California Supreme Court Announces State Law Prohibits Marketing Requests for ZIP Codes

From JDSupra:

In a case with major implications for retailers and marketers, the Supreme Court of California ruled on February 10, 2011 that state law prohibits businesses from requesting and recording ZIP codes from consumers prior to credit card transactions, including requests for use in marketing. Pineda v. Williams-Sonoma Stores, Inc., S178241 (Cal., Feb. 10, 2011). Numerous other states have laws similar to California’s that regulate merchant practices with respect to collecting and recording personal information in connection with a credit card purchase.

The impact of the Court’s decision is not limited to future practices. The Court also held that its interpretation of the statute applies retroactively, thereby opening the door to class action consumer lawsuits based on businesses’ prior requests for ZIP codes for marketing purposes. Within days of the Court’s ruling, over a dozen cases have already been filed in California against major retailers. Courts can impose statutory damages of up to $1000 per violation of the law.