11th Circuit Holds Plaintiff Can Partially Revoke Consent under TCPA

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that a consumer can partially revoke consent under the TCPA. In Schweitzer v. Comenity Bank, No. 16-10498 (11th Cir. 2017), the plaintiff provided consent to call her cellular telephone number when she applied for a credit card with the defendant. After failing to make timely payments on the credit card, the defendant allegedly placed numerous automated calls to the plaintiff regarding the debt. Plaintiff answered at least two of the calls, the first on October 13, 2014, stating “Unfortunately I can’t afford to pay [my past due payment] right now. And, if you guys cannot call me, like, in the morning and during the workday, because I’m working, and I can’t really be talking about these things while I’m at Work.” Id. The second call on March 19, 2015, the plaintiff stated, “Can you just please stop calling? I’d appreciate it, thank you very much.” Id. The defendant continued to call the plaintiff after the first conversation on October 13, 2014, but stopped calling after the second conversation on March 19, 2015. Id. The Eleventh Circuit held that “a reasonable jury could find that the plaintiff partially revoked her consent to be called in ‘the morning’ and ‘during the workday’ on the October 13 phone call with the defendant.” Id.

The Eleventh Circuit’s decision means that consumers have the ability to revoke consent on a partial basis (Ex. Consumer revokes consent for any calls made between 9 am and 5 pm on Monday through Friday) from receiving auto-dialed phone calls; otherwise, the caller may be liable under the TCPA.

If you believe that you are receiving auto-dialed or pre-recorded phone calls from a creditor or any other company who is attempting to collect a debt, you should contact a qualified attorney immediately.

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