FACTA Class Action Against J.Crew Survives Motion to Dismiss

J.Crew’s motion to dismiss a potential FACTA class action lawsuit has been denied.

Lead plaintiff Ahmed Kamal filed the FACTA class action lawsuit after discovering that the clothing retailer printed more than the last five digits of his credit card number on his receipts.

Kamal claims that between Dec. 18, 2014, and Jan. 4, 2015, he made three purchases at three different J.Crew stores located in Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey.

According to the FACTA class action lawsuit, at each store Kamal paid with a Discover card and was then issued a receipt that showed the first six numbers and the last four numbers of his credit card.

Kamal’s class action lawsuit alleges that J.Crew willfully violated the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), which states “no person that accepts credit cards or debit cards for the transaction of business shall print more than the last 5 digits of the card number.”

U.S. District Judge William J. Martini refused to dismiss the putative FACTA class action lawsuit, acknowledging that FACTA requirements have been in place for 12 years and a “sophisticated operation” like J.Crew would know about the laws concerning credit card receipts.

Lead plaintiff Kamal added an amended complaint to his originally filed FACTA lawsuit claiming that all major credit card companies including Visa, MasterCard and others who sell credit card processing equipment would have “directly informed defendants about FACTA, including its specific requirements concerning the redaction of card numbers.”

Judge Martini states that the evidence against J.Crew shows at the very least that they ignored “an obvious and unjustifiably high risk of violating FACTA.”

Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act Overview

Congress enacted FACTA as a way to protect customers who use debit or credit cards from identity theft and credit card fraud. One of the ways FACTA helps prevent identity theft is by requiring retailers, businesses and even self-service kiosks to hide all but the last five numbers of the credit card on receipts.

Most companies will use symbols including # and * instead of the actual digit, making it much harder for potential identity thieves to piece together the full debit or credit card number.

The following examples show a sampling of a FACTA receipt violations:

Example 1: 33** **** **** 5555

Example 2: **** **22 **** 8888

Example 3: **** **** **77 ****

FACTA is very specific in allowing only the last five digits of a card to be shown. Even if a credit card receipt shows fewer numbers but they are not the last five numbers, the merchant has violated FACTA.

Another common FACTA violation regards the card’s expiration date. According to the federal law, businesses should not print the expiration date “upon any receipt provided to the cardholder at the point of the sale or transaction.”

This FACTA violation could appear in the following forms:

EXP: 0317

EXP: 03/17

EXP: 03/2017

FACTA Lawsuits

Millions of customers are affected by identity theft and credit card fraud in the U.S. each year. Some customers are choosing to hold businesses responsible for FACTA violations that put them at risk.

Fees for FACTA violations typically range from $100 to $1,000 per violation. If you think you have been a victim of a FACTA violation, contact an experienced attorney to find out if you have legal claim.

Kamal’s FACTA Class Action Lawsuit is Kamal v. J. Crew Group Inc. et al, Case No. 2:15-cv-00190, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Free FACTA Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you made one or more purchases and the retailer provided you with a receipt that contained more than the last five digits of your credit or debit card number or the expiration date, you may be eligible for a free class action lawsuit investigation and to pursue compensation for these FACTA violations.

Get Started