Today, the FTC declared war on those annoying automated telemarketer calls, affectionately referred to as “robocalls.” As of September 1, 2009, the final piece of the Telemarketing Sales Rule puzzle comes into effect. This final component of the Telemarketing Sales Rule, which went into action December 1, 2008, requires that all telemarketers get express consent before calling any American with an automated sales call. And who’s going to give that consent? Not us.
The US Federal Trade Commission can levy fines of up to $16,000 per call-violation. That’s hopefully going to make telemarketers think twice before firing up the dialing machine to call your landline or cellphone with extended car warranty offers or mortgage refinancing. The Federal “Do Not Call” list hasn’t really been working all that well.
Unfortunately, the new telemarketing regulation doesn’t prevent live telemarketers from hitting up your mobile phone. The best you can do is put your name on the “Do Not Call” list and hope for the best. We cross our fingers – it’s all very scientific.