We had consent. Does that end the claim?
Only if you can produce it, per number, in the form the FCC rules require, and it had not been revoked before the call. Consent you believe you had and consent you can show are different things, and only the second removes an item from a demand.
It ends the item if three things are true: you hold a record of the consent, the record meets the standard in 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(f) for the type of call made, and the consent had not been revoked before the call. If any of the three fails, the item stands. Consent is the defence that actually removes rows from a demand letter, and it is also the one most businesses believe they have until they go looking for the file.
Produce it, per number
Go through the letter line by line. For each listed number, find the record: the web form as the person saw it with the automated-contact disclosure and your business named, the timestamp, the number entered, the IP and user agent or the lead certificate, or the recording of a verbal agreement. A spreadsheet column that says "consented" is not a record. "All our leads are opted in" in a reply, with nothing attached, is treated as no consent.
Check the standard
Marketing calls or texts with an automated system or prerecorded voice to a cell phone need prior express written consent. Calls to a number on the National Do Not Call Registry need written consent or an established business relationship within the rule's limits. A number typed into a "contact us" box with no disclosure about automated marketing contact is not written consent for it. See what counts.
Check for revocation
A STOP reply, an "unsubscribe", a request on a call. The letter will often show the STOP and the messages after it, because those are the easiest knowing violations to prove. Consent that ended before the call is no consent.
Using it
A reply that attaches consent for some numbers and concedes the rest is credible and reduces the count. That is how the figure in a demand letter actually moves. See can I negotiate.
People also ask
What if consent was collected by a lead generator?
You need their record, not their assurance: the form as rendered, the timestamp, IP and user agent, and the lead certificate if one exists. Ask in writing with a date.
Is consent on a call recording enough?
A recorded verbal agreement that covers the four elements can be an electronic signature. The recording has to exist and be retrievable.
Does consent cover calls after the person asked us to stop?
No. Any contact after a reasonable revocation is made without consent, and under the 2024 FCC rules the request must be honoured within ten business days.