Junk Faxes: According to the FCC

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Some of you might wonder what junk faxes have to do with a site devoted to cell phone lookups, but let’s not forget that there are several different things that can be accomplished over telephone lines — one of which is sending unsolicited faxes to unsuspecting individuals. That’s where this post comes in. I’ve written about this in a previous post, but for now, I’d just like to ask you a few questions.

Do you hate answering the phone or voicemail and hearing a fax tone? Do you hate getting disturbed at 5am (or all night) by fax calls (even if you don’t even have a fax machine)? Do you hate having your ink, paper, and fax machine being used by people who are breaking the law? Do you want to put a stop to this? Keep reading.

The Federal law passed in 1991 known as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) makes it illegal to send any material transmitted via facsimile that advertises the commercial availability or quality of any property, goods, or services that is transmitted to any person without that person’s prior express invitation or permission.

So, if they send you COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING by fax without your prior consent, they may be liable. Political statements and fundraising faxes are treated differently (go figure).

If the fax was deliberately sent to you (as most junk faxes are), federal law entitles you to recover a minimum of $500 and, depending the judge’s discretion, up to $1,500 for each such fax that you receive. Many people get $2,500 per fax in small claims court (also see TCPA Law for briefs and research that win legal cases).

Background
The TCPA and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules generally prohibit most unsolicited facsimile (fax) advertisements. In addition, the Junk Fax Prevention Act, passed by Congress in 2005, directs the FCC to amend its rules adopted pursuant to the TCPA regarding fax advertising. The FCC’s revised rules: (1) codify an established business relationship (EBR) exemption to the prohibition on sending unsolicited fax advertisements; (2) define EBR for unsolicited fax advertisements; (3) require the sender of fax advertisements to provide specified notice and contact information on the fax that allows recipients to “opt-out” of any future faxes from the sender; and (4) specify the circumstances under which a request to “opt-out” complies with the Act.
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