SMS Messaging Policy & Consent

Last updated: July 6, 2026. Effective: May 23, 2026.

Template draft — final review required. This document has been drafted to be comprehensive but has not yet been reviewed by an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction. Before going live, replace every [BRACKETED] placeholder with the corresponding real value (legal entity name, state, address, support email, governing-law venue, etc.) and have an attorney confirm it covers the laws applicable to your business and your customers' locations.

This policy explains how SMS messaging works on MyTradeCrate. It applies both to MyTradeCrate customers (the contractors and trades businesses sending SMS through the Service) and to message recipients (the end-customers receiving messages). It is part of and incorporated into the Terms of Service and Acceptable Use Policy.

For Message Recipients

Who is sending these messages?

Text messages you receive are sent directly by a trades business from that business's own phone and mobile carrier. MyTradeCrate is a software platform the business uses to run its operations; it does not send text messages on the business's behalf and is not the sender. Replies and opt-out requests (such as STOP) go to the business's own phone number, not to MyTradeCrate.

What messages will I get?

Appointment reminders before scheduled services.
Estimates ready for review.
Invoices and payment receipts.
Service follow-ups and review requests.
Replies to support requests you initiated.

Frequency varies based on your service schedule. Most recipients receive between one (1) and five (5) messages per month during active service periods.

Cost

Standard message and data rates from your wireless carrier may apply. Neither MyTradeCrate nor the sending business charges you to receive these messages.

How to stop messages (opt out)

Reply STOP to any message, or contact the business directly, to ask them to stop texting you. Because the message came from the business's own phone rather than an automated platform, your reply goes straight to that phone — MyTradeCrate does not see it, and there is no automatic confirmation reply or HELP auto-responder. The business is required to honor your request and stop texting you promptly (see "What MyTradeCrate requires of you" below). If a business does not honor a stop request, you may report it to us at Help@MyTradeCrate.com or file a complaint with the FCC or FTC.

Re-subscribing

If you opt out and later change your mind, contact the business directly (their phone number is on every invoice or estimate they sent you) and ask to be re-added. They must collect fresh, documented opt-in consent before sending you SMS again.

For Businesses Texting Customers

You are the sender — you are responsible for consent

When you text a customer, the message is sent from your own phone and carrier — MyTradeCrate simply opens your device's messaging app pre-filled. Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), 47 U.S.C. § 227, FCC implementing regulations (47 C.F.R. § 64.1200), the FTC's telemarketing rules, applicable state "mini-TCPA" statutes (e.g., Florida, Oklahoma, Washington), and CTIA Messaging Principles and Best Practices, you are the sender. MyTradeCrate is a technology provider; it does not pre-screen content or send messages on your behalf.

Before sending any commercial text message to a customer you must obtain and document express written consent from each recipient. The consent record must:

Clearly identify your business by legal name and DBA.
Describe the categories of messages the recipient will receive (appointment reminders, estimates, invoices, follow-ups, etc.).
State that consent is not a condition of any purchase.
State that message and data rates may apply.
State expected message frequency.
Include clear opt-out instructions (reply STOP).
Be retained for at least four (4) years.

Recommended consent language

By providing your mobile phone number and checking this box, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS messages from [YOUR LEGAL BUSINESS NAME] ("[DBA]") regarding appointments, estimates, invoices, receipts, and service-related updates. Consent is not a condition of any purchase. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help, STOP to opt out. See SMS terms at [your-domain]/legal/sms-consent and privacy policy at [your-domain]/legal/privacy.

What MyTradeCrate does automatically

MyTradeCrate does not operate SMS infrastructure and does not send, receive, deliver, or route any text message. When you tap "Copy & send as text," the Service only (a) fills in a message from your saved template and (b) opens your own device's native messaging app with that message and the recipient's number pre-filled — exactly as if you had typed and sent it yourself. Concretely:

A copy of the message text is kept in your Account for your own records once you mark it sent. MyTradeCrate does not see, log, or store any reply the recipient sends back.
There is no upstream SMS aggregator, gateway, or registered messaging campaign involved — the message leaves from your own phone, over your own wireless carrier connection, like any other text you send.
MyTradeCrate does not automatically detect or act on STOP, START, or HELP replies, and does not automatically block future messages to a number that has opted out. You are solely responsible for tracking opt-outs and honoring them, as described below.

What MyTradeCrate requires of you

Do not import phone numbers without documented per-number opt-in.
Do not send marketing or promotional content to recipients who have not consented to that category specifically.
Do not send messages outside permitted hours (generally 8:00 AM – 9:00 PM in the recipient's local time; more restrictive in certain states).
Honor every opt-out request immediately and permanently for that number. Because MyTradeCrate does not track or block opted-out numbers for you, you must maintain your own suppression list and check it before every send.
Maintain records of consent and opt-out for at least four (4) years and produce them on request.
Do not use MyTradeCrate to send messages on behalf of any third party other than the trades business associated with your Account.

10DLC registration — not required for texts sent through MyTradeCrate

10DLC is a carrier framework for application-to-person (A2P) SMS — messages sent in bulk or automatically through a third-party messaging platform, gateway, or API. Because MyTradeCrate does not send text messages on your behalf and only opens your own phone's native messaging app, texts sent this way are ordinary person-to-person (P2P) messages sent directly from your own device. They are not routed through a 10DLC campaign, and MyTradeCrate does not offer or require any Brand or Campaign registration.

This does not exempt you from other obligations. If you separately use a different bulk-texting service, autodialer, or SMS API outside MyTradeCrate, that tool's own 10DLC and carrier-compliance requirements still apply to you and are entirely between you and that provider. And if you send a high volume of texts in a short period, even from a personal device, your own carrier may independently rate-limit, filter, or flag that traffic — a carrier decision outside MyTradeCrate's control.

Prohibited content

SHAFT-S content (Sex, Hate, Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco, plus Cannabis and CBD) — this category requires carrier-level registration and age-gating that MyTradeCrate's phone-texting feature does not provide, so it may not be sent through the Service in any form.
Lead generation for third parties not directly named in the opt-in.
Loans, credit-repair, debt-collection, debt-reduction, or get-rich-quick offers.
Misleading, deceptive, or fraudulent claims; phishing or smishing.
Malware links or URL shorteners that mask destination domains.
Content prohibited by the CTIA or the destination carrier.

Consequences of violations

Violations may result in (a) immediate suspension of SMS sending from your Account, (b) suspension or termination of your MyTradeCrate Subscription, (c) carrier-imposed fines passed through to you, and (d) civil liability under the TCPA. TCPA statutory damages range from $500 to $1,500 per message, are commonly pursued in class actions, and are not covered by yourMyTradeCrate Subscription. You are responsible for these consequences regardless of whether you intended the violation.

Carrier and Regulatory Information

Message routing: texts are sent directly from the business owner or employee's own device and mobile carrier. MyTradeCrate is not an upstream SMS provider, aggregator, or carrier, and does not route, relay, or store any message in transit.
Destination carriers: whichever carrier serves the recipient's phone — typically one of the major U.S. carriers (T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon, US Cellular) or an MVNO.
Compliance frameworks that still apply to you as sender: TCPA, CAN-SPAM, FCC and FTC rules, CTIA Messaging Principles and Best Practices, and CASL (for Canadian recipients). 10DLC does not apply to messages sent this way — see "10DLC registration" above.

Contact

Questions about SMS compliance: Help@MyTradeCrate.com.