The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has proposed the largest fine ever for violations of its robocall rules.
According to a press release issued by the Commission, the FCC has issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture against Florida-based Interstate Brokers of America, a company focused on generating sales leads for its clients. The proposed fine of $45 million is the largest ever proposed by the FCC in connection with illegal robocalls.
The FCC says that the company worked from purchased lists of consumer phone numbers and phone numbers of consumers who were searching for health insurance quotes online. Then, the company reportedly generated over half a million unlawful robocalls as part of a campaign to sell health insurance under the pretense that the annual enrollment period had been reopened due to the pandemic.
The FCC’s investigation into the matter was prompted by a report from the Industry Traceback Group and included a review of detailed consumer complaints posted online.
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) requires that initiators of telemarketing calls made to landlines and robocalls made to wireless phones obtain prior written consent of the party being called. According to the FCC, many of the illegal calls were also directed to consumer numbers listed on the national Do Not Call Registry.
Read the complete text of the FCC’s press release.
