DPPA Class Action Says Marketers Violate Drivers’ Privacy

A proposed class action lawsuit has been filed against National Recall & Data Services and North American Vehicle Insurance Specialists (Naviss), accusing the companies of improperly using Motor Vehicle Records (MVRs) to directly market extended vehicle warranties to consumers without their express consent.

Plaintiffs Mark Laning and Arthur Lopez, both residents of Dallas County, Texas bring forth this complaint alleging their MVRs, which include their names, addresses, VIN numbers, vehicle types, makes, models, years, and license plate numbers were all obtained by National Recall & Data Services without their authorization and in violation of the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act or DPPA.

The DPPA was enacted by Congress in 1994 for the explicit purpose of protecting the privacy and safety of licensed drivers, and to limit misuse of the information contained in this government record systems.

The Act, which was prompted by the highly publicized murder of actress Rebecca Schaeffer in 1989, imposes strict rules for collecting the personal information in driver records and provides for liability in cases where an individual or corporation improperly collects, discloses, uses or sell such records.

“Recognizing the threat caused by unfettered access to individuals’ personal identifiable information obtained from motor vehicle records, and seeking to balance that concern against the legitimate need of certain parties to have access to DMV records, Congress determined that those records should not be disclosed except to those with a legitimate need for them,” the complaint states. “It embodied that intent in a statutory scheme designed to carefully limit the uses for which such information may be disclosed.”

According to Laning and Lopez, this information was then allegedly re-disclosed and/or resold to third party affiliates for purposes that included direct marketing use. Specifically, the plaintiffs state that they received a direct marketing letter from “Vehicle Administration Center,” an affiliation of Naviss, offering them extended warranties for their vehicles.

This, the lawsuit claims, constitutes actual injury because the plaintiffs suffered harm from the alleged privacy and security violations due to the defendants’ unauthorized access to and use of their MVRs.

The plaintiffs refer to the Supreme Court’s decision in Spokeo v. Robins, claiming the recent opinion reaffirms their standing that “intangible injuries are ‘concrete’” and not merely a “bare procedural violation.”

“Far from being a ‘bare procedural violation,’ defendant’s conduct is the core harm contemplated that the DPPA guards against,” the 79-page complaint claims.

The complaint further states that “for all consumers that have ever been harassed by direct marketing letters selling ‘extended vehicle warranties’ falsely advertising that your vehicle warranty had expired, wondered how these companies knew your personal information … and had concerns that your home address was publicly being sold and feared that your family’s security was at risk and privacy violated, [this] class action will identify sources used to obtain their personal information and implement such unauthorized activities.”

By sidestepping DPPA regulations, the defendants “have harmed both the class members’ privacy and security, creating a reasonable fear of present and future injury, compelling individuals to take costly and burdensome measures to protect their privileged information from risk of access and probable harm,” the class action lawsuit alleges.

Laning and Lopez are seeking certification for a nationwide Class of consumers who had National Recall & Data Services obtain their MVRs from their State DMV for the purpose of re-disclosing, and/or reselling, for direct marketing purposes without their express consent, in violation of the DPPA. The plaintiffs are also seeking to represent a Naviss subclass as well.

This is not the first time direct marketing companies have come under fire for violating DPPA. In July, Lopez and Laning filed a similar DPPA class action lawsuit alleging Cross-Sell LLC improperly obtained their motor vehicle records for marketing purposes without their consent.

And in 2013, Compact Information Systems Inc. was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging they and a slew of other named and unnamed companies used improperly-obtained MVR information to call or send letters to consumers in attempt to sell extended vehicle warranties.

Laning and Lopez are represented by Joseph H. Malley of the Law Offices of Joseph H. Malley PC.

The National Recall & Data Services and Naviss DPPA Class Action Lawsuit is Laning, et al. v. National Recall & Data Services Inc., et al., Case No. 3:16-cv-02358, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.