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The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) was passed in 1991 to regulate excessive telemarketing calls that were harassing consumers. Since then, these regulations have been extended to SMS marketing, meaning that any company that desires to use text message marketing to reach their consumers must be compliant.
The TCPA requires consent from the recipients of the text messaging, but how long does that record need to be saved? If a complaint was made against the brand, what would the statute of limitation be?
TCPA Statues of Limitation for SMS Marketing
While the TCPA does not say how long you’re required to keep your SMS marketing records, it does provide a limitation for the amount of time that you are legally liable for any TCPA violations.
From the time of the violating message, the plaintiff has four years to file their case.
That means that brands, in order to best protect themselves, should save their SMS messaging and consent records for at least four years in order to be safe.
What Text Message Marketing Records Do You Save?
The short answer: everything. For example, we recommend that you save the billboard advertisement that you used to get consent, save the opt-in message flow, and save every SMS message that has passed between you and the recipient. Having a complete set of records will be your best defense against any plaintiff. It’s very unlikely that a plaintiff will keep a similar records log, especially a set that comprehensive. That means it’s also important to work with your IT staff to keep that data secure and uncorrupted.
Maintaining TCPA Compliance
For these reasons, we always encourage clients to work with an SMS provider versed in TCPA regulations. Having a team of trusted experts to guide you through the process and help you avoid the pitfalls will save you money in the long run.
We hope this article was helpful to you! If you’re interested in learning more about SMS marketing and the TCPA, check out our free TCPA Text Messaging Survival Guide.
