United States: Receipt Received Via Email Is Not "An Electronically Printed" Receipt- Under FACTA

Simonoff v. Expedia, Inc., 634 F.3d 1202, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 10374 (9th Cir. 2011)

Facts: Defendant Expedia, Inc. emailed Plaintiff a receipt, which included the expiration date of Plaintiff's credit card. Plaintiff alleged that the receipt he received via email violated the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act ("FACTA"), an amendment to the FCRA. 15 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq. The lower court dismissed Plaintiff's claims under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim. The 9^th Circuit confirmed the dismissal on appeal.

• FACTA. FACTA provides that "no person that accepts credit cards ... for the transaction of business shall print more than the last 5 digits of the card number or the expiration date upon any receipt provided to the cardholder at the point of the sale or transaction." 15 U.S.C. 1681c(g)(1). The question considered by the Court was FACTA's interpretation of the words "print" and "electronically printed" in connection with an emailed receipt. Under FACTS, a printed receipt is a receipt that exists in physical form, not one displayed on a computer screen. An electronically printed receipt is simply a receipt printed with an electronic device. The Court concluded that a receipt that is transmitted to the consumer via email and then digitally displayed on the consumer's screen is not an "electronically printed" receipt and is not regulated by FACTA.

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