TCPA Rights: Stopping Unwanted Calls from Debt Collectors

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act provides powerful protections against unwanted automated calls and text messages. When debt collectors use autodialers, prerecorded messages, or send text messages to your cell phone without prior express consent, they may be violating the TCPA. Violations carry statutory damages of $500 per call or text, which triples to $1,500 per violation for willful conduct, making TCPA claims an effective deterrent against aggressive collectors.

When the TCPA Applies to Debt Collection

The TCPA prohibits calls to cell phones made using an automatic telephone dialing system or prerecorded voice without the called party's prior express consent. While providing your cell phone number on a credit application may constitute consent for calls about that specific debt, consent can be revoked at any time. Once you tell a collector to stop calling your cell phone, any subsequent autodialed or prerecorded calls violate the TCPA. This applies to text messages as well, since the TCPA treats them as calls.

To build a TCPA case, document every unwanted call and text. Note the date, time, phone number, and whether the call appeared to be autodialed or used a prerecorded message. Save text messages and voicemails. Send a written revocation of consent via certified mail so there is no dispute about when the collector was told to stop. TCPA cases are handled by attorneys on contingency, and with damages of $500 to $1,500 per violation, even a small number of unwanted contacts can result in significant recovery.