Plaintiffs Want Class Cert. In Bebe Text Spam Lawsuit

Two Bebe customers are seeking class certification in a text spam class action lawsuit against the company.

Lead plaintiffs Melita Meyer and Samantha Rodriguez have asked the court to certify a class consisting of all Bebe customers in the United States who gave the company their phone numbers and later received unsolicited texts.

The plaintiffs are seeking certification for a class of customers who received texts after after January 2010, with a subclass for Bebe customers who received texts after October 2013

The plaintiffs allege that Bebe sent customers spam text messages after collecting their phone numbers at store checkouts. They say Bebe considered implementing a policy of getting written consent, but never put such a policy into effect.

Melita says she gave Bebe her phone number in December 2013 when she returned a dress, assuming it was a necessary part of the transaction. She says the store representative did not tell her that Bebe would use the number to send her texts. But soon after giving them her number, Melita started receiving texts from Bebe.

Melita and Samantha argue these texts by Bebe violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, or TCPA. They are asking the court for up to the maximum statutory damages of $1,500 for each violation. They are also seeking an injunction ordering Bebe to stop sending unlawful text messages.

Samantha and Melita’s text spam class action lawsuit is pending under case no. 14-CV-00267-YGR in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Text Message Spam Under the TCPA

The TCPA is a law passed originally to restrict unsolicited phone calls and fax transmissions. With more recent amendments and FCC interpretation, it now includes particular restrictions applicable to sending calls and text messages to cell phones.

Specifically, the TCPA prohibits businesses from sending text messages or automatically dialed phone calls to a cell phone, unless the caller had the recipient’s prior express consent to receive those types of communication.

In July 2015, the FCC issued an order clarifying some TCPA points that had been sources of confusion. The Commission said the definition of “autodialer” is extremely broad, so that using equipment that merely has the potential to dial multiple numbers randomly or sequentially can satisfy that definition.

Consumers also have more control over revoking consent to be called. The FCC now says that a consumer can revoke consent through any reasonable method. Even revoking consent orally at a physical business location can suffice.

The statutory damages provisions of the TCPA are what give consumers real strength to fight back against text message spam. Calls and texts that violate the TCPA can put a business on the hook for $500 to $1,500 per violation. A TCPA class action lawsuit can address a huge number of such violations at once, so it’s understandable why Melita and Samantha want their TCPA lawsuit certified as a class action.

UPDATE: On June 13, 2017, Bebe Stores Inc. agreed to settle a class action lawsuit accusing it of violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by sending unwanted text messages to consumers. It is estimated that 38,600 Class Members may qualify for benefits from the Bebe text spam class action settlement.

Join a Free TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were contacted on your cell phone by a company via an unsolicited text message (text spam) or prerecorded voice message (robocall), you may be eligible for compensation under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

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