11th Circuit Denies Motion to Compel Arbitration of Telephone Consumer Protection Act Claim

In Gamble v. New England Auto Finance, Inc. the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a loan agreement’s arbitration clause did not cover the plaintiff’s Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) claim. Plaintiff Gamble and New England Auto Finance, Inc. (“NEAF”) formed the auto loan agreement which requires arbitration of disputes that “arise[] from or relate[] to this Agreement or the Motor Vehicle securing this Agreement.” After the loan was paid off, NEAF began sending Gamble text messages and persisted even after Gamble requested NEAF stop, so Gamble brought a TCPA claim.

The Court refused to grant NEAF’s motion to compel arbitration because “Gamble’s TCPA claim ...arises not from the Loan Agreement or any breach of it, but from post-agreement conduct that allegedly violates a separate, distinct federal law.” The Eleventh Circuit pointed out that Gamble could bring a TCPA claim even if no agreement at all existed between Gamble and NEAF. Since Gamble paid off the loan and the texts did not arise from or relate to anything contained in the loan agreement the scope of the arbitration provision did not include Gamble’s claim.