Ask a Tulsa Collection Harassment Attorney: Does the law prohibit a debt collector from calling my cell phone?

Dear Oklahoma TCPA Attorney:  

A debt collector has called my cell phone several times looking the person  my number used to belong to. They always use a robocall “computer” voice and I hang up.  Isn’t this illegal?

Yes.  And each robocall may be worth $1,500 in damages.  In Soppet v. Enhanced Recovery Co., L.L.C., one Federal court recently held that the strong damages remedy of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act TCPA applies to a debt collection agency using predictive dialers or prerecorded messages to call the former cell phone number of a debtor, later assigned to another person.  The TCPA provides that “express consent” must be given by the “called party.”  The court held that the “express consent” of the debtor to receive calls from the debtor’s creditor did not shield the debt collector caller after the number was reassigned to a person who had not given consent to be contacted by that creditor.

The court found there is a big difference between land lines and cell phones in that the cell phone recipient is billed for minutes for receiving the prerecorded messages and for erasing the large number of “useless” messages left by autodialer robocalls.  The court noted that debt collectors have alternatives such as having an employee make the first call to verify the person called is the right person or checking with the cell phone company to see if the number has been reassigned to a new cell phone number.

The TCPA prevents Robocalls from Debt Collectors to your New Cell Phone Number

If you’re getting robocalls from on your new cell phone number from debt collectors about someone else’s debt, we can help!  Be sure to take pictures of your caller ID and log all calls that you receive.  Each of those calls could be worth $500 – $1,500!  Call Paramount Law Consumer Protection Attorneys at 800-350-2707 or 918-200-9272 to Stop Robocalls and for a free case evaluation.

The FTC has published a useful page regarding what they are doing from a regulatory standpoint to stop robocalls.  You can learn what they are doing by clicking on the web button below.  However, while you should report every robocall to the FTC, they are not able to sue a robocaller for you, only a private attorney can do that.  Paramount Law will be happy to help you stop robocalls to your new cell phone number.