TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Jackie Russo is distressed by the fact that she is hearing voices and wishes they were only figments of her own imagination.
“The calls don’t stop coming in over the weekend. They continue even on Sundays. “Mother’s Day is just another day for them,” she remarked.
The person who lives in Tallahassee has created a spreadsheet that demonstrates that between May 3rd and May 13th, she received 233 unwanted calls, which is equivalent to approximately 21 calls per day. She thinks they are from an insurance business and that someone who is attempting to commit fraud gave her phone information to the insurance company.
She elaborated, “It’s a very helpless feeling because I’ve never visited this website before and these people will not stop calling me,” which is a very apt description of how she is currently feeling.
She intends to launch a lawsuit through Tampa consumer attorney Billy Howard, who has stated that a measure is on its way to the desk of the governor that would permit firms to call any customer who has previously visited them, even if the person has only signed up for a one-time quote.
According to Howard, the previous law in Florida requires a written agreement in order for customers to receive calls from telemarketers, and the law also allows consumers to sue for $1,500 for each call that they get.
“I do want to sue robocalls, and this is going to make it a lot harder,” said Howard. “This is going to make it much more difficult.” “In Florida, the only individuals who want to make robocalls are people who make robocalls.
However, senators, who voted to approve the bill by a vote of 29-10, claim that the goal is to put a stop to what the sector considers to be baseless legal claims. According to them, the new criteria provide more clarity around what exactly defines a robocall and who is permitted to be called.
“I was approached about the idea to say that we are legitimate businesses and that we are not trying to robocall people who do not have a business relationship with us,” said State Senator Clay Yarborough, who is a Republican and represents Jacksonville. “We are not trying to robocall people who do not have a business relationship with us.”
He mentioned that there is a time limit of 18 months after which there will no longer be a valid link between the customer and the business.
The new restrictions will apply even to people who were aggressively phoned before the governor signs it, as Howard pointed out, and anyone who hopes to pursue a lawsuit should be aware of this fact.
“My daughter thinks that I should just turn it off and put on ‘Do Not Disturb,'” said Russo. “Do Not Disturb” means that no one should bother you. “But then, of course, I’m not getting any of my phone calls—not even my work calls, not even my personal calls, or anything like that.”
After a customer asks a company to cease phoning them, the company would have a grace period of 15 days before becoming legally responsible for the violation.
The governor has fifteen days to approve or veto the bill before it goes into effect.
