Hawaii’s telemarketing law, chapter 481P of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, applies whenever either the caller or the consumer is in Hawaii. It requires early disclosures on sales calls, limits calling hours, and makes a Registry call that breaks the federal rules a state-law violation too. A violation is treated as an unfair or deceptive practice under chapter 480. For a business calling into the state, the exemptions and the internal do-not-call safe harbor are often where the defense starts.
Who does Hawaii’s telemarketing law cover?
Sellers and telephone solicitors that call into or out of Hawaii. The definitions in HRS § 481P-1 make a telephone solicitor “any person who in connection with telemarketing, initiates or receives telephone calls to or from a consumer, where either or both parties to the telephone call are located in this State.” Telemarketing is a “plan, program, or campaign” to induce purchases “by use of one or more telephones and that involves more than one telephone call.”
That multi-call element matters. A single call made outside any program isn’t the target of the chapter, though most marketing campaigns easily clear it. The chapter also reaches people who help, since § 481P-2(b) makes it a violation “for any person to assist, support, or provide substantial assistance to any seller or telephone solicitor, where that person knows or should have known” the seller is breaking the chapter. Lead vendors and dialing platforms should take note of that standard.
What does a sales call to Hawaii have to include?
Early disclosures. Under § 481P-2(a)(1), a seller or telephone solicitor must “commence, within the first minute of an outbound telephone call, and complete within the first three minutes” a disclosure of “The true purpose of the telephone call,” the solicitor’s name and the company it’s calling for, and “The goods or services being offered.” Scripts that open with a survey or a vague account question before getting to the offer are the obvious risk.
The chapter also lists conduct it calls abusive. Under § 481P-3, a seller may not “Cause the telephone to ring more than ten times in an outbound telephone call,” and may not call a consumer’s residence “at any time other than between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. local time at the location of the consumer called.” The hours run on the consumer’s clock, not the call center’s, so a mainland dialer needs its own time-zone setting for Hawaii numbers.
Does Hawaii have its own Do Not Call rule?
It borrows the federal one. Section 481P-2(a)(11) makes it a violation to call a number on the national registry “pursuant to and in violation of the Telemarketing Sales Rule, 16 C.F.R. part 310, and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 C.F.R. parts 64 and 68.” A business that has a federal defense, such as an established business relationship or a signed written agreement, should be able to raise the same facts against the state claim. The general picture of state registries is covered in the post on state do-not-call registries.
Company-specific requests are handled separately. Under § 481P-3(7), it’s abusive to call a consumer who “has stated previously that the consumer does not wish to receive telephone calls from that seller or telephone solicitor.” There’s a safe harbor if the business has written procedures meeting the FCC’s minimum standards in 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(e)(2), has trained its staff, has kept its do-not-call lists, and, under § 481P-3(7), “The call is the result of error.” That safe harbor rewards the same internal do-not-call program the federal rules require.
| Hawaii rule | Section | What it requires | Defense to look for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early disclosures | § 481P-2(a)(1) | The call’s purpose and the caller’s identity, up front | Script and recordings |
| National Registry calls | § 481P-2(a)(11) | No call that violates the federal Registry rules | Federal defenses, scrub records |
| Company do-not-call requests | § 481P-3(7) | Honor prior stop requests | Written procedures, training, error |
| Calling hours | § 481P-3(8) | 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the consumer’s location | Dialer time-zone settings |
| Recordkeeping | § 481P-4 | Keep telemarketing records for two years | Records kept in the ordinary course |
Which businesses are exempt?
Several regulated industries. The exemptions in § 481P-5 include FDIC- or NCUA-insured financial institutions, insurers and others licensed by the insurance commissioner “while engaged in the business of selling or advertising the sale of insurance products or services,” licensed real estate brokers and salespeople soliciting “within the scope of the license,” and certain telecommunications and video service providers. Accredited colleges, registered travel agencies, and some catalog sellers are on the list too.
The exemptions don’t reach federal law. A Hawaii-licensed insurance agency that’s exempt from chapter 481P is still subject to the TCPA and the FCC’s rules. The telecom exemption in § 481P-5 also adds that it doesn’t “preclude or preempt actions brought under any other laws including chapter 480.” A business relying on an exemption should confirm it fits the exact wording, since several are limited to the scope of a license.
What exposure does a violation create?
Chapter 480 exposure. Under § 481P-6, a violation is “deemed to have engaged in an unfair method of competition and unfair or deceptive act or practice” under section 480-2. Under HRS § 480-13(b), a consumer “who is injured” by a practice that violates section 480-2 may sue and, if the judgment is for the plaintiff, recover the greater of a statutory minimum or “threefold damages by the plaintiff sustained,” plus fees and costs. The statute says the minimum recovery “shall not apply in a class action.”
The injury requirement and the class action limit both matter for defense. A plaintiff has to show an injury from the practice, not just a call, and in a class case the statutory minimum drops out. A contract made through telemarketing that violates the chapter is also “voidable by the consumer for any reason at any time” under § 481P-8, which can affect collections on sales made by phone. Businesses facing a Hawaii claim alongside a federal one usually work with TCPA defense attorneys in California or elsewhere who can answer both in one strategy.
Records to pull when a Hawaii consumer complains
- Preserve call logs and dialer data, along with recordings and consent records, for the Hawaii numbers involved, under a litigation hold, and confirm what’s kept under the chapter’s two-year rule.
- Pull the internal do-not-call logs with dates, along with the written procedures and training records that support the safe harbor.
- Pull the National Do Not Call Registry scrub records and the Registry version dates used for Hawaii campaigns.
- Collect vendor and lead-source contracts and the call scripts, along with any prerecorded or AI-voice files.
- Talk to a lawyer before responding to the complaint, contacting the consumer, or offering a refund to settle.
Questions about Hawaii telemarketing rules
Does Hawaii’s law apply to text messages?
The chapter speaks of telephone calls and doesn’t mention texts separately. Whether a text counts as a call under chapter 481P is a question Hawaii courts would decide under the state’s own law. Federal courts have treated text messages as calls under the TCPA’s robocall provision, so a business texting Hawaii consumers should assume the federal rules apply either way. The cautious approach is to run Hawaii text campaigns through the disclosure and calling-hour controls, plus the do-not-call controls, the chapter sets for calls, since the cost of doing that is small next to the cost of litigating whether a text is a call.
Does a mainland company calling Hawaii have to follow chapter 481P?
Yes, if the consumer is in Hawaii. The definition of telephone solicitor in § 481P-1 covers calls “where either or both parties to the telephone call are located in this State.” A call center in Arizona calling a Honolulu number is covered. So is a Hawaii business calling customers on the mainland, at least under the chapter’s own terms.
How long does a business have to keep telemarketing records?
Two years. Section 481P-4 says the records “shall be retained for a period of two years after the date of any outbound telephone call initiated from, directed into, or within this State.” The list includes scripts, do-not-call procedures and lists, and contracts between sellers and telephone solicitors, among other items. Those same records are what a business needs to defend a claim.
Is a Hawaii-licensed real estate agent exempt?
From chapter 481P, when soliciting within the scope of the license. The exemption doesn’t apply to federal law, so the agent’s calls are still subject to the TCPA and the national Registry rules. The post on real estate agent calls to FSBO and expired listings covers the federal side.
Defending telemarketing claims in Hawaii
If your company has received a complaint or lawsuit from a Hawaii consumer over sales calls, the disclosures in the script and the internal do-not-call records usually decide how much of the claim holds up. Rosenberger + Kawabata represents businesses defending TCPA lawsuits and class actions through its business litigation practice, including claims involving telemarketing calls to Hawaii consumers. Contact Rosenberger + Kawabata online for a confidential consultation, or call (310) 894-6921.
Sources
The Hawaii statutes are HRS § 481P-1, § 481P-2, § 481P-3, § 481P-4, § 481P-5, § 481P-6, § 481P-8, and HRS § 480-13. The federal statute is the Telephone Consumer Protection Act at 47 U.S.C. § 227.
This post is general information about the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and related laws as of April 18, 2026. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Courts and the FCC change the rules in this area often, and the outcome of any claim depends on its facts. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.