Alleged Temu Text Message Scam Sparks Class Action Lawsuit

New to ClassAction.org? Read our Newswire Disclaimer

Temu faces a proposed class action wherein a consumer claims to have received numerous unsolicited text messages from the online marketplace—even though his cell phone number is listed on the National Do Not Call Registry.

Want to stay in the loop on class actions that matter to you? Sign up for ClassAction.org’s free weekly newsletter here.

The 23-page lawsuit says that defendant WhaleCo, Inc.—which does business as Temu—has run afoul of federal and state laws by sending “unsolicited text message spam” to consumers nationwide without prior written consent.

Specifically, the suit charges that Temu has violated Oklahoma’s Telephone Solicitation Act (OTSA) by sending promotional text messages before 8 a.m. and after 8 p.m. and “in excess of the [law’s] twenty-four-hour limit.” The company has also run afoul of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the lawsuit alleges.

Temu, which sells and ships a wide array of consumer goods directly from China, purportedly “bombarded” the plaintiff’s cell phone with spam texts in May of this year, the case relays. The Oklahoma resident claims to have received up to three promotional text messages a day for almost a week—messages to which he did not consent and which often violated the OTSA’s time restriction regulations.

According to the complaint, Temu has used an automated dialing system to send “blasts of text messages automatically and without any human involvement” in order to “maximize the reach” of its text promotions at minimal cost to the company.

Per the filing, the defendant could have complied with the OTSA by obtaining the proper consent from consumers before sending messages or using a non-automated messaging platform, which would allow the company to transmit texts without consent.

As it stands, however, frustrated consumers have taken to the internet with complaints about the unsolicited Temu texts, calling them “[super] obnoxious,” the suit shares.

“I am getting multiple of these text messages daily… I’m talking around 5-6,” one consumer complained on Reddit. “It’s a new number every time so blocking hasn’t helped. I never signed up or have even been on [Temu’s] website.”

Another Redditor claimed that they, too, were “getting spammed with these texts daily,” and agreed that “blocking the number [did] not do anything,” the case says.

The lawsuit looks to represent:

“All persons in the United States who from four years prior to the filing of this action through the date of class certification (1) Defendant, or anyone on Defendant’s behalf, (2) placed more than one text message call within any 12-month period; (3) where the person’s telephone number that had been listed on the National Do Not Call Registry for at least thirty days; (4) regarding Defendant’s property, goods, and/or services; (5) who did not purchase or transact business with Defendant during the eighteen months immediately preceding the date of the first message; and (6) who did not contact Defendant during the three months immediately preceding the date of the first message with an inquiry about a product, good, or service offered by Defendant;”

“All persons in Oklahoma who, (1) were sent one or more text messages regarding Defendant’s property, goods, and/or services, (2) through a use of any short-code, (3) from November 1, 2022 through the date of class certification;”

“All persons in Oklahoma who (1) from November 1, 2022 through the date of class certification, (2) were sent one or more text messages; (3) regarding Defendant’s property, goods, and/or services; (3) before the hours of 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. Central Daylight Time;” and

“All persons in Oklahoma who, (1) were sent more than three text messages over a twenty-four-hour period (2) regarding Defendant’s property, goods, and/or services, (3) from November 1, 2022 through the date of class certification.”

Get class action lawsuit news sent to your inbox – sign up for ClassAction.org’s free weekly newsletter here.