With the popularity and convenience of mobile phones comes what may be the death of the landline. Every year more and more consumers opt to use their cell as a primary phone in lieu of maintaining an additional home phone line. This presents a number of challenges when attempting to have financial discussions in the most commonly used channels given the limitations for contacting consumers via cell phones outlined by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
The TCPA expressly prohibits contacting consumers via cell phone, by voice or text, if you are using an automatic dialer system unless you have express prior consent. A recent ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals may broaden the definition of such systems and further restrict communication. This does not just apply to collections. Our healthcare and banking clients are also subject to comply with TCPA regulations if they contact a cell phone using an ATDS for the purpose of sending payment, prescription, or appointment reminders. Considering this, every business must not only take care to obtain prior express consent, but be mindful of the language they use to do so.
To protect your business, and our ability to collect for you, we recommend developing new language for your contracts which includes consent for contact through a variety of modern digital channels. Language should include permissions for contact via cell phone, in voice or text, as well as email, social media, and any other “digital communication platform” the consumer may participate in. By incorporating a broad spectrum of communication channels into your contract language you give your business the leeway needed to innovate with new technologies for consumer contact in the future and cover the latest in communication strategies that your collection partner may use.
At Professional Credit, we are constantly working with new technology in order to better serve clients and consumers. Strategies for contacting consumers are continuously evolving so that we are reaching them through the channel they most prefer. Our development efforts are focused on a whole new set of options from push notifications to text messaging.
Follow our blog to get regular updates on our progress in letting consumers manage their accounts their way. And please feel free to contact us if you would like to discuss best practices when updating your organization’s consent language.
*The materials available at this website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular question or issue.