Assurance IQ TCPA Settlement: The Lessons Learned

Assurance IQ has agreed to pay up to $21,875,000 after settling a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action lawsuit. Assurance IQ was an insurance technology company. Prudential bought the company in 2019, but they shut down Assurance IQ in 2024. The Assurance IQ TCPA Settlement is one of the latest to come from non-compliance with the TCPA’s rules.

A plaintiff in Arizona filed the lawsuit, making the following claims against Assurance IQ:

• Assurance IQ called his cell phone sixteen times in June 2022 without his consent
• At least two of the calls were artificial or prerecorded voice messages
• The calls were intended for a different person, not the plaintiff

Court documents show that Assurance IQ did not challenge the claim that they called the plaintiff using an automatic telephone dialing system without prior express consent.

Counsel representing the Settlement Class Members estimates each member will receive between $33-$167. Anyone who received a call from Assurance IQ or its agents between October 1, 2018, and March 6, 2024, is a Settlement Class Member if:

• The call recipient’s phone number had a wrong number or DNC designation in Assurance IQ’s records
• The call used an artificial or prerecorded voice
• A reverse telephone number lookup process returned names different than names Assurance IQ associated with the telephone numbers

The window to submit a claim form closed on July 31, 2024.

Lessons Learned from the Assurance IQ TCPA Settlement

The Assurance IQ TCPA settlement re-enforces some valuable lessons about compliance that always need to be top of mind for businesses that engage the market through outbound calls.

Express Written Consent

Obtaining express written consent prior to making calls with automatic telephone dialing systems or prerecorded messages is a cornerstone of the TCPA. Businesses need to be aware of the FCC’s new one-to-one consent rule taking effect in January 2025 that requires consent be obtained from consumers to only one seller at a time.

Wrong numbers

Under the TCPA, calling a wrong number purposefully or accidentally can result in penalties. The Reassigned Numbers Database (RND) offers a safe harbor defense for reassigned number calls but not for simply calling wrong numbers. Some strategies for avoiding wrong numbers include:

• Completing incomplete data before launching outbound dialing campaigns
• Having contacts verify their phone number when giving consent or creating accounts
• Establish procedures for removing wrong numbers that are dialed

CompliancePoint has a suite of marketing compliance services designed to help your business execute campaigns that are compliant with the TCPA, TSR, Do-not-call rules, and any applicable state laws. Reach out to us at connect@compliancepoint.com to learn more about our services.