If you own a phone and live in the United States, chances are you’ve received a robocall, one of those automatically dialed calls that often contains a pre-recorded or robotic sounding voice.
Were you annoyed? Did you try to complain to the government about it? If so, you were not alone. According to NBC News, the Federal Trade Commission or FTC logged more than 3.7 million complaints last year alone regarding unwanted robocalls. The Federal Communications Commission or FCC also received over 232,000 complaints covering robocalls and telemarketing calls.
Robocalls – a Growing Epidemic
Given the advances in technology it’s now easier than ever for robocallers to target thousands of phones per hour. Also, many robocallers fake their caller ID information, known as “spoofing”. This can make a call from an 800 number appear like a local call coming in with a local area code. It can fool many people into picking up the phone.
According to mobile app Hiya’s Robocall Radar Report, some 26.3 billion robocalls were made last year to U.S. phones. That represents a 46% increase from the year before! And when you consider that it’s estimated that 9% of spam calls are actually answered, that’s 234 million reasons to be outraged.
Do you need help with Robocalls? Contact us for a free consultation.
Are Robocalls Illegal?
Unsolicited robocalls are illegal. However there are instances in which robocalls are legal such as for appointment notifications or return phone calls from customer service systems.
Federal protection is in place under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). There are criteria that must be met in order to determine if this law has been broken. It may be helpful to speak to an attorney to help you understand these criteria and determine if you have a legal case.
The National Do Not Call Registry
The FTC setup the Do Not Call Registry in the summer of 2003 as a means of protecting consumers from unsolicited phone calls. Furthermore, telemarketing calls to cell phones were explicitly prohibited. Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that unscrupulous telemarketers often ignore the Do Not Call list and the federal government simply cannot regulate every call.
Find a Robocall Attorney
You should never have to endure unsolicited and annoying marketing calls generated by a robot. If you need assistance filing a complaint with the FTC, or have other questions concerning robocalls and the legal protections you have against them, contact our team of robocall lawyers at the Law Office of Kenneth Hiller today.
Follow us on Facebook to stay up to date on our latest news!
