Maine telemarketing & SMS rules for insurance agents

Maine has no calling-hours rule for live telephone sales calls, so the federal 8:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. window applies (47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1)), but it prohibits using an automated telephone calling device or an artificial or prerecorded voice to make solicitation calls to any residential, cellular or paging number in the state (10 M.R.S. § 1498(2)), unless an exception applies, such as delivering information with the recipient’s prior, written, express consent (§ 1498(6)(E)). Automated-device solicitation calls are also limited to weekdays between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Maine time, and to one completed call per number in each 8-hour period (§ 1498(3)). Since August 9, 2024, a telephone solicitor must use the FCC’s reassigned numbers database before a telephone sales call (§ 1499-B(6)), and Maine’s do-not-call law, which lets the national registry serve as the Maine registry, contains no insurance-agent exemption.

Maine regulates telephone solicitation under the Maine telephone solicitation law (10 M.R.S. chapter 225: §§ 1498, 1499-A, 1499-B), enforced through the Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act (10 M.R.S. §§ 1498, 1499-A, 1499-B; 5 M.R.S. §§ 207, 209, 213), which layers requirements on top of the federal TCPA. Federal law is a floor, not a ceiling: where the two differ, the stricter rule governs.

Last reviewed 2026-09-15.

What time can I call in Maine?

Live calls: the federal 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. window at the called party’s location (47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1); 16 CFR 310.4(c)); 10 M.R.S. chapter 225 (§§ 1498, 1499-A and 1499-B; § 1499 is repealed) contains no time-of-day rule for live calls. Automated devices: § 1498(3) says "A person may not use an automated telephone calling device to make solicitation calls to any telephone number in the State except weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., according to the time in this State, and may not complete more than one solicitation call to any telephone number during each 8-hour period." An “automated telephone calling device” is any system or equipment, including a fax machine, "that selects, dials or calls telephone numbers and plays recorded messages or attempts to send facsimiles" (§ 1498(1)(A)). The weekday window sits alongside § 1498(2), which bars automated or artificial or prerecorded-voice solicitation calls to residential, cellular, paging, emergency, unlisted, unpublished, toll-free and direct inward dial numbers in Maine altogether, subject to the exceptions in § 1498(6).

Are there Sunday or holiday restrictions in Maine?

Automated-device solicitation calls are permitted only on "weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m." (10 M.R.S. § 1498(3)), so none may be made on a Saturday or Sunday. Chapter 225 contains no holiday rule and no day-of-week rule for live calls.

What consent does Maine require before the first call or text?

Automated and prerecorded calls: § 1498(2) says "A person may not use an automated telephone calling device or an artificial or prerecorded voice to make solicitation calls to" emergency numbers, "Any paging or cellular phone within the State", unlisted, unpublished, toll-free or direct inward dial numbers, or "Any residential telephone number within the State." Under § 1498(6), the section does not prohibit using such a device or voice to inform purchasers about the status of goods or services they bought, respond to a telephone inquiry initiated by the person called, carry out the duties of a governmental unit or school, deliver an emergency message by a governmental entity, "Deliver information with the prior, written, express consent of the recipient of the call", or communicate with a business about reservations, purchases and similar customer information. “Solicitation calls” include calls to offer goods or services for sale, to convey information to solicit sales, to solicit charitable contributions, or to gather data or solicit information (§ 1498(1)(B)). Live calls: chapter 225 imposes no prior-consent requirement; instead § 1499-B(6) bars telephone sales calls to numbers on the national or state do-not-call registry. Section 1499-B does not apply to a call made in response to and at the express request of the person called, a call made primarily in connection with an existing debt or contract whose payment or performance has not been completed, certain non-commercial calls by volunteers or employees, or a call to a person with whom the telephone solicitor has an established business relationship (§ 1499-B(2)). That relationship rests on a purchase or transaction within the preceding 18 months, or an inquiry or application within the preceding 3 months, and a consumer’s request not to receive calls from that solicitor ends it (§ 1499-B(1)(D-1)).

Does Maine treat texting differently from calling?

Partly. Section 1499-A, the caller-identification section, defines “telemarketing” as a plan, program or campaign conducted by use of telephones or other telecommunications services "including interconnected voice over Internet protocol and text messaging" (§ 1499-A(1)(D)), and makes it an unfair trade practice for a seller or telemarketer to cause caller identification services to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information with intent to defraud, cause harm or wrongfully obtain anything of value (§ 1499-A(2)). Sections 1498 and 1499-B are framed in terms of “calls” (including fax transmissions under § 1498(1)(B)) and do not mention text messages.

Does Maine have its own do-not-call list?

Maine law allows the national registry to serve as the Maine registry. Section 1499-B(4) says the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division "shall establish and maintain a do-not-call registry" and that the FTC’s national registry "may serve as the Maine do-not-call registry required by this subsection." The Attorney General’s Do Not Call page points consumers to the FTC’s Do Not Call List. It is a violation for a telephone solicitor to initiate a telephone sales call to a consumer whose number "has been on the national or state do-not-call registry, established by the Federal Trade Commission, for at least 3 months prior to the date the call is made" (§ 1499-B(6)), and a solicitor or anyone who obtains consumer information that includes telephone numbers must exclude numbers on the most current federal or state registry (§ 1499-B(9)). Since Public Law 2023, chapter 570 (approved March 25, 2024; effective August 9, 2024), it is also a violation "to fail to use the reassigned numbers database to verify that a consumer's telephone number has not been reassigned prior to initiating a telephone sales call to that consumer" (§ 1499-B(6)). A solicitor is not liable if it shows written procedures, trained personnel, an internal do-not-call list, use of a version of the national registry obtained no more than 31 days before the call, monitoring and enforcement, routine use of the reassigned numbers database, and that the call resulted from error (§ 1499-B(6)(A)–(F)). The do-not-call rules protect a “consumer,” meaning a Maine resident who is a residential telephone subscriber (§ 1499-B(1)(A)), and “telephone number” means a residential telephone number (§ 1499-B(1)(G)).

How many times can I contact the same person in Maine?

Automated devices only: a person "may not complete more than one solicitation call to any telephone number during each 8-hour period" using an automated telephone calling device (10 M.R.S. § 1498(3)). Chapter 225 sets no frequency limit for live calls.

Do I need to register to solicit in Maine?

No. 10 M.R.S. chapter 225 contains no registration or bond requirement for telephone solicitors; the registration subsection formerly in § 1498(7) was repealed by Public Law 1999, chapter 694. A person using an automated telephone calling device for solicitation calls must keep a full transcript of each solicitation message transmitted to consumers during the previous 24 months and provide a copy to the Attorney General on request; failing to provide a requested transcript is a violation of § 1498 (§ 1498(7-A)).

Are licensed insurance agents exempt in Maine?

None. 10 M.R.S. chapter 225 (§§ 1498, 1499-A and 1499-B) contains no exemption for insurance agents, producers or insurers. The exemptions in § 1499-B(2) (express request, existing debt or contract, certain non-commercial calls, established business relationship) and in § 1498(6) (for example, responding to an inquiry the person initiated, or delivering information with the recipient’s prior, written, express consent) apply to every caller. Section 1499-B applies to “telephone sales calls” to solicit a sale of “consumer goods or services,” which the statute defines as tangible or intangible personal property or real property normally used for personal, family or household purposes, related property and services, credit cards or the extension of credit, and professional services (§ 1499-B(1)(B), (H)); the definition does not mention insurance by name. Section 1498 applies to “solicitation calls” to offer "real property, goods or services" for sale (§ 1498(1)(B)(1)).

What are the penalties in Maine?

A violation of § 1498 "is an unfair trade practice as prohibited by Title 5, section 207" (§ 1498(8)); a telephone solicitor that fails to comply with § 1499-B "commits an unfair and deceptive act that is a violation of the Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act" (§ 1499-B(10)); and the § 1499-A caller-ID prohibition is an unfair trade practice enforced by the Office of the Attorney General (§ 1499-A(2)). In an action under § 1499-B, the Attorney General may obtain an injunction, a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for the first violation and $25,000 for each subsequent violation, all money obtained through the violation, investigation and litigation costs, and reasonable attorney’s fees (§ 1499-B(11)), and the court may void or limit contracts resulting from a violation and order restitution (§ 1499-B(12)). Under the Unfair Trade Practices Act, each intentional violation of 5 M.R.S. § 207 that the Attorney General establishes is unfair or deceptive carries a civil penalty of not more than $10,000, and violating an injunction carries a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 per violation (5 M.R.S. § 209). A person who purchases or leases goods, services or property primarily for personal, family or household purposes and suffers a loss of money or property as a result of a practice declared unlawful by § 207 may sue for actual damages, restitution and equitable relief, with reasonable attorney’s fees and costs if a violation is found; a written demand for relief must be sent at least 30 days before filing an action for damages (5 M.R.S. § 213(1), (1-A), (2)).

Controlling statute

Maine telephone solicitation law (10 M.R.S. chapter 225: §§ 1498, 1499-A, 1499-B), enforced through the Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act — 10 M.R.S. §§ 1498, 1499-A, 1499-B; 5 M.R.S. §§ 207, 209, 213

Other things that change the answer

Persons making automated-device solicitation calls must, within the first minute of the call, identify the name, address and telephone number of the organization for whom the call is made (§ 1498(4)), and must ensure the device disconnects no more than 5 seconds after the called number disconnects (§ 1498(3)). Using an automated calling device that dials numbers sequentially and cannot distinguish numbers that may lawfully be called is prima facie evidence of intent to violate § 1498 (§ 1498(5)). A telephone solicitor making a telephone sales call must immediately disclose the solicitor’s real first and last name and the name of the business on whose behalf it is soliciting (§ 1499-B(7)). “Doing business in Maine” means making telephone sales calls to consumers located in Maine, whether the calls originate in or outside the state (§ 1499-B(1)(D)). A consumer’s established business relationship with a solicitor does not extend to its affiliates unless the consumer would reasonably expect them to be included (§ 1499-B(1)(D-1)(2)). Public Law 2023, chapter 570 (L.D. 2234, approved March 25, 2024, effective August 9, 2024) added the reassigned numbers database definition and requirement to § 1499-B. The Attorney General may adopt routine technical rules to implement § 1499-B (§ 1499-B(5)).

Sources

• 10 M.R.S. § 1498 — Automated telephone solicitation prohibited; exceptions; penaltiesprimary source
• 10 M.R.S. § 1499-A — Telemarketing; prohibition on number blockingprimary source
• 10 M.R.S. § 1499-B — Telephone solicitationprimary source
• 10 M.R.S. chapter 225 — Telephone Solicitation (contents)primary source
• Public Law 2023, chapter 570 (L.D. 2234) — reassigned numbers databaseprimary source
• Maine Legislature, Office of Policy and Legal Analysis — 131st Legislature Second Regular Session digest (effective date of non-emergency laws: August 9, 2024)primary source
• 5 M.R.S. § 207 — Unfair Trade Practices Act, unlawful actsprimary source
• 5 M.R.S. § 209 — Injunction; civil penaltiesprimary source
• 5 M.R.S. § 213 — Private remediesprimary source
• Maine Attorney General — Do Not Call or Mailprimary source
• 47 CFR 64.1200 — Delivery restrictions (eCFR)primary source
• 16 CFR 310.4 — Abusive telemarketing acts or practices (eCFR)primary source

How APEX enforces these rules on every send

APEX evaluates each outbound message and call before it leaves the platform. Quiet hours are applied in the contact's local time rather than the agent's, DNC scrubbing runs against federal, state, internal, and litigator lists, and every allow-or-block decision is written to an immutable audit log. See security & compliance for the full guardrail set.

Configuring a platform correctly does not by itself make a campaign lawful. You remain responsible for your consent records and your calling practices.