TCPA Ruling: Providing Phone Number in Online Purchase is Consent

In a recent ruling in a lawsuit alleging a violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), a California federal judge said that when a customer gives his or her phone number to a business because it is required for an online purchase, it amounts to consent for the companies to call and text the customer. This new reading of the law could result in a drop in TCPA lawsuits and class action lawsuits, lawyers say.

The TCPA is supposed to prohibit companies from calling, faxing or texting customers without express consent, and many class action lawsuits have risen out of violations where the plaintiffs argue they did not consent to the communications.

U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson said in a Jan. 28 order that airline contractor Sabre Inc. had not violated the TCPA when it sent out text messages to customers flying Hawaiian Airlines because the customers had voluntarily given up their cell phone numbers to the airline.

The TCPA lawsuit was brought by Shaya Baird who says she gave her phone number to Hawaiian Airlines on their website when purchasing an airline ticket. She offered her cell phone number in the “Contact Information” section where it stated that she was required to provide at least one phone number. She was contacted about three weeks later and a month before her travel date by Sabre, which provides traveler notification services to passengers on behalf of Hawaiian Airlines, asking if she would like to receive flight notification via text and to reply “yes” if she did.

“Baird did not respond and Sabre sent her no more messages,” the ruling explains.

However, Baird still brought this lawsuit because she believed that the text message she was sent was unsolicited and was in violation of the TCPA.

“Defendant’s evidence establishes that Baird provided her cellphone number to Hawaiian Airlines voluntarily,” Wilson wrote. “Under the FCC’s interpretation of the TCPA, Baird consented to be contacted on her cellphone about flight-related matters. Hawaiian Airlines then used its vendor Sabre to offer to provide Baird with flight information on her cellphone. The single text message sent to Baird’s cellphone fell within the scope of her ‘prior express consent.’ Defendant is therefore entitled to summary judgment on the TCPA claim.”

According to Baird’s attorneys, she will appeal the ruling. They argue that if the ruling stands, it will allow defendants facing TCPA lawsuits in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals a way out of the pricey statutory damages that businesses are facing from customers who say they were contacted by third party vendors without consent.

The TCPA lawsuit is Shaya Baird v. Sabre Inc., et al., Case No. 2:13-cv-00999, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

If you or someone you know receives unsolicited faxes, phone calls or text messages, legal options are available. Learn more and get a free legal consultation regarding a claim’s eligibility at the Text Message Spam, Cell Phone Call TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Investigation. Experienced legal professionals are available to determine if you have case, so act now.