On November 20, the Supreme Court of Illinois issued an opinion holding that plaintiffs seeking statutory damages under the federal FCRA, including claims under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), must allege a concrete injury to establish standing in Illinois courts. The court reversed the class certification and directed dismissal of the case for lack of standing.

The case involved a consumer who received a receipt from a national retailer displaying more than the last five digits of a debit card number, in violation of FACTA’s truncation requirement. The plaintiff alleged only an increased risk of identity theft and exposure of private information, without any actual harm.

The supreme court reversed the lower court’s ruling which had allowed the case to proceed, finding that because FACTA does not expressly define who may sue, plaintiffs must satisfy common-law standing requirements by alleging a concrete and non-speculative injury. The court found that increased risk of future harm or a statutory violation alone did not meet Illinois’s common-law standing requirement for a “distinct and palpable” injury. The court concluded that a mere statutory violation, without actual or imminent harm, is insufficient to confer standing for statutory damages in Illinois court.