NYT reports that AT&T may be hit with a whopper:
The Federal Communications Commission on Monday proposed fining AT&T Corp. (T.N) $780,000 for violating telemarketing rules by calling customers who had requested not to be contacted by the No. 1 U.S. long-distance carrier.
The FCC started an investigation of AT&T’s telemarketing practices after a regular review of consumer complaint data revealed over 300 complaints in the past several months alleging Do-Not-Call violations by AT&T.
The investigation was not triggered by the nationwide “Do Not Call” initiative that went into effect in October. Instead, it focused on claims by customers who believed they were on an AT&T-specific “Not Call” list, the company said.
The FCC said it found that AT&T made telephone solicitation calls to 29 consumers on 78 separate occasions even after the consumers had requested no more calls.
The agency proposed a forfeiture of $10,000 for each of the 78 apparent violations. It said this was the FCC’s first major “Do Not Call” enforcement action.
The 8th Amendment says, in full,
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
As much as I hate telemarketers, one wonders whether $10,000 isn’t rather excessive punishment for one such phone call. Especially since the victims wouldn’t be the recipient of the money.
