Facts

Nancy Dardarian and Nathan Thomas purchased items with their credit cards at OfficeMax stores in California. During their transactions, cashiers asked for their ZIP codes and recorded that information. As a result, they filed a class action against OfficeMax, alleging violation of the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act, on behalf of themselves and other consumers who made purchases between March 1, 2010 and Feb. 22, 2011.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiffs alleged that defendant violated the Act by requesting and recording ZIP codes in relation to consumer credit card transactions, including shipping, delivery, servicing, installation, special orders, customer loyal program applications, and defendant's credit card applications. Plaintiffs alleged that defendant unlawfully requested and recorded personal identification information at its stores in California.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Defendant denied the allegations and argued that it had informed all California stores to stop asking for ZIP codes at the point-of-sale. Further, defendant argued that before it stopped asking for ZIP codes, this practice was not covered by the Act because ZIP codes were not yet considered personal information under the Act.

Moreover, defendant claimed it never sold or reverse engineered ZIP codes recorded at the point-of-sale.

Result

The parties reached a settlement under which $600,000 in merchandise vouchers will be distributed to potential class members.