TCPA consent on mortgage leads: what it requires and the proof to ask a vendor for

TCPA consent on a mortgage lead is a record that a specific consumer agreed, before the first call, to be called or texted about a mortgage by a named company, under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. For telemarketing that uses an autodialer or a prerecorded voice, the FCC rule asks for prior express written consent that names the seller. It matters to a buyer because that record, not the sale of the lead, is what a caller answers for once a call gets challenged.

What the consent record has to name

A record worth relying on states who consented, to what, and when, in language that names the company placing the call. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Do Not Call exemption at 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(2)(ii) requires a signed agreement naming the specific seller before that seller may call a number on the national registry. A record that never names your company as that seller does not obviously cover you, whatever label the vendor puts on it.

One named company against a list of unnamed partners

Consent language varies more than the word consent suggests, and the difference sits in who is named. A consumer who agreed to be contacted by one company named on the form gave a narrower, clearer permission than one who agreed to a list of unnamed partners. The FCC's rule limiting consent to one seller never took effect: the 11th Circuit vacated it in Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC on 24 January 2025. So how specific a partner-list consent must be is genuinely open, not settled in a buyer's favor.

The full timeline, with each date read off the order, the opinion and the Federal Register, is in whether the FCC one-to-one consent rule is in effect.

Why the liability sits with the caller

The statute itself, 47 U.S.C. § 227, enacted in 1991, makes it unlawful for any person to place the covered call or text without the required consent, reaching whoever initiates it. In a purchased-lead relationship the caller is ordinarily the buyer, not the vendor who sold the record earlier. Before the first call, ask the vendor to produce the exact language shown to the consumer, the date and method it was captured, and which company it named. A vendor unwilling to produce that is asking the caller to dial on their word alone.

Source: 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(2)(ii), Federal Communications Commission telemarketing and Do Not Call rules · 47 U.S.C. § 227, Telephone Consumer Protection Act, enacted 1991 · Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC, No. 24-10277, 11th Cir., 24 January 2025, and FCC order DA 25-621 restoring the earlier text of 64.1200(f)(9) effective 29 August 2025. The area is moving: read every date here as the state of the rule on that day, not as settled law.

Does TCPA consent have to be in writing?

TCPA consent has to be in writing under the FCC's rule for telemarketing calls made with an autodialer or a prerecorded voice. In the Fifth Circuit it does not: on 25 February 2026 the court held that the statute asks only for prior express consent, which may be oral or written, for any autodialed or prerecorded call.

The case was Bradford v. Sovereign Pest Control of TX. The court read "prior express consent" in 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1) by its ordinary meaning in 1991 and held that it covers "both oral and written consent for both telemarketing and informational calls", contrary to the FCC's written-consent rule at 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(2). The ruling binds federal courts in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. The FCC rule text has not changed, and a consent captured on a web form is in writing in any case, so the ruling changes little about what a buyer should ask a vendor for.

Source: Bradford v. Sovereign Pest Control of TX, Inc., No. 24-20379, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, opinion filed 25 February 2026, read on ca5.uscourts.gov on 14 October 2026.

What to ask a mortgage lead vendor about TCPA consent

Ask a mortgage lead vendor to show TCPA consent, not to describe it. Four questions tell you whether the consent record would help you on the day a consumer disputes a call:

• What exact consent text did the consumer see? Ask for the words shown next to the submit button, and check that they name the company that will dial.
• Was a consent certificate captured on the form? A TrustedForm certificate by ActiveProspect records the session in which the consumer gave consent on the landing page form.
• How do you get the certificate when you need it? Ask whether the vendor pulls it on request, and how quickly.
• What does the consent cover? Calls and texts are not the same as email, so ask which channels the wording names.

On our leads the borrower gives consent before submitting the form. The proof is a TrustedForm certificate by ActiveProspect, captured on the landing page form and pulled on request. The consent covers calls and texts. It does not cover email. A web-form lead is also not a trigger lead: the 2026 mortgage trigger lead ban is a separate rule.