Check Credit Card Receipts for FACTA Violations
"The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act ("FACTA") ... has spawned more than 250 federal class-action lawsuits ... Section 1681c(g)(1) of the FCRA, part of the FACTA enactment, provides that "no person that accepts credit cards or debit 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." This aspect of FACTA was phased in over time to allow large and small businesses to conform to the requirements and update the cash registers in service. The requirement was fully phased in as of December 4, 2006. Since then, the class-action lawsuits have come fast and furious...
If your company has not been sued for a FACTA violation, you still need to act. Conduct an audit of the receipts issued to customers to ensure that all stores comply with FACTA. If any potential violation is noted, correct it immediately. Also, to avoid future unknown liability, monitor the decisions related to FACTA to determine whether there are any changes regarding the statute's interpretation. With that, your company will be able to immediately correct any "new" violations found to exist under the law.
If your company has been sued, act immediately to come into compliance with FACTA. Simultaneously, obtain legal counsel to help you explore the various defenses available to minimize the potential exposure your company may face. Otherwise, a simple receipt error could lead to enormous expense..."
Read more in this Jones Day article from Mondaq.
