§  64.1120   Verification of orders for telecommunications service.

   (a) No telecommunications carrier shall submit or execute a change on
   the behalf of a subscriber in the subscriber's selection of a provider
   of telecommunications service except in accordance with the procedures
   prescribed in this subpart. Nothing in this section shall preclude any
   State commission from enforcing these procedures with respect to
   intrastate services.

   (1) No submitting carrier shall submit a change on the behalf of a
   subscriber in the subscriber's selection of a provider of
   telecommunications service prior to obtaining:

   (i) Authorization from the subscriber, subject to the following:

   (A) Material misrepresentation on the sales call is prohibited. Upon a
   consumer's credible allegation of a sales call misrepresentation, the
   burden of proof shifts to the carrier making the sales call to provide
   persuasive evidence to rebut the claim. Upon a finding that such a
   material misrepresentation has occurred on a sales call, the
   subscriber's authorization to switch carriers will be deemed invalid.

   (B) [Reserved]

   (ii) Verification of that authorization in accordance with the
   procedures prescribed in this section. The submitting carrier shall
   maintain and preserve records of verification of subscriber
   authorization for a minimum period of two years after obtaining such
   verification.

   (2) An executing carrier shall not verify the submission of a change in
   a subscriber's selection of a provider of telecommunications service
   received from a submitting carrier. For an executing carrier,
   compliance with the procedures described in this part shall be defined
   as prompt execution, without any unreasonable delay, of changes that
   have been verified by a submitting carrier.

   (3) Commercial mobile radio services (CMRS) providers shall be excluded
   from the verification requirements of this part as long as they are not
   required to provide equal access to common carriers for the provision
   of telephone toll services, in accordance with 47 U.S.C. 332(c)(8).

   (b) Any telecommunications carrier that becomes the subject of a
   Commission forfeiture action through a violation of the third-party
   verification process set forth in paragraph (c)(3) of this section will
   be suspended for a five-year period from utilizing the third-party
   verification process to confirm a carrier change.

   (c) No telecommunications carrier shall submit a preferred carrier
   change order unless and until the order has been confirmed in
   accordance with one of the following procedures:

   (1) The telecommunications carrier has obtained the subscriber's
   written or electronically signed authorization in a form that meets the
   requirements of § 64.1130; or

   (2) The telecommunications carrier has obtained the subscriber's
   electronic authorization to submit the preferred carrier change order.
   Such authorization must be placed from the telephone number(s) on which
   the preferred carrier is to be changed and must confirm the information
   in paragraph (a)(1) of this section. Telecommunications carriers
   electing to confirm sales electronically shall establish one or more
   toll-free telephone numbers exclusively for that purpose. Calls to the
   number(s) will connect a subscriber to a voice response unit, or
   similar mechanism, that records the required information regarding the
   preferred carrier change, including automatically recording the
   originating automatic number identification; or

   (3) An appropriately qualified independent third party has obtained, in
   accordance with the procedures set forth in paragraphs (c)(3)(i)
   through (c)(3)(iv) of this section, the subscriber's oral authorization
   to submit the preferred carrier change order that confirms and includes
   appropriate verification data (e.g., the subscriber's date of birth or
   social security number). The independent third party must not be owned,
   managed, controlled, or directed by the carrier or the carrier's
   marketing agent; must not have any financial incentive to confirm
   preferred carrier change orders for the carrier or the carrier's
   marketing agent; and must operate in a location physically separate
   from the carrier or the carrier's marketing agent.

   (i) Methods of third party verification. Automated third party
   verification systems and three-way conference calls may be used for
   verification purposes so long as the requirements of paragraphs
   (c)(3)(ii) through (c)(3)(iv) of this section are satisfied.

   (ii) Carrier initiation of third party verification. A carrier or a
   carrier's sales representative initiating a three-way conference call
   or a call through an automated verification system must drop off the
   call once the three-way connection has been established.

   (iii) Requirements for content and format of third party verification.
   Any description of the carrier change transaction by a third party
   verifier must not be misleading, and all third party verification
   methods shall elicit, at a minimum: The date of the verification; the
   identity of the subscriber; confirmation that the person on the call is
   authorized to make the carrier change; confirmation that the person on
   the call wants to make the carrier change; confirmation that the person
   on the call understands that a carrier change, not an upgrade to
   existing service, bill consolidation, or any other misleading
   description of the transaction, is being authorized; the names of the
   carriers affected by the change (not including the name of the
   displaced carrier); the telephone numbers to be switched; and the types
   of service involved (including a brief description of a service about
   which the subscriber demonstrates confusion regarding the nature of
   that service). Except in Hawaii, any description of interLATA or long
   distance service shall convey that it encompasses both international
   and state-to-state calls, as well as some intrastate calls where
   applicable. If the subscriber has additional questions for the
   carrier's sales representative during the verification, the verifier
   shall indicate to the subscriber that, upon completion of the
   verification process, the subscriber will have authorized a carrier
   change. Third party verifiers may not market the carrier's services by
   providing additional information, including information regarding
   preferred carrier freeze procedures.

   (iv) Other requirements for third party verification. All third party
   verifications shall be conducted in the same language that was used in
   the underlying sales transaction and shall be recorded in their
   entirety. In accordance with the procedures set forth in
   64.1120(a)(1)(ii), submitting carriers shall maintain and preserve
   audio records of verification of subscriber authorization for a minimum
   period of two years after obtaining such verification. Automated
   systems must provide consumers with an option to speak with a live
   person at any time during the call.

   (4) Any State-enacted verification procedures applicable to intrastate
   preferred carrier change orders only.

   (d) Telecommunications carriers must provide subscribers the option of
   using one of the authorization and verification procedures specified in
   § 64.1120(c) in addition to an electronically signed authorization and
   verification procedure under 64.1120(c)(1).

   (e) A telecommunications carrier may acquire, through a sale or
   transfer, either part or all of another telecommunica- tions carrier's
   subscriber base without obtaining each subscriber's authorization and
   verification in accordance with § 64.1120(c), provided that the
   acquiring carrier complies with the following streamlined procedures. A
   telecommunications carrier may not use these streamlined procedures for
   any fraudulent purpose, including any attempt to avoid liability for
   violations under part 64, subpart K of the Commission rules.

   (1) No later than 30 days before the planned transfer of the affected
   subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the acquiring
   carrier, the acquiring carrier shall file with the Commission's Office
   of the Secretary a letter notification in CC Docket No. 00-257
   providing the names of the parties to the transaction, the types of
   telecommunications services to be provided to the affected subscribers,
   and the date of the transfer of the subscriber base to the acquiring
   carrier. In the letter notification, the acquiring carrier also shall
   certify compliance with the requirement to provide advance subscriber
   notice in accordance with § 64.1120(e)(3), with the obligations
   specified in that notice, and with other statutory and Commission
   requirements that apply to this streamlined process. In addition, the
   acquiring carrier shall attach a copy of the notice sent to the
   affected subscribers.

   (2) If, subsequent to the filing of the letter notification with the
   Commission required by § 64.1120(e)(1), any material changes to the
   required information should develop, the acquiring carrier shall file
   written notification of these changes with the Commission no more than
   10 days after the transfer date announced in the prior notification.
   The Commission reserves the right to require the acquiring carrier to
   send an additional notice to the affected subscribers regarding such
   material changes.

   (3) Not later than 30 days before the transfer of the affected
   subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the acquiring
   carrier, the acquiring carrier shall provide written notice to each
   affected subscriber of the information specified. The acquiring carrier
   is required to fulfill the obligations set forth in the advance
   subscriber notice. The advance subscriber notice shall be provided in a
   manner consistent with 47 U.S.C. 255 and the Commission's rules
   regarding accessibility to blind and visually-impaired consumers, 47
   CFR 6.3, 6.5 of this chapter. The following information must be
   included in the advance subscriber notice:

   (i) The date on which the acquiring carrier will become the
   subscriber's new provider of telecommunications service,

   (ii) The rates, terms, and conditions of the service(s) to be provided
   by the acquiring carrier upon the subscriber's transfer to the
   acquiring carrier, and the means by which the acquiring carrier will
   notify the subscriber of any change(s) to these rates, terms, and
   conditions.

   (iii) The acquiring carrier will be responsible for any carrier change
   charges associated with the transfer, except where the carrier is
   acquiring customers by default, other than through bankruptcy, and
   state law requires the exiting carrier to pay these costs;

   (iv) The subscriber's right to select a different preferred carrier for
   the telecommunications service(s) at issue, if an alternative carrier
   is available,

   (v) All subscribers receiving the notice, even those who have arranged
   preferred carrier freezes through their local service providers on the
   service(s) involved in the transfer, will be transferred to the
   acquiring carrier, unless they have selected a different carrier before
   the transfer date; existing preferred carrier freezes on the service(s)
   involved in the transfer will be lifted; and the subscribers must
   contact their local service providers to arrange a new freeze.

   (vi) Whether the acquiring carrier will be responsible for handling any
   complaints filed, or otherwise raised, prior to or during the transfer
   against the selling or transferring carrier, and

   (vii) The toll-free customer service telephone number of the acquiring
   carrier.

   [ 65 FR 47691 , Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at  66 FR 12892 , Mar. 1, 2001;  66 FR 28124 , May 22, 2001;  68 FR 19159 , Apr. 18, 2003;  70 FR 12611 , Mar.
   15, 2005;  73 FR 13149 , Mar. 12, 2008;  83 FR 33143 , July 17, 2018]