Event organizers are being sued for refusing to issue any refunds after government orders prohibited them from taking place. E.g. Jimenez v. Do Lab, Inc., April 14, 2020 CA U.S. Dist. Ct., Cent.2:20-CV-03462 Class Action.
In Jimenez, the plaintiffs allege that the “all sales are final” contract is unenforceable as illusory because the defendant retained “complete and unfettered control to modify or terminate the agreement without assuming any obligations towards Plaintiff and the Class”.
Similarly, online event ticket exchange and resale platforms such as StubHub, Vivid Seats, have been challenged in Wisconsin for failing to refund tickets for postponed events due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plaintiffs are asking the court to prohibit StubHub from issuing coupons instead of offering full refunds. McMillan, Matthew v. Stubhub Inc. et al, April 02, 2020, WI U.S. Dist. Ct., West 3:20-CV-00319.
Sport leagues also face similar challenges as fans claim full refunds for cancelled games.
Attorneys at Finkelstein, Blankinship, Frei-Pearson & Garber, LLP have successfully recovered tens of millions of dollars on behalf of consumers. If you or someone you know has been impacted by event cancelations without receiving any refunds, please contact us to discuss your legal options.