Mass. and Calif. Consumers File ZIP Code Class Action Lawsuits in Droves

Consumers from Massachusetts and California who were asked to provide their ZIP codes during credit card transactions are filing class action lawsuits against the retailers who requested them. Under the state laws, Massachusetts Unfair Trade Practices Act and California’s Song Beverly Act, companies cannot ask for personal information if it is not vital to the transaction process.

Last year, both Massachusetts’ and California’s supreme courts ruled that ZIP codes are personally identifiable information, which forbids merchants from asking for them.  Since this ruling, more than 30 class action lawsuits have been filed in Massachusetts, and more than 100 were filed in California.  Each of these ZIP code class action lawsuits were filed against merchants who asked these consumers to provide their ZIP codes during credit and debit card transactions.

All potential plaintiffs should keep a timeline and detailed records of relevant transactions for upcoming legal proceedings.

Overview of Massachusetts and California State Laws

As of now, consumers from Massachusetts and California may be eligible if they were asked to give their ZIP codes during credit or debit card transactions, because their ZIP code is typically not needed to complete the transaction, but could lead to their identity being compromised. For example, a lawsuit against a Massachusetts Apple store alleges that after the company collected the customers’ ZIP codes, it distributed them to third party companies that spammed the customers with unwanted mail, email, and even phone calls.

For potential plaintiffs, it is important to understand the general overview of each law, to determine whether they could be eligible. Only residents of Massachusetts and California are eligible at this time, and any out-of-state residents who made these purchases may not be eligible. In addition, the company has to have taken the customers’ ZIP codes, as well as any other forms of personally identifiable information.  Personal information must be protected for the consumers to help identity theft, fraud, and similar threats.

Under the Massachusetts Unfair Trades Practices Act a merchant is liable for the loss by any person who does business with them and then suffers some form of economic loss because of the merchant conducting the trade through an unfair method of competition or an unfair or deceptive act.

Personally identifiable information fits into the Massachusetts act because collecting non-vital personal information, such as ZIP codes, during transactions is considered as an unfair method of competition. If found guilty, the merchant could be forced to pay for all litigation damages, the plaintiff’s’ attorney’s fees and legal costs, and compensate them for an approved damage amount.  The damage amount differs based on how much the plaintiff was impacted through this infraction, as well as any financial losses occurred from the wrongful act.

The California Song-Beverly Act outlines the main obligations of consumer goods manufacturers, covered by implied and expressed warranties. It states that every sale of consumer good of retail purchases made in California must be accompanied by implied warranty of merchantability, and implied warranty of fitness meaning that the buyers are trusting the manufacturer’s word on the product’s quality.

This act does not allow consumers to collect ZIP codes. The company that collected credit or debit card information also may not send the ZIP code to third-party companies or use it for any unfair business practices.

File a ZIP Code Class Action Lawsuit Claim

Class action lawsuit attorneys are currently seeking California and Massachusetts consumers who were asked to provide their ZIP codes during a credit or debit card transaction. To find out if you qualify for the Merchant ZIP Code Collection Class Action Lawsuit Investigation, simply fill out the form. It is absolutely free to participate, and the ZIP code collection lawyers won’t get paid unless you do.