Robocall
robocalls / prerecorded call / automated calling / auto dialer
A robocall is an outbound call that plays a recorded message. The Telemarketing Sales Rule prohibits placing one to sell something unless the person gave express agreement in writing beforehand. The rule covers calls you place. A system that answers calls coming in to you is a different thing.
The word gets used loosely for any call somebody did not want. The rule is narrower and more useful than that, and worth knowing before anybody proposes automating your outbound calling.
The Federal Trade Commission puts the headline plainly in its business guidance: companies need to be familiar with rules banning most forms of robocalling, and it describes the ban on most prerecorded robocalls. The detail sits in the Telemarketing Sales Rule at 16 CFR Part 310.
The rule prohibits initiating any outbound call that delivers a prerecorded message. There is one way out of that. The seller must have obtained from the recipient an express agreement, in writing. Not implied consent. Not an existing relationship. A written agreement, obtained after a clear and conspicuous disclosure of what the person is agreeing to.
One definition decides whether any of this touches you, and it is the part people miss. The rule defines an outbound telephone call as one initiated by a telemarketer to induce the purchase of goods or services. Everything above is about calls your business places. A system that answers calls other people place to you is not what this rule governs.
Two more specifics are worth carrying. Calling a number on the Do Not Call registry to sell something needs that same written agreement. The rule says it must include the telephone number the calls may be placed to, and the person's signature. An electronic signature counts. Separately, a call is treated as abandoned if somebody answers and the caller does not connect them to a sales representative within two seconds of their greeting.
This is what the rule says rather than advice about your situation. Anything close to the line is worth putting in front of a lawyer, because enforcement here is real and per call.
In practice
An automated system that dials a list and plays a recording to sell a service is squarely what the rule restricts. Doing that without written agreement from each person is the exposure. A system that picks up when a customer rings your business, takes a message and books an appointment, is not placing outbound calls at all. Same technology, opposite direction, different rules.
Not the same as
- An AI receptionist
- That answers calls coming in. The rule here governs calls going out to induce a purchase.
- A reminder call to an existing customer
- Purpose matters in the definition, which turns on inducing a purchase or soliciting a contribution.
Why it matters to you
Automated outbound calling is sold as an efficiency, and the cost of getting it wrong is not a bad month, it is a regulatory one. The question to ask before buying anything that dials out is simple and specific: where is the written agreement from each person on the list, and what exactly were they told they were agreeing to?
What to ask or check
- 01Does this system place calls, or only answer them?
- 02If it places calls, where is the express written agreement from each recipient?
- 03Has anyone checked the list against the Do Not Call registry, and when?
What people get wrong
That an existing customer relationship is enough to send a recorded sales call. The rule requires an express agreement in writing, obtained after a clear and conspicuous disclosure of what is being agreed to.
Red flags
- Any outbound dialing product sold without a clear answer on where written consent comes from.
- A purchased list presented as ready to call.
- The phrase implied consent used about prerecorded sales calls.
Who owns it
The seller carries the obligation, not the vendor supplying the dialer. A system doing this on your behalf does not move the responsibility off your business.
Where we fit
An AI receptionist answers calls people place to you, which is the opposite direction to what this rule governs. That is the kind of phone work we take on.
See how we do it