Are Those Robocalls Illegal? What the TCPA Actually Says

Your phone rings. It's a number you don't recognize, and when you pick up, a recorded voice starts talking about your car's extended warranty, a debt you don't owe, or a "final notice" about your account. You hang up. It calls again tomorrow.

Most people assume this is just a fact of modern life. It isn't. A large share of these calls are illegal, and the law that makes them illegal — the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, or TCPA — gives you a direct way to hold the caller accountable.

What the TCPA Is

The TCPA is a federal law, codified at 47 U.S.C. § 227, that Congress passed in 1991 in response to a wave of consumer complaints about automated telemarketing. It has been amended and interpreted many times since, but the core idea has stayed the same: companies cannot use certain automated calling technologies to reach you without your permission.

The Federal Communications Commission writes the rules that implement the statute, found at 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200. Together, the statute and the rules set out what callers can and cannot do.

What the TCPA Prohibits

The law targets a few specific practices. In plain terms:

Robocalls to your cell phone without consent

The TCPA makes it unlawful to call a cell phone using an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice unless the caller has your prior express consent. See 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(A)(iii). For telemarketing calls specifically, the FCC's rules require that consent to be in writing. See 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(2).

The practical effect is that a company generally cannot blast your cell phone with prerecorded sales pitches unless you signed up for them.

Prerecorded telemarketing calls to your home phone

The statute also restricts prerecorded-voice telemarketing calls to residential landlines without prior express consent. See 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(B).

Calls to numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry

Separately from the robocall rules, the FCC's regulations prohibit telemarketing calls to a residential number that has been listed on the National Do Not Call Registry, subject to certain exceptions. See 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(2). The FCC has long treated wireless numbers as eligible for the registry as well.

Ignoring your request to stop

The FCC's rules require companies that make telemarketing calls to maintain their own internal do-not-call list and to honor requests not to be called. See 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(d). If you tell a company to stop and it keeps calling, that is a separate problem from the initial call.

Do Text Messages Count?

Yes. The FCC has consistently taken the position that a text message is a "call" for purposes of the TCPA, and courts have generally agreed. Unwanted marketing texts sent using automated technology are subject to the same consent requirements as voice calls.

What You Can Recover

This is where the TCPA has real teeth. The statute creates a private right of action — meaning you, not just the government, can sue. Under 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(3), a person who receives a call in violation of the robocall provisions may recover the greater of their actual monetary loss or $500 per violation. If the court finds the violation was willful or knowing, it may award up to three times that amount, or $1,500 per violation.

The do-not-call provisions carry a parallel remedy. Under 47 U.S.C. § 227(c)(5), a person who has received more than one telemarketing call within a twelve-month period in violation of the do-not-call rules may sue for up to $500 per violation, with the same potential for trebling.

Two things make this significant. First, the damages are per call. Ten illegal calls is ten violations. Second, you do not need to prove you were financially harmed. The statute sets a fixed amount precisely because the harm from these calls — intrusion, wasted time, the sense that your phone is no longer yours — is hard to put a dollar figure on.

What Consent Means — and How to Take It Back

Consent is the caller's main defense, so it matters what counts. For telemarketing robocalls to cell phones, the FCC requires "prior express written consent" — a signed agreement, which can be electronic, that clearly authorizes the specific seller to send automated marketing calls or texts to your number. Burying it in fine print or obtaining it for a different company generally doesn't suffice.

You can also revoke consent. The FCC has made clear that consumers may revoke consent through any reasonable means, and that a caller cannot force you to use a particular method. Replying "STOP" to a text, telling a live agent to stop calling, or sending a written request are all common ways to do it. Once you've revoked, continued calls are unlawful.

What to Do If You're Getting These Calls

If you want to preserve a potential claim, the most important thing you can do is keep records:

• Save the evidence. Screenshot your call log showing the number, date, and time. Save voicemails. Screenshot text messages in full, including the sender's number.
• Note what was said. If you answer, write down what the recorded message or agent said, and whether they identified the company.
• Tell them to stop, and document that you did. Reply "STOP" to texts. If you speak to a person, say clearly that you do not consent to further calls and note the date.
• Register your number. Adding your number to the National Do Not Call Registry at donotcall.gov strengthens a potential claim if telemarketing calls continue.
• Don't engage further than necessary. You don't need to argue with the caller. The record is what matters.

How Long Do You Have?

The TCPA does not contain its own limitations period, and courts have generally applied the four-year federal catch-all statute of limitations in 28 U.S.C. § 1658. That said, evidence gets harder to gather the longer you wait, and the specific timing rules can vary. If you think you have a claim, it is worth speaking to a lawyer sooner rather than later.

The Bottom Line

Unwanted robocalls and texts are not something you simply have to tolerate. Federal law prohibits most of them, sets a fixed dollar amount for each violation, and lets you bring the claim yourself. Keeping good records is the single most useful thing you can do while you decide how to proceed.