Kohl’s TCPA Class Action Lawsuit

This class action lawsuit claims that Kohl’s violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by using an automatic-capable dialer to send unsolicited text messages to plaintiffs and consumers nationwide after they withdrew consent.

            The TCPA was designed to protect consumers from unwanted calls and text messages to ensure the right to privacy.  It was enacted in 1991 by Congress and is implemented by the FCC.   In enacting the TCPA, Congress found that “banning such automated or prerecorded telephone calls to the home, except when the receiving party consents to receiving the call or when such calls are necessary in an emergency situation affecting the health and safety of the consumer, is the only effective means of protecting telephone consumers from this nuisance and privacy invasion.”

            One plaintiff in this lawsuit, Amy Viggiano, is a resident of Ocean County, New Jersey.  In 2016, Viggiano consented to receive automated commercial text messages from Kohl’s.  Kohl’s placed these text messages using an “automatic telephone dialing system.”  Later, she withdrew consent to receive further texts and notified Kohl’s to stop sending her commercial text messages—multiple times—each using a reasonable method.  For example, one time she instructed Kohl’s via text, “I’ve changed my mind and don’t want to receive these anymore.”  Kohl’s refused to stop sending texts to Viggiano, claiming that the only way that she could withdraw her consent to receive unwanted texts was to text “STOP.”

            Viggiano is not the only consumer who has received these unwanted text messages.  In fact, Kohl’s has sent millions of text messages to consumers after claiming that there is only one way in which consumers can withdraw consent to receive such messages.

            Based on the facts of the case, plaintiffs allege that Kohl’s violated the TCPA by using an automatic-capable dialing system to send unsolicited text messages to consumers after they withdrew their consent.

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Consumer
Tags: TCPA, Unsolicited Text Messages, Use of Automatic-Capable Dialer