TCPA Demand Letter - South Carolina

SOUTH CAROLINA TCPA DEMAND LETTER

Quick-Reference Summary

Sender Letterhead

[SENDER NAME OR LAW FIRM]
[Street Address]
[City], South Carolina [ZIP]
Telephone: [____________]
Email: [____________]
SC Bar No.: [____________] (if attorney)
File No.: [____________]

Date and Recipient

Date: [__/__/____]

Via Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested, No. [____________]
And Via Email to: [____________]

[RECIPIENT NAME / REGISTERED AGENT]
[BUSINESS NAME]
[Street Address]
[City, State ZIP]

Subject Line / Re: Block

RE: DEMAND TO CEASE UNLAWFUL TELEPHONE COMMUNICATIONS AND TO SETTLE CLAIMS — Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. § 227; S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-446; South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-10 et seq.

Claimant: [CLAIMANT FULL NAME]
Claimant Telephone Number(s) Called: [____________]
Date Range of Violations: [__/__/____] through [__/__/____]
Number of Offending Calls/Texts: [____]

I. Parties

Claimant: [CLAIMANT FULL NAME], a South Carolina resident residing at [ADDRESS], [____________] County, State of South Carolina, who is the subscriber and/or customary user of the telephone number(s) [____________]. Claimant ☐ registered the number(s) on the National Do-Not-Call Registry on [__/__/____] / ☐ previously requested no further calls from Respondent on [__/__/____] / ☐ revoked any prior consent on [__/__/____].

Respondent: [BUSINESS NAME], a [STATE OF INCORPORATION] [entity type], whose principal place of business is at [ADDRESS] and whose registered agent is [AGENT NAME] at [AGENT ADDRESS]. Respondent ☐ placed the calls/texts directly / ☐ caused them to be placed by an agent, lead generator, or third-party dialer acting on its behalf, for which Respondent is vicariously liable.

II. The Offending Communications (Call Log)

Respondent and/or its agents placed the following calls and/or text messages to Claimant's telephone number(s) without prior express consent (or after consent was revoked / after a do-not-call request / while the number was on a Do-Not-Call registry):

Total documented violations: [____]

III. Legal Framework — Overlapping Federal and South Carolina Liability

A. Federal TCPA — 47 U.S.C. § 227

The federal TCPA is the primary vehicle for individual statutory-damages claims:

• Autodialed / prerecorded calls and texts to cell phones — § 227(b)(1)(A): prohibits calls or texts using an ATDS or an artificial or prerecorded voice to a cellular number without prior express consent. For telemarketing, prior express written consent is required (47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(2)). Under Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, 141 S. Ct. 1163 (2021), an ATDS uses a random or sequential number generator.
• Prerecorded calls to residential lines — § 227(b)(1)(B).
• National Do-Not-Call Registry — § 227(c) and 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c): restricts telephone solicitations to numbers on the National Do-Not-Call Registry; a caller invoking the safe-harbor standards must use a Registry version obtained no more than 31 days before the call (47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(2)). A consumer private action under § 227(c)(5) requires more than one call within a 12-month period by or on behalf of the same entity.
• Internal do-not-call request — 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(d).

Damages: Section 227(b)(3) permits actual loss or $500 per violation, with a discretionary increase to no more than three times that amount for a willful or knowing violation. Section 227(c)(5) separately requires more than one call within a 12-month period by or on behalf of the same entity and permits actual loss or up to $500 per qualifying violation, with the same discretionary trebling ceiling. Match each call, text, or fax to the specific claim before calculating damages.

B. South Carolina ADAD Statute — S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-446

South Carolina regulates automatically dialed announcing devices ("ADADs") — equipment that delivers a recorded message without a live operator for the purpose of an unsolicited consumer telephone call:

• ADAD calls are prohibited except (1) in response to an express request of the person called; (2) when primarily connected with an existing debt or contract not yet completed; or (3) in response to a person with whom the solicitor has an existing or previous business relationship — § 16-17-446(B).
• Permitted ADAD calls must disconnect immediately when the called party hangs up, are prohibited after 7 p.m. or before 8 a.m., and may not ring at hospitals, police stations, fire departments, nursing homes, hotels, or vacation rental units — § 16-17-446(C).
• A violation is a criminal offense, punished as provided in the cross-referenced penalty provision — § 16-17-446(D).

CRIMINAL ONLY; DELETED CROSS-REFERENCE — FLAG FOR COUNSEL: Section 16-17-446 is criminally enforced and does not create a private civil cause of action for the called party. It also still cross-references § 16-17-445 for the definition of an "unsolicited consumer telephone call" (§ 16-17-445(A)(3)) and for penalties (§ 16-17-445(F)) — but § 16-17-445 was deleted by 2018 Act No. 218, effective May 18, 2018. Counsel should confirm the current operative penalty and definitional framework. The consumer's private monetary recovery runs through the federal TCPA and SCUTPA; an ADAD violation is strong evidence of an unfair or deceptive practice.

C. South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act — S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-10 et seq.

SCUTPA declares unlawful "unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce" (§ 39-5-20). Private right of action — § 39-5-140(a): "Any person who suffers any ascertainable loss of money or property . . . as a result of the use or employment by another person of an unfair or deceptive method, act or practice declared unlawful by Section 39-5-20 may bring an action individually, but not in a representative capacity, to recover actual damages. If the court finds that the . . . unfair or deceptive method, act or practice was a willful or knowing violation of Section 39-5-20, the court shall award three times the actual damages . . . . Upon the finding by the court of a violation of this article, the court shall award to the person bringing such action . . . reasonable attorney's fees and costs."

IMPORTANT — SCUTPA ELEMENTS AND LIMITS: A SCUTPA private claim requires (i) an unfair or deceptive act in trade or commerce, (ii) an ascertainable loss, and (iii) an adverse impact on the public interest (potential for repetition) — Daisy Outdoor Adver. Co. v. Abbott, 322 S.C. 489, 473 S.E.2d 47 (1996); Singleton v. Stokes Motors, Inc., 358 S.C. 369 (2004). Treble damages and attorney fees are mandatory once the court finds a willful/knowing violation, but class actions are prohibited (§ 39-5-140(a)) and the SCUTPA SOL is 3 years (§ 39-5-150). The federal TCPA remains the cleaner per-call statutory-damages vehicle; SCUTPA is added to capture mandatory treble + fees where the public-impact and ascertainable-loss elements are met.

IV. Statement of Violations

Based on the call log in Section II, Respondent committed at least the following violations as to Claimant:

☐ Calls/texts to a cellular number using an ATDS without prior express consent — 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(A)
☐ Calls/texts using an artificial or prerecorded voice without consent — 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(A)
☐ Prerecorded calls to a residential line without consent — 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(B)
☐ Telemarketing without prior express written consent — 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(2)
☐ More than one call within 12 months by/on behalf of the same entity to a number on the National Do-Not-Call Registry — 47 U.S.C. § 227(c)(5); 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)
☐ Calls continued more than 10 business days after an internal do-not-call request — 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(d)(3)
☐ Prohibited or non-conforming ADAD call (no exemption; after 7 p.m./before 8 a.m.; failure to disconnect) — S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-446
☐ Unfair or deceptive trade practice with public impact — S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-20
☐ Other — [_________________________________]

V. Damages and Remedies Calculation

VI. Demand

Pursuant to the authorities above, Claimant demands that Respondent, within [____] days (no later than [__/__/____]):

1. Immediately cease and desist all telephone calls and text messages to Claimant's number(s) and direct all further communications to the undersigned;
2. Place Claimant's number(s) on Respondent's internal do-not-call list and confirm the same in writing;
3. Preserve all evidence identified in Section VII below;
4. Tender settlement of Claimant's claims in the amount of $[__________] in full and final resolution; and
5. Identify every entity, lead generator, dialer vendor, and client on whose behalf the calls/texts were placed.

If Respondent contends it had Claimant's prior express (written) consent, Respondent must produce a copy of that consent, including the date, method, and signed writing, within the response period.

VII. Litigation Hold / Evidence Preservation Notice

Respondent is on formal notice of its duty to preserve all documents, electronically stored information (ESI), and tangible evidence relevant to the claims, and must immediately suspend any routine destruction or overwriting as applied to:

☐ Outbound and inbound call detail records (CDRs) and dialer logs for Claimant's number(s)
☐ Records identifying the dialing equipment used and its capacity (ATDS / ADAD analysis), including disconnect behavior (§ 16-17-446(C))
☐ Prerecorded/artificial-voice audio files and text/SMS content and templates
☐ Consent records, lead-source data, opt-in records, and any signed consent writings
☐ Internal and National Do-Not-Call scrubbing records and policies (31-day scrub logs)
☐ Records of call times and the target locations called (§ 16-17-446(C) hour and place restrictions)
☐ Records bearing on existing-business-relationship or existing-debt exemptions (§ 16-17-446(B))
☐ Caller-ID configuration and any spoofing/blocking records
☐ Contracts, agency agreements, and indemnity terms with dialer vendors and lead generators
☐ Backup tapes, cloud-backed copies, audit logs, version histories, and metadata for the foregoing
☐ Records of similar complaints or repeated conduct (relevant to the SCUTPA public-impact element)

Spoliation may result in sanctions and adverse-inference instructions.

VIII. Response Deadline and Method

Respondent's written response must be received no later than [__/__/____].

Silence, a boilerplate denial, or continued calling will be treated as a refusal to resolve this matter and will result in the filing of a civil action under the TCPA (47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(3), (c)(5)) and the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act (S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-140), and may include a complaint to the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, and the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs / South Carolina Attorney General.

This letter is sent without prejudice to all of Claimant's rights and remedies, which are expressly reserved.

Signature Block

Respectfully submitted,

[________________________________]
[ATTORNEY NAME] (or Claimant pro se)
South Carolina Bar No. [__________] (if attorney)
[Firm Name]
[Street Address]
[City], South Carolina [ZIP]
Telephone: [____________]
Email: [____________]
Counsel for Claimant [CLAIMANT NAME] (if represented)

cc: ☐ Claimant
☐ File

Pre-Send Checklist

☐ Verified Respondent's legal name and registered agent via the South Carolina Secretary of State (https://businessfilings.sc.gov/BusinessFiling/Entity/Search)
☐ Confirmed each call/text is documented with date, time, and calling number in the Section II log
☐ Confirmed whether Claimant's number was on the National Do-Not-Call Registry and the registration date
☐ Confirmed the federal claim is within the 4-year SOL (28 U.S.C. § 1658) and the SCUTPA claim within the 3-year SOL (§ 39-5-150)
☐ Confirmed the SCUTPA public-impact element (potential for repetition) and ascertainable loss
☐ Noted SCUTPA bars class actions (§ 39-5-140(a)) and that treble + fees are mandatory on a willful/knowing finding
☐ Flagged that § 16-17-446 is criminal-only and cross-references the deleted § 16-17-445 (2018 Act No. 218)
☐ Preserved Claimant-side evidence (screenshots, voicemails, carrier records)
☐ Removed all <!-- --> comments
☐ Sent via certified mail, return receipt requested, and retained delivery confirmation
☐ Reviewed by South Carolina-licensed counsel before transmission

Sources and References

• Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. § 227: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/47/227
• FCC TCPA implementing rules, 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-64/subpart-L/section-64.1200
• 28 U.S.C. § 1658 (4-year SOL): https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/28/1658
• S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-446 (regulation of ADAD): https://law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/title-16/chapter-17/section-16-17-446/
• S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-445 (deleted by 2018 Act No. 218): https://law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/title-16/chapter-17/section-16-17-445/
• South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, § 39-5-10 et seq.: https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t39c005.php
• S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-140 (actions for damages; treble; fees): https://law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/title-39/chapter-5/section-39-5-140/
• South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs: https://consumer.sc.gov/
• Daisy Outdoor Adver. Co. v. Abbott, 322 S.C. 489, 473 S.E.2d 47 (1996) (SCUTPA public-impact element)
• Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, 141 S. Ct. 1163 (2021) (federal ATDS definition)