SAMPLE LETTER TO THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

OPPOSE PRE-RECORDED TELEMARKETING CALLS

A Word to Consumers: The letter below is only an example of comments you might wish to file if you object to unwanted telemarketing calls. You may rewrite the letter in your own words and include examples of instances where you feel your privacy has been invaded or you have been inconvenienced by unwanted sales calls.


Date

Federal Trade Commission
Office of the Secretary, Room H-159 (Annex H)
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580

Filed electronically: https://secure.commentworks.com/ftc-tsr

RE:     TSR Prerecorded Call Prohibition and Call Abandonment Standard Modification – Project No. R411001

To the Commission:

I am writing to let the FTC know that I object to all unwanted telemarketing calls made to my home.

I especially object to recorded sales messages. I find these calls even more invasive of my privacy than calls that come from a live caller. That’s because I feel powerless to interact with a recording. [Optional: Even when I hang up the phone when first hearing the message, the recording sometimes continues to tie up my phone line.]

If a company calls me with a recorded message based on a claimed business relationship, I have no way of telling the company not to call me again. I believe the FTC should outlaw all prerecorded messages unless I give my written consent for such calls. This includes recorded messages left on my answering machine.

I also object to calls I answer where the caller hangs up or leaves me on the line with dead air. Ideally, the FTC should adopt a standard of zero tolerance for abandoned calls. But at the most, the rate of abandoned calls should not exceed 3% per day.

Sincerely,

[Your name]*
[or]
[Anonymous]

*NOTE: You can choose to include your name or not. If you include your name, this will become part of the public record and will be posted on the FTC’s web site. You may choose instead to sign your comments “anonymous.” If you do, only your comments will be posted.