The United States is “extremely disproportionate” in its penalties for sending text messages or making phone calls without permission, according to an analysis conducted by Innovista Law.
The firm analyzed regulatory fines issued in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Spain, and compared those awards to what the offending company would have been liable for if sued for a violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
For example, a night club in Australia was fined the equivalent of $12,000 for sending 50,000 unsolicited text messages. Under the TCPA, the club would have been subjected to a $25,00,000 fine if sued for a TCPA violation or $75,000,000 if the violation was willful or knowing.
Under the TCPA, offenders can be fined $500 per improper call or message and $1,500 per improper call or message if the violation was willful or knowing.
In Spain, a company sent more than 3 million unsolicited text messages that did not include opt-out instructions and was fined $59,000. Under the TCPA, the statutory damages would have been $1.5 billion or $4.5 billion if deemed willful.
Only Canada, which fined a company $31,000 for making 39 telemarketing calls, was close to what the company would have been subjected to if in the United States. Under the TCPA, the company would have been subjected to $19,500 under statutory penalties and $58,500 if the violations were willful.
Concluded the law firm:
The TCPA effectively promotes litigation with its enormous—and easily available— statutory damages, provides no analysis of a fine’s reasonableness, and establishes no maximum limits. Implementing a non-compliant marketing strategy or making a seemingly small mistake when contacting consumers may result in a lawsuit so big that it forces the offending company into bankruptcy.
