Man Says Spam Text Messages From Verizon Allegedly Violated TCPA

A man has filed a TCPA class action lawsuit after allegedly receiving spam text messages from Verizon.

Plaintiff Daniel Getz alleges Verizon violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and caused him and fellow class members to suffer from “aggravation, nuisance, loss of time, and invasions of privacy” because of the unsolicited text messages.

The cell phones that received the unwanted texts allegedly expended battery energy, memory, data, and software and hardware usage that they otherwise would not have used. Getz alleges he lost value of his cell phone services and the enjoyment of his phone.

Spam Text Messages from Verizon Allegations

Getz alleges that on Oct. 27, 2017, Verizon sent two text messages to his cell phone without his consent. He says the text messages were regarding a product he had not purchased and never did purchase from Verizon.

A snapshot of the text message indicates it came from a Verizon Dadeland store and was advertising the iPhone X at a discount of up to $300 off.

The unsolicited spam text messages from Verizon allegedly were a nuisance that aggravated Getz and invaded his privacy, according to the TCPA class action lawsuit.

Daniel claims the identical spam text messages from Verizon allegedly were sent by Verizon or by a third-party en masse to the cell phone numbers of consumers who had not purchased an iPhone X from Verizon. The text message includes a link that allows the consumer to pre-order the iPhone X as an alternative to visiting a store, which it also suggests.

If the texts were sent by a third-party company, Daniel argues, Verizon allegedly allowed the use of its short-code that shows up on the recipients cell phones as the originator of the texts. This third-party company also allegedly would have had had access to Verizon’s records and received authorized use of Verizon’s trade name. Verizon allegedly would have dictated the content of the text messages, “and knew of, but failed to stop, the sending of the text messages in violation of the TCPA.”

Daniel says the spam text messages from Verizon also allegedly were sent by an automatic telephone dialing system in violation of the TCPA. He says the use of an automatic dialing system is evident by the text message including the ability to send an automated response by replying “E.” Other indications of the use of an automated system include the fact that identical texts were sent to many different recipients and that they were sent using the short code.

TCPA allows a recipient of a violating text message to receive $500 in statutory damages per text message. If proven a text message was sent in willful violation of the TCPA, the consumer may collect $1,500 per text message.

The Spam Text Messages from Verizon Lawsuit is Case No. 1:18-cv-04652 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

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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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