Massachusetts rules your contractor website, phones and email must follow

Does Massachusetts require your registration number in advertising?

Yes. M.G.L. c. 142A, section 17 lists the acts that are prohibited for residential contractors. Clause 8 prohibits publishing a home construction or improvement ad that omits the registration number, and an ad with false, deceptive or misleading claims is barred as well. Clause 9 adds that any ad saying a business is registered must accurately reference the certificate of registration, and clause 13 bars operating a residential contracting business under a name other than the registered one.

The statute does not carve out websites. Plan on your registration number appearing in your site footer, on your Google Business Profile, on your truck, on lawn signs and in any paid ad. If you operate under a trade name, the name on the site, the ad and the registration need to match, and a business certificate from the city or town clerk is how a trade name is recorded. Violations are subject to administrative sanctions, criminal prosecution and the state's unfair and deceptive practices law, chapter 93A, according to the statute's text.

For which trades register at all, and the Construction Supervisor License that sits beside the HIC registration, see our Massachusetts contractor license guide.

What must a Massachusetts contract say before you send an online quote?

Section 2 of chapter 142A requires a written contract for residential work over $1,000. It must carry each party's name and street address, your registration number, the name of any salesperson who solicited the deal, the date signed, start and expected substantial completion dates, a detailed description of the work and materials, the total price and a payment schedule with dollar amounts. It also needs the signatures of all parties.

The statute adds mandatory notices: a conspicuous statement that contractors and subcontractors must be registered, with the number; notice of the owner's three-day cancellation rights; notice of warranties; disclosure of any lien or security interest on the home; and a bold warning of at least 10-point type just above the signature line that says not to sign if there are blank spaces. Two money rules matter for online booking. An advance deposit is capped at the greater of one-third of the total price or the cost of special-order materials that must be bought early, and no final payment is due until the work is completed to the parties' satisfaction. The owner gets a fully signed copy at signing, before any work starts.

Practically, a website form that collects a deposit should not take more than the statute allows, and an estimate email is not a contract. Send the full contract with every required term. A contract that misses a requirement is not automatically invalid, per the statute, but it hands the customer a complaint. Our guide on what to put in a service contract covers the general terms that sit around these state-required ones.

Can you record phone calls in Massachusetts?

Only with prior authority from every party. M.G.L. c. 272, section 99 defines an interception as secretly hearing or secretly recording a communication, and the exception for a person "given prior authority by all parties". The statute's penalty for a willful interception is a fine of up to $10,000, up to five years in state prison, up to two and a half years in jail, or a combination.

The key word is "secretly." A recorded-line announcement at the start of the call removes the secrecy. That means an announcement on inbound calls, outbound calls to customers, and on every greeting an AI receptionist plays. See our guide to recording business calls for a sample, and the state table if your office is in one state and your customers are in another.

What does Massachusetts add to federal telemarketing rules?

Chapter 159C is the state's telemarketing law. It runs alongside the federal TCPA and CAN-SPAM, which apply in every state and are covered in our guide to texting rules. Three parts matter:

• The no-solicitation list. Section 2 has the state office keep a list of consumers who do not want unsolicited telephone sales calls, updated at least quarterly. Section 3 bars an unsolicited sales call to a consumer on that list. It separately bars unsolicited sales calls sent as faxes or made with a recorded message device, whether or not the consumer is listed.
• Hours. Section 3 bars unsolicited sales calls between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., local time at the consumer's location.
• Caller ID. Section 4 bars intentionally using a blocking device or service to get around a consumer's caller identification.

The definitions help a service business. Under section 1, an "unsolicited" call excludes one made in response to the consumer's express written or verbal request, one tied to an existing debt or contract, and one to an existing customer unless that customer has said they no longer want such calls. An existing customer is a residential subscriber with whom you have kept an account or had a business relationship within the previous 24 months. A call is also outside the definition when the sale is not completed, and no payment is taken, until after a face-to-face presentation or meeting. A "consumer" is a Massachusetts resident buying for personal, family or household use, so commercial customers are outside the definition. The chapter's definition of a marketing solicitation refers to "a telephone call or message," but the defined telephonic sales call is "a call made by a telephone solicitor," and we found no Massachusetts ruling on texts, so whether a text counts is unsettled and you should not rely on the gap. Treat texts as covered and keep every marketing text inside 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. with a stop reply honored.

Enforcement has teeth. Section 8 lets the Attorney General seek a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per knowing violation, with a $1,500 minimum where the consumer is 65 or older, and lets a person who received more than one unsolicited sales call within 12 months sue for an injunction and actual loss or up to $5,000, whichever is greater, with attorney's fees to the prevailing party.

Can you add a fee for paying by credit card?

Not as a surcharge. M.G.L. c. 140D, section 28A(a)(2) says no seller in any sales transaction may impose a surcharge on a cardholder who elects to use a credit card, and the section lists no exceptions to that ban. Subsection (b) separately says a cash or check discount is not treated as a finance charge if it is offered to all prospective buyers and clearly and conspicuously disclosed.

This matters for online invoices and booking pages. If your payment software adds a percentage on card payments by default, that setting is a problem for Massachusetts customers. The safer setup is one price for everyone, with any discount for cash or check offered to all buyers and disclosed up front. Rules change, so confirm the current statute on malegislature.gov. Our online payments guide covers the mechanics.

How do sales tax and customer data rules show up?

The Department of Revenue's sales and use tax guide lists Massachusetts sales tax at 6.25% on sales and rentals of tangible personal property and telecommunications services. It lists personal and professional services among the exempt categories and says installation charges are not taxed when stated separately from the item. A contractor who repairs or improves real property pays the tax on materials when buying them, with one exception: a contractor who installs a complete standard item and does nothing beyond installing or connecting it is treated as a retailer and collects tax from the customer. State the installation charge on its own invoice line.

Massachusetts has no comprehensive consumer privacy statute of the kind found in some states, but it has a data security rule that reaches small businesses. Regulation 201 CMR 17.00 establishes minimum standards for safeguarding personal information and covers all persons that own or license personal information about a Massachusetts resident. Chapter 93H defines personal information as a resident's name combined with a Social Security number, a driver's license or state ID number, or a financial account or card number. A customer file with card numbers, or a CRM export on a laptop, is the practical exposure. Keep card data with your payment processor, use unique logins and encrypt laptops.

What does this mean for your setup?

On the website, show your HIC number and registered name in the footer, take a deposit no larger than the statute allows, and remove any card fee from checkout. On the phone line and AI receptionist, announce recording in the first sentence. For email and text follow-ups, stay inside the 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. window, honor opt-outs and keep the date and wording of each customer's consent. We build these pieces on our website, phone system and AI receptionist pages. For the Commonwealth's formation steps see starting a business in Massachusetts.

What you have read is general information from October 2026 and not legal advice. Confirm current text with the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation, the Attorney General or a Massachusetts attorney.

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