Call Recording Retention and Retrieval: What You Need to Know
June 16th, 2023 | Last Updated December 27th, 2024
Written by Garry White, Enterprise Information Archiving Sales Director
Your organization’s ability to retain and retrieve call recordings can make or break compliance efforts, customer service, and even employee training. But navigating the retention requirements of your industry can be overwhelming. That’s why understanding the essentials is critical for leaders like you—those committed to compliance, operational efficiency, and creating an exceptional customer experience.
In this blog, we’ll discuss the key information you need to know about call recording retention and retrieval in industries subject to stringent retention regulations – including banking, financial services, healthcare, insurance, and utilities.
Call Recording Retention Periods
Call recording retention refers to the length of time recordings must be stored. Retention requirements vary by industry, location, and organizational policy. Below, we’ve outlined the most common retention practices in industries we specialize in—financial services, banking, healthcare, insurance, and utilities.
Data Retention in Financial Services
5-7 Years
Average retention period for call recordings in Financial Services
Financial services organizations must keep call recordings for a retention period that is based on legal requirements, industry regulations, and internal policies. Data protection law requirements and the financial authorities your organization reports to must be considered as well.
In some jurisdictions, financial services organizations may be required to retain call recordings for a minimum of five to seven years. But, some organizations may choose to retain call recordings for more extended periods for business purposes, such as quality assurance, training, or resolving customer disputes.
Data Retention in Banking
5-10 Years
Average retention period for call recordings in Banking
Banks face similar but often more stringent regulations than other financial service providers, including oversight by regional and national financial authorities like the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in the United States and Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC).
Retention periods generally range from five to ten years to comply with legal mandates and ensure transparency in financial transactions.
Data Retention in Healthcare, specifically Healthcare Providers
6-10 Years
Average retention period for call recordings in Healthcare
In many jurisdictions, healthcare organizations are required to follow medical record retention guidelines, which may include call recordings if they contain relevant medical or patient information. These guidelines can vary, but a common requirement is to retain medical records, including call recordings, for a minimum of six to ten years after the last patient interaction or treatment. The retention period allows for continuity of care, legal compliance, and potential future reference.
HIPPA regulations (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) require healthcare providers to retain their call recordings for six years. Organizations subject to HIPPA are also subject to stringent data protection and privacy laws to safeguard patient information.
It’s also important to note that retention periods can be influenced by factors such as the type of healthcare organization (like hospitals, clinics, or private practices), the nature of the recorded information, and specific legal requirements in different regions or countries.
Data Retention in Insurance
5-7 Years
Average retention period for call recordings in Insurance
Like financial services organizations, insurance companies are subject to specific regulations and laws that govern record-keeping and data protection. In many jurisdictions, insurance organizations are typically required to retain call recordings for a minimum of five to seven years. This duration is often set to comply with legal and regulatory obligations, facilitate claims processing, resolve disputes, and support fraud investigations.
Insurance companies may also choose to retain call recordings for longer periods for various reasons, including quality assurance, training, internal investigations, or historical reference. Retention periods vary across countries, specific regulations, and individual insurance companies.
Data Retention in Energy & Utilities
5 Years
Average retention period for call recordings in Energy & Utilities
In many cases, energy and utility companies are subject to data protection and privacy regulations similar to the industries mentioned above. These regulations may not explicitly address call recording retention periods; however, they often require organizations to retain customer data for a reasonable period and ensure appropriate security measures are in place.
The retention periods for utilities can range from several months to several years. Retention periods can vary depending on factors such as jurisdiction, company size, type of service provided (such as electricity, water, or gas), and applicable industry or regulatory requirements. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) requires utility companies to retain call recordings for five years.
How a Global Bank Successfully Complied with Call Recording Retention Requirements with the Help of Wilmac Technologies
With an indefinite retention period on 6 billion recordings spread across 32 disparate recording databases, the need for a central repository for seamless compliance was high.
With platforms like NICE Engage, NICE Interaction Management (NIM), and Verint facing end-of-life, along with billions of recordings locked in a proprietary format, retrieval and compliance efforts were at risk.
Wilmac’s Continuity Replay resolved these challenges by extracting, converting, and consolidating data into a centralized system, enabling seamless retrieval and adherence to retention policies. This transformation ensured regulatory compliance, avoided costly penalties, and provided the global bank with reliable access to its recordings when needed.
Legacy Call Recording Retention
Legacy call recording retention refers to the retention of call recordings that were made using outdated technology or systems that are no longer in use. It’s important to ensure that legacy call recordings are still accessible and retrievable, as they may be needed for legal or regulatory purposes.
Just because an organization is decommissioning a legacy call recording platform, does not mean they don’t have to worry about the call recordings stored on that platform that haven’t fulfilled their retention period. This is why a migration plan for legacy call recordings is necessary to ensure that they can be accessed and retrieved as needed.
Call Recording Retrieval, or Search and Replay
Call recording retrieval refers to the process of accessing and retrieving call recordings. Having a system in place for call recording retrieval is important to ensure that recordings can be easily accessed when needed. This involves implementing a call recording system or separate tool that includes search and replay capabilities that are up to your organization’s standards.
To leverage your call recordings beyond the retention period, we suggest finding a tool that offers functionality beyond basic retention and retrieval. With years of call recordings at your disposal, there’s opportunity to put that data to further use with AI and analytics for business insights.
Stuck with legacy recordings? We can extract call recordings from over 50 vendors! See the list >>
In Closing
Navigating the complexities of call recording retention and retrieval can seem daunting. But with the right knowledge and tools, you can ensure compliance with retention regulations, improve operations by simplifying your recording infrastructure, and unlock valuable insights to improve the customer experience.
Wilmac’s Continuity Replay empowers leaders like you to conquer these challenges. It consolidates recordings from any telephony or call center platforms, putting you back in control of your call recordings and compliance strategy.
