Guide

What consent do I need to call or text insurance leads?

A plain-language guide to the TCPA for insurance agents: prior express written consent, what changed with the one-to-one rule, AI voices, the Do Not Call list and state laws.

By The Run My Ads team · Updated · 6 min read

General information, not legal advice. See the note under the sources.

The short answer

If you call or text a cell phone with an autodialer, or call any phone with a prerecorded or AI voice, to sell insurance, federal rules require the person's prior express written consent: a signed agreement, which can be an electronic signature on a web form, that clearly authorizes that seller to contact that phone number that way.[1] The FCC has confirmed that AI-generated voices count as "artificial" voices under these rules.[2] A 2025 court ruling struck down the FCC's planned one-to-one consent rule, but the core written consent rule still stands.[3] Several states add their own rules on top.

The law in one paragraph

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, or TCPA, limits calls and texts made with an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice.[4] The FCC's rules say that for telemarketing, which includes selling insurance, those calls and texts need prior express written consent.[1] People who receive calls that break the rules can sue for $500 per violation, and a court can triple that for willful or knowing violations.[4] Across many calls, that adds up fast.

What "prior express written consent" means

The FCC's rule defines it as a written agreement, signed by the person, that clearly authorizes the seller to deliver telemarketing calls using an autodialer or an artificial or prerecorded voice, and names the phone number.[1] The agreement must clearly tell the person that:

  • by signing, they authorize the seller to make those calls to them, and
  • they do not have to agree as a condition of buying anything.

An electronic signature counts, such as checking a box and pressing submit on a form, if it is valid under federal law or state contract law.[1] In practice that means your lead form needs a clear consent statement right by the submit button that names who will contact the person, how (calls, texts, prerecorded or AI voice), and that consent is not required to buy.

What happened to the one-to-one consent rule

In 2023 the FCC adopted a rule that would have required consent to name one seller at a time and limited calls to topics "logically and topically associated" with the form. On January 24, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit, in a case brought by the Insurance Marketing Coalition, held that the FCC exceeded its authority and vacated that part of the order.[3] The current text of the FCC's rules does not contain the one-to-one requirement.[1]

What did not change: you still need prior express written consent, and it still has to clearly authorize you.

AI voices count as artificial voices

In February 2024 the FCC issued a declaratory ruling confirming that the TCPA's limits on "artificial or prerecorded voice" calls cover current AI technologies that generate human voices.[2] If you use an AI voice to call leads, the same consent, identification and opt-out rules apply as for a prerecorded message. Your form's consent language should say so plainly.

Other rules that apply to every sales call

  • Calling hours. The FCC's rules bar telephone solicitations before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. in the person's local time.[1]
  • Do Not Call. The national Do Not Call Registry applies to sales calls, and you must keep and honor your own do-not-call list.[1][5]
  • Telemarketing Sales Rule. The FTC's rule adds disclosure and recordkeeping duties for many telemarketers.[6] How far it reaches insurance sales your state regulates is limited, so ask your lawyer whether it covers you or the vendors you buy from.
  • Opt-outs. When someone says stop, by text or on a call, stop, and record it.

State laws add more

Several states have their own telemarketing laws, sometimes called mini-TCPAs, and some are stricter than the federal rule. Florida's law, for example, has its own definition of prior express written consent and lets a person who receives a call that breaks it recover actual damages or $500, whichever is greater, with up to triple damages for willful violations.[7] Check the rules for every state you call into, not just the state you live in.

Bought leads and consent

When you buy a lead, the consent the person gave was to whoever the form named. Before you call with a dialer or a prerecorded or AI voice, ask the vendor for:

  • the exact consent wording the person agreed to, and how it identifies who may contact the person,
  • a screenshot or link of the form, and
  • a consent record for the lead (the time, page and wording it was captured on).

Aged leads raise the bar: the older the lead and the more times it has been sold, the harder it is to show the person agreed to hear from you. See exclusive vs shared vs aged leads.

A consent checklist for your form

Points to go through with your lawyer, not wording to copy:

  • The consent statement sits right by the submit button, in readable text, not behind a link.
  • It clearly identifies who may contact the person.
  • It says how: calls, texts, and a prerecorded or AI voice if you use one.
  • It says that agreeing is not a condition of buying anything.
  • For texts, it says how to opt out (for example, reply STOP) and that message and data rates may apply.
  • The person takes an action to agree, such as checking a box or pressing a clearly labelled button. In our view, a box the person checks is stronger than one checked for them.
  • It links to your privacy policy.

Keep the records

If a call is ever challenged, the question is what you can prove. For every lead, keep the date and time of the form fill, the page it was on, the exact consent wording shown, the phone number entered, and any opt-out with the date you honored it. Keep them for years, not weeks, and ask your lawyer how long for your states. If you buy leads, store the vendor's consent record with the lead in your CRM so it is there when you need it.

Leads from your own ads

One upside of running your own ads is that you write the consent wording and you keep the record. Say who will contact the person and how (calls, texts, prerecorded or AI voice), keep the text consent separate if you text, and have your own compliance contact or lawyer review the final wording for the states you work in.

About this guide. Run My Ads sells ad software and a Done-For-You Ads plan that delivers leads, so we have a stake in this topic. We have tried to show both sides, cite every number to a public source, and label our own numbers as ours.

Common questions

Do I need written consent to call insurance leads?

If you call or text a cell phone with an autodialer, or call any phone with a prerecorded or AI voice, to sell insurance, federal rules require prior express written consent. An electronic signature on a web form can count. Manual calls still have to follow Do Not Call and calling hour rules.

Is the FCC one-to-one consent rule in effect?

No. On January 24, 2025 the Eleventh Circuit vacated it in Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC. Prior express written consent is still required.

Can I use an AI voice to call insurance leads?

Only with the same consent a prerecorded voice call needs. In February 2024 the FCC confirmed that AI-generated voices are artificial voices under the TCPA.

What are the penalties for breaking the TCPA?

A person can sue for $500 per violation, and a court can triple that for willful or knowing violations. Some state laws add their own damages.

Sources

  1. 47 CFR 64.1200, Delivery restrictions (the FCC's TCPA rules). Electronic Code of Federal Regulations.
  2. Declaratory Ruling FCC 24-17 on AI-generated voices (released February 8, 2024). Federal Communications Commission.
  3. Insurance Marketing Coalition Ltd. v. FCC, No. 24-10277 (opinion, January 24, 2025). U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
  4. 47 U.S. Code 227, Restrictions on use of telephone equipment (the TCPA). Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School.
  5. National Do Not Call Registry. Federal Trade Commission.
  6. 16 CFR Part 310, Telemarketing Sales Rule. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations.
  7. Florida Statutes 501.059, Telephone solicitation. The Florida Senate.

Not legal advice. This guide is general information about public rules as we read them on the date above. Laws and platform policies change and differ by state. Talk to a lawyer who knows telemarketing and insurance advertising before you rely on it.

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