We’ve all been there. Waiting in line to pay and get out of the store, sliding our credit card through a machine, when a clerk at the cash registers asks us for our home zip code. What if we refuse?
Well, we have a right to refuse. The California Supreme Court has held that a person’s zip code is “personal identification information” and that businesses cannot require a credit card customer to reveal it. The court ruled in the context of a dispute involving the Williams-Sonoma chain which implicated a portion of the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act of 1971 that affords a measure of personal privacy to retail customers who pay with credit cards. The case is Pineda v. Williams-Sonoma Stores, Inc. and a copy is attached for your convenience.
At Slote & Links, we regularly counsel clients on privacy issues and other issues. Feel free to contact us if you have an issue that needs attention.