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Prerecorded calls to your cell phone: what the consent rules say

JP By Joel Pruitt, Editor, robocall guides · Updated

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I am not a lawyer, and neither is this site, so treat this page as a map and not a ruling. It reads the consumer pages the FTC and FCC publish and turns them into a set of branches: tell me what the call was, and I will tell you which rule usually applies and what I would do. The main federal law is the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, passed in 1991, which has stricter rules for calls to wireless numbers than for the landline-era calls it grew from. The law cares about two things: how the call was placed, meaning the autodialer or prerecorded part explained in what a robocall is, and why it was placed, meaning marketing or something else. This is general information, not legal advice.

Start with what you heard

  • If a recording played
    • If it was selling something: insurance, a loan, solar, a card, a product
      • If you agreed in writing, including electronically, to get that company's calls then you can withdraw consent. Tell the company in plain words to stop, in writing if calls continue, and keep a copy.
      • If you never agreed, or are not sure then the rules generally call for prior express written consent for prerecorded marketing calls, with exceptions. Do not press a key, do not say yes, do not give a bank or ID detail. Write down the time, the number shown and the first sentence, and report it (see below).
    • If it was information you would expect: a pharmacy refill, a school closure, a delivery window then such calls are commonly treated differently from marketing, particularly when you gave your number in connection with the thing it is about. If you are unsure it is real, call the sender back on a number you already trust.
    • If it was a safety or emergency notice then these are generally allowed and are treated differently from sales calls.
    • If it was political or from a charity then it falls outside the Do Not Call Registry and has its own rules. I will not claim to summarize the rules for prerecorded political calls to cell phones precisely. A message that asks for money or personal details by key press gets the same caution as any other call, and seasonal robocall pitches covers the election-season version.
    • If it was about a debt then separate rules apply, including limits on how a collector can contact you. Check the lender on your own statement and call the number printed there.
  • If a person spoke
    • If you know the company then tell it to stop in clear words and keep a note of the date.
    • If you do not then hang up. You never need to explain. If the caller said they were a bank, an agency or a delivery service, call the number on your card or the official website, typed by you.
  • If it opened with silence, then a recording then read why a call goes silent or clicks before someone speaks. The consent question is the same as for any recording.
  • If it was a voicemail and your phone never rang then that is a ringless drop. The FCC has treated it as a call under the TCPA, so the same consent rules apply. See ringless voicemail explained.
  • If it was a text
    • If the sender is a business you signed up with then replying STOP is the standard way to unsubscribe.
    • If the sender is unknown then do not reply, because a reply can confirm your number is live. Forward the text to 7726 (SPAM) to report it to your carrier.

You registered, and it still happened

  • If the call was a recorded sales pitch then the caller is not following the list, which is useful information in itself. The Do Not Call Registry has existed since 2003. You can register a cell number at donotcall.gov or by calling 1-888-382-1222 from the phone you want to register, and it binds lawful telemarketers.
    • If it was a scammer then the registry never applied. Scammers ignore it, and nobody on the line is going to be persuaded. See why pressing 1 to be removed backfires.
    • If it was political, a charity or a survey then the registry does not generally cover those.

The label or the number looks fine

  • If the number looks local then that does not change the consent question. A local-looking number is only what was displayed, and campaigns often display numbers that match yours, as why the same robocall keeps coming from different numbers explains. The number check reads the area code, and it tells you nothing about permission.
  • If the call was signed or carried no warning label then that says little. Carriers must sign caller ID under STIR/SHAKEN, which the TRACED Act of 2019 required, and many offer free spam labeling. A signed call can still be one you never agreed to. Labels such as Scam Likely, Spam Risk and Potential Spam are estimates, and the tools that apply them are compared in blocking apps versus carrier tools.

Where to complain

  1. File a report at reportfraud.ftc.gov. A short note with the time, number and opening line is enough.
  2. The FCC takes complaints too, at fcc.gov/consumers.
  3. If a real company keeps calling after you told it to stop, say so in writing and keep a copy.
  4. If you want to know whether you could take action yourself, ask a qualified lawyer. That is outside what a text site can answer.

The honest limit is that you cannot tell from your end whether a caller believes it had your consent. A company might point to a form you filled in months ago, and a scammer will not care at all. So the useful question is often not whether the call was legal. It is whether you want it, and whether you can make it stop.

Sources

Quick questions

Do I have to give written consent for marketing robocalls?

Generally the rules call for prior express written consent for prerecorded marketing calls, with exceptions.

Does the Do Not Call Registry cover my cell phone?

Yes, you can register a cell number, though it only binds lawful telemarketers.

Are emergency robocalls allowed?

Generally yes. Safety alerts are treated differently from sales calls.

Where do I complain?

Use reportfraud.ftc.gov or the FCC consumer complaint center at fcc.gov/consumers.

Can I take back consent I gave?

If a business you really dealt with is calling or texting, tell it to stop in clear words, or reply STOP to a text from a number you signed up with. Repeat it in writing if calls continue and keep a copy.