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Alert! Class Action Suits Alleging Noncompliance with Credit Card Receipt Law Hit Retailers & Others
Class Action Alert
February 2007
The December 4, 2006 deadline for compliance with the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) has brought about a wave of putative class action lawsuits seeking statutory and punitive damages and attorneys fees against retailers and other businesses. FACTA is a 2003 amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, intended to help prevent identity theft and credit card fraud. Download FACTA.
Among other provisions, FACTA requires merchants to ensure that printed receipts for credit or debit card transactions do not include more than five digits of an individual's account number, or the card's expiration date.
Since December 2006, at least 50 class action suits have been filed against various companies, each seeking to certify nationwide classes of consumers who allegedly were subjected to an increased risk of identity theft as a result of information printed on credit or debit card receipts.
These actions generally allege that defendants have willfully failed to comply with FACTA. Plaintiffs contend that credit card companies have put defendants on notice of FACTA's requirements by informing retailers on multiple occasions since 2003 of the need to truncate information on credit and debit card receipts, and that defendants did not do so despite having three years in which to comply.
Companies facing these actions may have a number of defenses to class certification and to the merits of the plaintiffs' claims, depending on individual circumstances. For more information on FACTA, the plaintiffs' claims, or defending class actions arising out of alleged FACTA non-compliance, please contact the attorneys above or any member of Sedgwick's Class Action Task Force.
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