Law / United States / 
Washington
Telephone Solicitation Act
In force.
A telephone contact rule binding private bodies.
- Obligation class
- Disclosure, Consent, Prohibition
As of .
What it requires
- Identify yourself and the company or organization on whose behalf you are calling, and the purpose of the call, within the first 30 seconds of a telephone solicitation call.
- If you are asking for a donation or gift, ask the called party whether they want to continue the call, end it, or be removed from your telephone lists.
- End the call within 10 seconds if the called party says they want to end it, or says they do not want to be called again; in the latter case, keep their name and number off your telephone lists for at least one year and do not sell or give their contact information to another company or organization.
- Do not place a telephone solicitation call that will be received before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. local time at the called party's location.
- Do not call a number registered on the federal National Do Not Call Registry, and do not violate the federal Truth in Caller ID Act's prohibition on transmitting misleading or inaccurate caller identification information.
- These duties do not apply to a call made in response to the called party's request or inquiry (including a call about something they bought from you in the previous 12 months), a call to your own members by a nonprofit, membership or labor organization, a call limited to polling or soliciting opinions or votes, or a business-to-business contact.
If you get it wrong
Private right of actionYes
Statutory damages
A person aggrieved by repeated violations may sue in superior court; the court must award damages of at least $1,000 for each individual violation, plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs of suit, in addition to injunctive relief.
- As of
- Currency
- USD
Who enforces it
Enforcement body
Private civil action under subsection (13); the Attorney General may also bring an action to enforce compliance, and a violation is an unfair or deceptive act under the Consumer Protection Act, chapter 19.86 RCW
What this law does
RCW 80.36.390 requires a telephone solicitor, a commercial or nonprofit company or organization that initiates an unsolicited call to encourage a purchase, to wrongfully obtain anything of value, or to solicit a donation, to identify itself and the company or organization on whose behalf it is calling, and the purpose of the call, within the first 30 seconds.
The section does not reach a call made in response to the called party's request or inquiry, including a call about an item the called party bought from the caller within the previous 12 months, a call by a nonprofit or a membership or labor organization to its own members, a call limited to polling or soliciting opinions or votes, or a business-to-business contact.
A solicitor asking for a donation must ask whether the called party wants to continue the call, end it, or be removed from the solicitor's lists. If the called party indicates a wish to end the call, or says they do not want to be called again, the solicitor must end the call within 10 seconds; in the latter case the solicitor must also keep the number off its lists for at least one year and not sell or give the contact information to another company or organization.
A solicitor may not call before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. local time at the called party's location, may not call a number registered on the federal National Do Not Call Registry, and may not violate the federal Truth in Caller ID Act, 47 U.S.C. 227(e).
A violation is punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and is enforceable by the Attorney General as a Consumer Protection Act violation, and a person aggrieved by repeated violations may sue in superior court for an injunction and damages, with the court required to award at least $1,000 for each individual violation plus reasonable attorney's fees.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app sends automated outreach.