Florida Robocall Law: FTSA Rights, Damages and the State Do Not Call List

What the Florida Telephone Solicitation Act covers

The Florida Telephone Solicitation Act, usually called the FTSA, is in section 501.059 of the Florida Statutes. It reaches more than phone calls. A “telephonic sales call” means a telephone call, text message, or voicemail transmission made to sell consumer goods or services, to offer credit, or to gather information for a sales pitch (Fla. Stat. 501.059(1)(j)). So a marketing text to your cell is treated the same way as a sales call.

The law changed twice in recent years. Chapter 2021-185 (SB 1120), effective July 1, 2021, added the consent rule for automated calls and a private lawsuit right. Chapter 2023-150 (HB 761), effective May 25, 2023, narrowed the law after a wave of lawsuits. Anything you read that predates 2023 may describe rules that no longer apply.

The rules Florida callers must follow

• Signed consent for automated calls and texts. A seller may not make an unsolicited sales call using “an automated system for the selection and dialing of telephone numbers” or a recorded message without your prior express written consent (501.059(8)(a)). That consent must carry your signature, name the number, and tell you that signing is not a condition of buying anything. Since 2023, checking a box or replying yes to a text can count as a signature (501.059(1)(h)).
• Calling hours: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Florida’s Telemarketing Act bars commercial solicitation calls before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. in your time zone (Fla. Stat. 501.616(6)(a)). Federal rules let sales calls run until 9 p.m., so Florida’s evening cutoff comes sooner. The state consumer agency’s telemarketing page still says 9 p.m., but the statute controls.
• Three calls per day, per subject. A seller may not place more than three solicitation calls to you in 24 hours on the same subject, no matter how many different numbers it uses (501.616(6)(b)).
• Real caller ID. The caller must transmit its originating number, and its name when the carrier provides it. The number shown must be able to take a call back (501.059(8)(b)).
• True names up front. A live solicitor must give his or her true first and last name and the business name immediately (501.059(2)).
• Stop means stop. Once you tell a seller you do not want its calls, texts, or voicemails, it may not contact you again (501.059(5)).

Florida also presumes that a sales call to any Florida area code reached a Florida resident (501.059(8)(d)). That matters if you moved away but kept your 305, 407, or 813 number.

Who can sue under the FTSA, and for how much

A “called party” who is harmed by a violation can sue. The called party is the regular user of the number, not necessarily the account holder (501.059(1)(a)). The statute allows:

• An order stopping the calls.
• Actual damages or $500, whichever is greater (501.059(10)(a)).
• Up to three times that amount, so up to $1,500, if the court finds the violation willful or knowing (501.059(10)(b)).

Two features cut the other way. First, the attorney fee rule works in both directions. The prevailing party, plaintiff or defendant, recovers reasonable fees (501.059(11)(a)). A weak FTSA case can cost you money. Second, one Miami-Dade trial court (Leigue v. Everglades College, 2024) read the damages as $500 per action rather than per call, according to a Bradley law firm summary. That reading is not settled, but it shows why no one can promise a per-call figure.

The 15-day STOP rule for texts

Before you sue over marketing texts, you must reply STOP to the number that texted you. The sender then has 15 days to quit. You may file only if the texts keep coming after those 15 days (501.059(10)(c)). The sender may send one text confirming your request. If you skip this step, a text claim under the FTSA is likely to be dismissed. Take a screenshot of your STOP reply and of every text that follows.

The 2023 amendment says its changes apply to suits filed on or after its effective date and to any putative class action not certified by then (Ch. 2023-150, section 2). Federal judges applied that clause to older cases, including Holton v. eXp Realty (M.D. Fla. 2023), and dismissed claims where the plaintiff never replied STOP. Some Florida state trial courts disagreed on due process grounds. We found no appellate ruling that resolves the split.

How the FTSA stacks with the federal TCPA

The federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act does not preempt stricter state rules on autodialers, prerecorded voices, or telephone solicitations (47 U.S.C. 227(f)(1)). Floridians often bring both claims in one case. The TCPA pays $500 per violation, or up to $1,500 if willful or knowing, and it has no STOP prerequisite. Its do not call claim, though, requires more than one sales call in 12 months to a number on the National Do Not Call Registry.

Standing is friendlier in federal court here. In Drazen v. Pinto (11th Cir. 2023) (en banc), the court held that receiving even one unwanted text is a concrete injury. A month later, in Muccio v. Global Motivation (11th Cir. 2023), the court applied that reasoning to FTSA text claims and reinstated a dismissed case. Florida’s Third District went the other way for state court in Pet Supermarket v. Eldridge (2023), a TCPA text case it ordered dismissed for lack of standing. Where you file matters.

For the federal side of the analysis, see our guide to what counts as prior express written consent under the TCPA and how courts define an autodialer after Facebook v. Duguid.

The Florida do not call list

Florida runs its own “no sales solicitation calls” list through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). The list is published quarterly, and by statute it also includes Florida numbers from the federal registry (501.059(3)(d)). Telemarketers must buy and scrub against it. Most sellers who call Floridians must also hold an FDACS license and post at least $50,000 in security.

• Sign up: FDACS Do Not Call subscription page. You enter your number and email.
• Complain: call FDACS at 1-800-HELP-FLA (1-800-435-7352) or use its online complaint form.
• Also register at donotcall.gov so the federal TCPA claim is available too.

Because the state list is updated quarterly, a new registration may not protect you right away. Note the date you signed up.

When a Florida case is weak

Be honest with yourself about a few situations. A single live call from a person who did not use an automated system is hard to fit under 501.059(8). Calls about an existing debt or contract, and calls from a company you already do business with, fall outside the “unsolicited” definition (501.059(1)(k)). If you gave your number in a web form that said you agreed to automated calls, the seller will point to that. And texts without a STOP reply are likely to fail under the 2023 amendment.

What to do next if Florida callers will not stop

Reply STOP to every marketing text and start a 15-day clock on your calendar. For calls, write down the date, time, number shown, company name, and whether the voice was recorded. Our call log template keeps that record in one place. If the texts continue past day 15, or you keep getting recorded sales calls you never agreed to, you may have both an FTSA and a TCPA claim. Our step-by-step guide to suing a telemarketer explains the filing process, and a free case review can tell you whether the numbers are worth a lawsuit. For other states, go back to the 50-state robocall law guide.