A sales call that’s legal at 9 a.m. under federal rules can violate Kentucky law. KRS 367.46955 prohibits telephone solicitations to a person’s residence “at any time other than between 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. local time.” The same section lists 18 other prohibited practices, and knowing violations can be crimes. Kentucky’s private lawsuit right is narrow, though, reaching only misleading caller ID, and the statute gives callers a due-care defense that rewards real procedures.
What counts as a telephone solicitation in Kentucky?
A live or recorded sales call to a residential, mobile, or paging number, including automated calls.
KRS 367.46951 defines a “Telephone solicitation” as “A live or recorded communication sent by a telephone or message sent by a facsimile machine to a residential, mobile, or telephone paging device telephone number, including a call made by an automatic dialing or recorded message device,” made to solicit a sale of consumer goods or services, offer an investment or loan, or gather information for those purposes, among others. The definition lists exclusions, including calls made in response to an express request.
What does Kentucky prohibit?
Nineteen practices, ranging from calling hours to fake names to unconsented prerecorded messages.
The list in KRS 367.46955 includes several rules that go beyond federal law:
The calling window runs from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the called person’s location, two hours later at the start than the federal 8 a.m. limit. Callers may not let the phone ring “more than thirty (30) seconds in an intended telephone solicitation.” Under the statute, agents may not use “a fictitious name or not to use their name.” And a caller must ask whether the person is 18 or older, because solicitations to minors are prohibited.
The section also bars calls to a residential number in “the current publication of the national Do Not Call Registry,” calls to someone who said they don’t want solicitation calls from that seller, and prerecorded-voice solicitations to a residential telephone without “the prior express consent of the called party.” Subsection (7) extends liability to a company that provides “substantial assistance to any telemarketer” when it “knew or should have known” of a violation.
What must a caller say at the start?
Name, company, contact information, location, and within 30 seconds, what’s being sold.
KRS 367.46953 requires the caller, “Immediately upon making contact by telephone with the consumer,” to state “his actual name, the merchant’s legal name, a telephone number or address at which the merchant may be contacted, and the town or city and state where the caller is physically located.” Within the first 30 seconds, the caller must identify what’s being offered and ask whether the consumer wants to hear a sales presentation, and must stop if the answer is no.
Few federal-standard scripts include the caller’s city and state. That one detail is an easy fix and a common gap.
Who can sue, and what are the penalties?
The private right is limited to caller ID spoofing. Most other enforcement belongs to the state.
KRS 367.46999 lets a person who received a call that transmitted misleading caller ID, or whose own number was misleadingly displayed, sue “any person who is responsible for or who knowingly participated in the violation” for injunctive relief, “Actual damages,” expenses including fees, and punitive damages. There are no statutory per-call damages.
The rest of the chapter is enforced by the Attorney General and prosecutors. Under KRS 367.46967, a violation is an unfair or deceptive practice under the Kentucky Consumer Protection Act. And KRS 367.46999 makes a knowing violation a Class D felony, except that violations of subsections (7) to (16), including the hours, Do Not Call, and opt-out rules, are misdemeanors carrying fines of up to $500 for a first offense and $5,000 after that.
Private plaintiffs with Kentucky numbers usually sue under the federal TCPA, where damages are $500 per violation, up to $1,500 if willful or knowing, and use Kentucky’s stricter rules as evidence of practices.
What defenses does Kentucky provide?
A due-care procedures defense for any claim, and a list-based defense for Do Not Call claims.
KRS 367.46995 provides that “It shall be a defense in any action or proceeding brought under KRS 367.46951 to 367.46999 that the defendant has established and implemented, with due care, reasonable practices and procedures to prevent telephone solicitations in violation of” the chapter. For claims about calls to listed numbers, the same section makes it a defense that the defendant “obtains the current zero call list in a timely manner and makes reasonable efforts to avoid calling persons whose telephone numbers appear on the list.” Such claims must be in writing and verified by the claimant.
One rule cuts the other way. Under KRS 367.46991, “the burden of proving an exemption shall be on the person claiming the exemption” in a civil case. A company relying on an exclusion needs records to prove it.
| Kentucky rule | Section | Enforcement | Defense to develop |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calls to residences only 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. | 367.46955(16) | Attorney General; misdemeanor | Due-care procedures under 367.46995(3) |
| Opening disclosures, including caller’s city and state | 367.46953 | Attorney General | Call recordings and scripts |
| Do Not Call Registry | 367.46955(15) | Attorney General; misdemeanor | Timely list use and reasonable efforts |
| Prerecorded solicitations without consent | 367.46955(18) | Attorney General | Proof of prior express consent |
| Misleading caller ID | 367.46955(9) | Private suit for actual and punitive damages | Substituted seller name and number exception |
Steps to take when a Kentucky claim arrives
- Preserve call logs, dialer settings, recordings, and consent records for the Kentucky numbers involved, under a litigation hold.
- Pull opt-out and internal do-not-call logs with dates.
- Pull National Do Not Call Registry scrub records and version dates.
- Collect scripts, time-zone and calling-window settings, caller ID configuration, and vendor contracts.
- Have a lawyer review the claim before responding to the Attorney General, a demand, or the caller.
Kentucky matters come down to documented procedures. More on defending Do Not Call and telemarketing claims is available, and a recent post covers Oregon’s robocall and text law.
Questions about Kentucky telemarketing law
Can a business call Kentucky customers at 9 a.m.?
Not for a telephone solicitation to a residence. KRS 367.46955(16) limits those calls to 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time. Calls that aren’t solicitations, such as service calls, fall outside the definition, but dialers should be set to Kentucky’s window for any sales campaign.
Can Kentucky consumers sue for Do Not Call violations?
Not under the Kentucky chapter itself. Its private action in KRS 367.46999(4) covers misleading caller ID. Consumers can still sue under the federal TCPA’s Do Not Call provision, which is why Kentucky Registry claims usually arrive as federal claims.
Does Kentucky allow caller ID that shows the seller’s number?
Yes. The spoofing rule doesn’t apply to solicitations in which “the name and telephone number of the party on whose behalf the call is made is substituted for the name and telephone number of the actual caller.” That lets a vendor display the seller’s identity.
Can a lead vendor be liable for a telemarketer’s violations?
Under subsection (7) of KRS 367.46955, a company that gives substantial assistance to a telemarketer when it knew or should have known of a violation commits a prohibited practice. Vendor diligence and complaint monitoring are the evidence that defeats that claim.
Defending Kentucky telemarketing claims
If your company has received a Kentucky Attorney General inquiry or a lawsuit over sales calls to Kentucky numbers, the calling-window settings and the procedures file usually decide the matter. Rosenberger + Kawabata represents businesses defending TCPA lawsuits and class actions through its business litigation practice, including claims under state telemarketing statutes. Contact Rosenberger + Kawabata online for a confidential consultation, or call (310) 894-6921.
Sources
Kentucky Revised Statutes 367.46951, 367.46953, 367.46955, 367.46967, 367.46991, 367.46995, 367.46999; 47 U.S.C. § 227; 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200.
This post is general information about the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and related laws as of May 12, 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.