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The FCC has established a
"National Do
Not Call List" to reduce the number of telemarketing calls that have
been flooding our homes. Telemarketers are prohibited from calling
individuals who have registered their home telephone number on this list.
There are several exceptions from this protection.
This only protects residential telephone
numbers. It does not protect cell or business telephone numbers.
If you have and established business
relationship with a telemarketer, putting your number on the
"National Do Not Call List" will not prevent them from calling you.
Any business that you have had a purchase or transaction within the last
18 months, or you made an inquiry or application within the last 3 months,
may call you. You can prevent these calls by asking to be placed on
the sellers "Company Specific Do Not Call List". Once you are
on the list, the seller may not call you again regardless of whether you
continue to do business with them.
Telemarketers may continue to call those
on the "National Do Not Call List" if they have prior express permission
to call. This permission must be evidenced only by a signed, written
agreement between the consumer and the seller which states that the
consumer agrees to be contacted by this seller, including the number that
may be called. This signature may be written or in electronic form.
This permission may be in the form of a warrantee registration or a visit
to a web site. This agreement shall be in effect as long as you have
not asked to be placed on the seller's "Company Specific Do Not Call
List".
Tax-exempt nonprofit organizations and
their independent telemarketers may continue to call without restriction.
Telemarketers may continue to call
persons with whom he has a personal relationship. The FCC reasons
that calls to family members, friends and acquaintances of the caller will
be both expected by the recipient and limited in number. If you do
not wish to receive these calls ask to be placed on the "Company Specific
Do Not Call List".
The FCC has determined that an entity
must obtain the prior express invitation or permission of the recipient
prior to the transmission of an unsolicited fax advertisement. The
signature may be written, electronic or digital. There is no
"established business relationship: exemption from this rule.
Permission to send fax advertising must include the recipient's signature
and fax number, and cannot be in the form of a "Negative Option". A
fax advertisement containing a telephone number and instructions to call
it the recipient no longer wishes to receive such faxes, is a "Negative
Option", and is prohibited.
A company that requests a fax number on
an application or web site could include a clear statement indicating that
by providing such fax number, the individual or business agrees to receive
fax advertising from the company. Such statement, if accompanied by
the recipient's signature will constitute the needed prior express
permissions to send fax advertising to that individual or business.
If you have any questions about these
issues please call our office to discuss them.
Financial Truth #6
"IN ORDER TO REACH YOUR GOALS, YOU MUST
HAVE A PLAN." This plan may be a formal written plan or a very
informal one. It would include a description of the goal, the
problems to be overcome, the methods to overcome these problems, the
assets available and persons required. With proper planning, the
time, effort and perseverance your goals will be more likely to be
achieved.
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