The FCC recently acted against a mortgage brokerage firm for failing to comply with the Do-Not-Call (DNC) laws.
As we have previously talked about in these pages, the DNC laws were drafted so as to cover almost every business that sells products directly to consumers. This includes mortgage professionals.
As clearly spelled out in the case against Dynasty Mortgage ( Order FCC 05-47) buying leads from a lead source does not mean that you are complying with the DNC laws – you're just hoping for the best.
Few if any of those working as, or for, a loan originator, have a comprehensive system in place to comply with the DNC laws. Dynasty Mortgage didn't think that they were telemarketers, but the hard reality is that when calling consumers at their home, mortgage companies are in the same light as those calling at dinnertime to selling condo time-shares.
So what does this mean? Even if you buy leads from a
source that
is “scrubbing“ their lists to insure that they are complying with the DNC (we vigorously check and comply with the DNC lists here at
refiHOUSE), you, as the buyer of the leads, still must independently comply with the DNC laws in order to not be liable. Dynasty Mortgage may be fined $770,000 for making only 70 calls to people who had put their numbers on the DNC list, because the company apparently continued to make telemarketing calls after receiving a Commission citation warning it of potential penalties if it continued violating the DNC rules
In order to comply with the DNC laws, originators
must:
- Apply to the government to get a Subscription Account Number (“SAN”). Anyone making outbound calls without a having a SAN may cause the government to assume that you are breaking the law, even if you are calling people who are not on the DNC list.
- A system must be in place that checks to make sure that the number you are not calling someone that has been added to the DNC list in the past month. You must be able to show that you are not calling those on the DNC list.
- You should also have a written DNC policy and you must train your employees on how to comply with DNC laws.
“No other industry is more affected by the DNC laws than lenders and real estate brokers. It's worrisome that the majority of professionals I speak with don't think the laws apply to them,” says attorney Barry Kaye, to be featured in free seminars by BEXT, INC. called the CanCallList Seminar. “Lenders and brokers absolutely need to educate themselves on the law and implement a total compliance solution like the one offered by CanCallList. And they need to do it today.”
Being positively involved in this area would have saved Dynasty Mortgage a fortune in fines. Create a real policy, train those that work for you and don't trust others to comply with laws that will be enforced against you, not them.
Story: Ed Rooney for Live With a Net© Publications. All rights reserved.
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