in the industry, BrokerCalls™ understands the importance of maintaining TCPA compliance. We always go the extra mile to ensure compliance when developing a list of leads for you. For more information, please reach out to us today at (855) 268-3773. You can also reach out to us through social media using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
Frequently Asked Questions
We have the answers you're looking for
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act is a federal law that regulates telemarketing calls, text messages, and the use of automated dialing systems. For lead generation, TCPA compliance is essential because violations can result in statutory damages of $500 to $1,500 per call, class action lawsuits, and significant reputational damage. Every business purchasing or generating phone leads must understand and follow TCPA requirements.
Key rules include obtaining prior express written consent before making marketing calls or sending texts, honoring the National Do Not Call Registry, identifying the caller and the purpose of the call, providing an opt-out mechanism for text messages, and maintaining records of consent. The definition of prior express written consent requires a clear and conspicuous disclosure that the consumer agrees to receive calls. Businesses should consult legal counsel to ensure their specific practices comply.
BrokerCalls maintains TCPA compliance by requiring documented prior express written consent for all leads, scrubbing contact lists against the National Do Not Call Registry, vetting publisher advertising practices, and monitoring traffic quality on an ongoing basis. The company's compliance infrastructure protects both BrokerCalls and its clients from regulatory exposure. Detailed consent documentation is maintained for every call in the network.
Prior express written consent is a signed agreement by the consumer authorizing specific businesses to contact them by phone or text for marketing purposes. The consent must clearly identify the specific parties authorized to call, include a disclosure that calls may be made using automated technology, and inform the consumer that providing consent is not a condition of purchase. This consent can be obtained electronically through compliant web forms.
TCPA violations can result in statutory damages of $500 per violation for negligent infractions and up to $1,500 per violation for willful or knowing violations. Class action lawsuits involving thousands of calls can produce multimillion-dollar judgments. Beyond financial penalties, TCPA violations can damage a company's reputation and trigger regulatory investigations. The risk is substantial enough that compliance should be treated as a business imperative, not an afterthought.
Recent developments including FCC rulings on one-to-one consent requirements and evolving definitions of autodialer technology have tightened the compliance landscape for lead generation. These changes emphasize the importance of working with lead providers that stay current on regulatory developments and adjust their practices accordingly. BrokerCalls monitors TCPA regulatory changes closely and updates its compliance procedures to reflect the latest requirements.
Businesses should review their consent collection processes, verify that consent language meets current FCC requirements, audit their vendor and lead provider compliance practices, ensure DNC list scrubbing is current, and confirm that call recording and documentation systems are functioning properly. Regular compliance audits with legal counsel help identify and correct potential issues before they become violations. Documenting these audits demonstrates good faith in the event of a regulatory inquiry.
The one-to-one consent requirement means that consumer consent must specifically name each business that will contact them, rather than allowing a single consent to cover multiple unknown parties. This change eliminated the practice of selling a single consumer's consent to multiple lead buyers simultaneously. BrokerCalls' exclusive lead delivery model naturally aligns with one-to-one consent requirements because each call is delivered to a single identified buyer.
Businesses should maintain records of each consumer's consent including the date, time, and method of consent, the specific language the consumer agreed to, the website or form used to collect consent, the consumer's IP address or electronic signature, and any subsequent opt-out requests. These records should be retained for at least four years to cover the applicable statute of limitations. BrokerCalls maintains consent documentation for all leads generated through its network.
Businesses can protect themselves by working only with lead providers that maintain documented TCPA compliance, including consent collection and DNC scrubbing. Contractual indemnification clauses and regular compliance audits of lead providers add additional protection. BrokerCalls provides the compliance documentation and transparency that help businesses demonstrate they took reasonable steps to ensure every lead was ethically and legally sourced.
