Missouri telemarketing & SMS rules for insurance agents

Missouri makes it an unlawful telemarketing practice to telemarket to a consumer's residence at any time other than between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. local time at the called consumer's location (Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1076(5)) — the same window as federal law (47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1); 16 CFR 310.4(c)) — and a willful and knowing violation is a class A misdemeanor (§ 407.1082.2). Unlike federal law, Missouri has its own No-Call database operated by the Attorney General (§ 407.1101.1), which telemarketers buy by area code for $50 per quarter per area code (15 CSR 60-13.060), and its no-call ban covers SMS and MMS messages as well as voice calls (§ 407.1095(3)). No exemption names insurance agents: a person licensed by Missouri who is setting or attempting to set an appointment for that licensed profession within the state or contiguous counties is outside the no-call definition (§ 407.1095(3)(e)), and the exemptions from the hours rule in § 407.1085 depend on how the call and sale are made.

Missouri regulates telephone solicitation under the Missouri telemarketing practices law (RSMo §§ 407.1070–407.1085) and Missouri No-Call law (RSMo §§ 407.1095–407.1110), part of the Merchandising Practices Act, with the Attorney General's No-Call rules (15 CSR 60-13) (Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 407.1070–407.1085, 407.1095–407.1110; 15 CSR 60-13.010–60-13.070), 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 Missouri?

8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the consumer's location. Section 407.1076 makes it an unlawful telemarketing act or practice for any seller or telemarketer to "Engage in telemarketing to a consumer's residence at any time other than between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. local time at the called consumer's location" (§ 407.1076(5)). "Telemarketing" is "a plan, program or campaign which is conducted to induce the purchase or lease of merchandise by use of one or more telephones and which involves more than one telephone call" (§ 407.1070(13)). The acts listed in § 407.1085.1 are exempt from §§ 407.1070 to 407.1082, including the hours rule; see the insurance-agent field.

Are there Sunday or holiday restrictions in Missouri?

Section 407.1076(5) sets a daily 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. window and does not treat Sundays or holidays differently.

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

No written-consent requirement appears in §§ 407.1070 to 407.1085 or §§ 407.1095 to 407.1110. Communications "To any residential subscriber with that subscriber's prior express invitation or permission" are not telephone solicitations under the No-Call law (§ 407.1095(3)(a)); the Attorney General's rule defines "prior express invitation or permission" as "a specific oral or written grant of authority made by the residential subscriber at a verifiable date and time authorizing a person or entity interested in making telephone solicitations to call the residential subscriber's telephone number for the purposes of making a telephone solicitation" (15 CSR 60-13.010(2)(F)). Telephone calls or messages "To any consumer with such consumer's prior express invitation or permission" are exempt from §§ 407.1070 to 407.1082 (§ 407.1085.1(4)(a)). A call made by a recorded, computer-generated or electronically generated voice must say so promptly at the beginning of the call (§ 407.1073.1(5)). It is unlawful to knowingly and willfully initiate a telemarketing call to a consumer who has stated previously that he or she does not wish to receive solicitation calls by or on behalf of the seller, unless the request has been rescinded (§ 407.1076(4)).

Does Missouri treat texting differently from calling?

Yes, for the No-Call law. A "telephone solicitation" is "any voice, facsimile, short messaging service (SMS), or multimedia messaging service (MMS), for the purpose of encouraging the purchase or rental of, or investment in, property, goods or services" (§ 407.1095(3), as amended by 2012 H.B. 1549), so sales texts to numbers on the Missouri No-Call list are prohibited on the statute's terms, subject to the exclusions in § 407.1095(3)(a) to (e). The hours rule in § 407.1076(5) applies to "telemarketing," which is defined by reference to telephones and telephone calls (§ 407.1070(13)) and does not mention text messages.

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

Yes. Section 407.1101.1: "The attorney general shall establish and provide for the operation of a database to compile a list of telephone numbers of residential subscribers who object to receiving telephone solicitations." If the FCC establishes a single national database, the Attorney General "shall include that part of such single national database that relates to Missouri" in the state database (§ 407.1101.3). No person may make a telephone solicitation to a residential subscriber in Missouri who has given the Attorney General notice of an objection (§ 407.1098). Under the Attorney General's rules, a telemarketer obtains the database by submitting a signed confidentiality agreement and paying $50 per quarter for each Missouri area code, and online access adds an annual processing fee of $40 (15 CSR 60-13.060(1)); a subscriber's notice of objection remains in effect for two years and is automatically renewed unless the subscriber asks otherwise (15 CSR 60-13.030), and new numbers join the database in the calendar quarter following each receipt deadline (15 CSR 60-13.020(3)). A "residential subscriber" includes a person who has subscribed to "residential telephone service, wireless service or similar service" for primarily personal and familial use (§ 407.1095(2)), and the list "is not intended to include any telephone number primarily used for business or commercial purposes" (§ 407.1101.1). Communications from a person or entity with whom the subscriber has had a business contact within the past 180 days, or has a current business or personal relationship, are not telephone solicitations (§ 407.1095(3)(b)).

Do I need to register to solicit in Missouri?

Sections 407.1070 to 407.1085 and 407.1095 to 407.1110 contain no telemarketer registration or bonding requirement. To obtain the state No-Call database, a person or entity making telephone solicitations to Missouri residential subscribers submits a request with a written confidentiality agreement and the prescribed fee to the Attorney General's Office (15 CSR 60-13.060(1)). A caller claiming an exclusion from the definition of telephone solicitation may, but need not, file a notarized affidavit with the Attorney General explaining the claimed exclusion; filing it does not by itself establish a defense (15 CSR 60-13.060(2)).

Are licensed insurance agents exempt in Missouri?

No exemption names insurance agents. Under the No-Call law, a telephone solicitation does not include a communication "By a natural person responding to a referral, or working from his or her primary residence, or a person licensed by the state of Missouri to carry out a trade, occupation or profession who is setting or attempting to set an appointment for actions relating to that licensed trade, occupation or profession within the state or counties contiguous to the state" (§ 407.1095(3)(e)); a call that goes beyond setting an appointment is not within the licensed-profession clause. The Attorney General's rules define "referral" as a communication at a verifiable date and time from a third party whom the subscriber had told would welcome the call, and "working from his or her primary residence" as conducting income-generating activities from where the caller resides, not including calls normally made from another location (15 CSR 60-13.010(2)(G), (H)). For the telemarketing-practices sections, including the hours rule, § 407.1085.1 exempts: calls where the sale is not completed, and payment is not required, until after a face-to-face sales presentation (§ 407.1085.1(1)); calls where the sale is completed and a written contract is forwarded, if the consumer may return the merchandise within 14 days of receipt and receive a refund "of any moneys paid except for any coverage, fees or services earned," and the telemarketer gives the stated disclosures during the call — for this exemption "merchandise" means merchandise sold by a person, institution or company under the direction and supervision of the director of the department of commerce and insurance, or by federally chartered banks, savings and loans and credit unions (§ 407.1085.1(2)); calls to a consumer with whom the seller has an established business relationship (§ 407.1085.1(4)(b)); and calls by or on behalf of an entity required to hold a license, registration, certificate or permit to sell the merchandise offered, where, as of August 28, 2000, the regulating agency had promulgated rules regulating that entity's telemarketing sales practices that are reasonably consistent with §§ 407.1070 to 407.1079 and allow consumer redress (§ 407.1085.1(4)(c)).

What are the penalties in Missouri?

Violating any provision of §§ 407.1070 to 407.1085 is unlawful under § 407.020 and subject to all penalties, remedies and procedures of §§ 407.010 to 407.130 (§ 407.1082.1). A person who willfully and knowingly violates § 407.1076(2) to (5) — which includes the calling-hours rule — is guilty of a class A misdemeanor; willful and knowing violations of § 407.1076(1) or (6) to (11) are class E felonies; and willfully and knowingly failing to keep the records required by § 407.1079 is a class A misdemeanor (§ 407.1082.2). A consumer who suffers a loss or harm from an unlawful telemarketing act under § 407.1076 "may recover actual and punitive damages, reasonable attorney's fees, court costs and any other remedies provided by law" (§ 407.1082.3). Under the No-Call law, the Attorney General may seek an injunction and "a civil penalty up to a maximum of five thousand dollars for each knowing violation" (§ 407.1107.1). A person who has received more than one telephone solicitation within any 12-month period by or on behalf of the same person or entity in violation of § 407.1098 or § 407.1104 may sue to enjoin the violation, to recover actual monetary loss or up to $5,000 in damages for each knowing violation, whichever is greater, or both (§ 407.1107.3). It is a defense that the defendant established and implemented, with due care, reasonable practices and procedures to prevent violations (§ 407.1107.4), and actions must be brought within two years (§ 407.1107.5).

Controlling statute

Missouri telemarketing practices law (RSMo §§ 407.1070–407.1085) and Missouri No-Call law (RSMo §§ 407.1095–407.1110), part of the Merchandising Practices Act, with the Attorney General's No-Call rules (15 CSR 60-13) — Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 407.1070–407.1085, 407.1095–407.1110; 15 CSR 60-13.010–60-13.070

Other things that change the answer

A telemarketer must disclose promptly at the start of the call that its purpose is to make a sale, the telemarketer's identifiable name and the seller on whose behalf the solicitation is made, and the nature of the merchandise (§ 407.1073.1). Any person making a telephone solicitation to a residential subscriber in Missouri must state clearly at the beginning the identity of the person or entity initiating it and may not knowingly block or circumvent caller identification (§ 407.1104). Sellers and telemarketers must keep scripts, sales records and authorizations for 24 months (§ 407.1079). Telemarketing complaints against licensed entities whose telemarketing is regulated by an agency with telemarketing rules are forwarded by the Attorney General to that agency (§ 407.1085.2).

Sources

• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1070 — Definitions (telemarketing practices)primary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1073 — Required disclosuresprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1076 — Unlawful telemarketing acts or practicesprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1079 — Recordkeepingprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1082 — Penaltiesprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1085 — Exemptionsprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1095 — Definitions (No-Call law)primary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1098 — Solicitation of no-call list members prohibitedprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1101 — Attorney general no-call databaseprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1104 — Identification; caller IDprimary source
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.1107 — No-Call penalties and private actionsprimary source
• 15 CSR 60-13 — Missouri No-Call rules (Missouri Secretary of State, Code of State Regulations)primary 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.