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A class action lawsuit that alleges Google’s Google Play gift cards violate California law by being too difficult to redeem should be tossed out, or at the least moved to the correct district, the tech giant says.
Google urged a California federal court to dismiss the class action lawsuit, which was filed in February, and added that if the case was to continue, it must be moved to the appropriate court.
According to the company’s terms of service that govern Google Play gift cards, disputes must be resolved in the federal or state courts of Santa Clara County, in the Northern District of California, Law360 reports. The current class action lawsuit was filed in the Central District.
Google Play gift card holders Henk Meyers and Glenn Goza, the lead Plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit, say that Google’s security system makes it almost impossible for holders of authentic gift cards to redeem their purchases or gifts.
Gift card holders are required to fill out a form saying when and where the gift card was purchased, and provide receipts documenting the purchase, requests that are difficult for many gift card holders – especially those who received the cards as a gift, Meyers and Goza say.
“Google’s arbitrary barriers to redemption likely dissuaded many gift card holders from redeeming their cards, either because they lacked the information requested or found it too burdensome,” Meyers said in the claim.
According to the claim, Google also uses an algorithm in its security system that often flags authentic gift cards as suspicious, invalidating them.
Meyers and Goza say that Google is violating California law with these practices, as the law requires gift card issuers to ensure cards are redeemable in cash for the value or can be replaced at no cost to the buyer or holder.
“As a result of its practices, Google was able to pocket the funds spent on Google Play gift cards that should have been redeemable by these card holders,” Meyers said.
However, Google says that the California law governing gift certificates doesn’t affect Google Play gift cards. The company says that its Google Play gift cards are within the law’s exception for gift cards as they are redeemable with multiple sellers.
“Because Google Play gift cards are usable to purchase from multiple sellers, Google could not, as a matter of law, violate California’s gift certificate law,” Google said, adding the claims by Meyers and Goza lacked merit.
Meyers and Goza want to represent anyone nationwide who had a Google Play gift card denied by the company.
Google is also facing another class action lawsuit, that alleges that the tech giant engages in illegal, omnipresent surveillance of people’s lives, in a way much worse than George Orwell imagined in his classic science fiction book 1984. Salvatore Toronto, a Google account holder, alleges the Internet giant continues to violate privacy laws, even after a record $170 million privacy settlement in 2019.
Have ever had any issues redeeming a Google Play gift card? Let us know in the comments section!
The gift card holders are represented by Richard D. McCune, David C. Wright and Elaine S. Kusel of McCune Wright Arevalo LLP.
Google is represented by Michelle C. Doolin, Whitty Somvichian and Sharon Song of Cooley LLP.
The Google Play Gift Card Class Action Lawsuit is Meyers v. Alphabet Inc. et al., Case No. 2:21-cv-01767, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
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91 thoughts onGoogle Says That Lawsuit Claiming Gift Cards Are Too Hard to Redeem Should Be Tossed Out
SAME ISSUE.. According to our system, your Google Account or one of the Play Gift Cards you submitted isn’t eligible for appeal.
I contact google..they tell me resubmit the information and we go in this loop all over again…what can i do about this??
I am currently going through the same issue. Over a $50 gift card.
Same here, I am currently about to file in small claims court over this issue. They are simply stealing money, no other way to see it. $200 here.
I have the same problem with a 20$ gift card I have the receipt and everything but they just ignored me
I have the same problem. My kids each received as a gift and they do not work. I tried contacting them and they told me to ask whoever gave it to them for a receipt. Even after explaining to them I didn’t know who gave it to them. Its ridiculous.
I have purchased over $100 in play cards and they have told me that they can not be redeemed or refunded I even sent them proof of purchase and they still will not honor them so yes this needs to be taken care of legally cause they are stealing and using their rules to do it
Hello Everyone,
Seems we are all going thru the same ordeal with Google and their bad practices of stealing money from their consumers. I purchase two gift cards from Target one with a $100 USD value and the other $50 USD value and i get the same message as everyone here. Now i am out of $150 dollars that i will not get back ever and Google will keep stealing money from their customers. I submitted a formal complaint with the Better Business Bureau, but i assume i wont hear anything back. So just face the reality that i just lost $150 at the Google Casino, something has to happen they need to improve their method of verifying gift cards and also a 1-800 number where you can call and talk to a live person. Because once you get that email, that is it, there is nothing else you can do. You are basically done and they dont care about your business.
I purchased a google play card for my 16 year old son for his birthday as a gift when he tried to redeem it, he got a error message, we then submitted a form with pictures and receipts sent it all over and waited for a response back by email, so as soon as we open up the message it read: according to our system , google account or one of your play cards, you submitted isn’t eligible for appeal. So next I reached out to chat with a google support which told me to fill out form I did that, and a day or two later I received the same message as before, I mean this so wrong that google has scam my child out of his birthday gift all I want is my money back google!
My mom bought me a Google play card worth $400 2/200. All attempts to redeem the card was abortive. It says According to our system, your Google Account or one of the Play Gift Cards you submitted isn’t eligible for appeal. Google now scam people.
Ouch
I’m dealing with 2 $10 gift cards I purchased , can’t redeem them at all even with receipts. There is no current google support help line available on ohio . All numbers hang up on you.
YES! Same here! Called the number but it says they have minimal staffing and hangs up. So done with google.
How do I get added to this? what they are doing is theft.. I even had the receipt and they still refused to redeem. Total snakes
For two monthes..my account is suspended by Google everytime I use a gift card. I’m actually sitting here suspended again..this is weekly. I can’t play a game I have been playing for 4 years because of it..with zero explanation. Please add me to lawsuit, I have lost thousands of dollers because I go to buy needed packages and can’t. It’s absolutely frustrating….a 4 year investment in time and money, going up in smoke.