SeaWorld Class Action Season Passholders Seek Lawsuit Certification

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SeaWorld season passholders who filed a lawsuit alleging the theme park automatically renews annual memberships without customer consent, have asked a federal court to certify the class action.

According to court documents, the deceptive auto-renewal scheme has helped SeaWorld generate at least $15 million in profits within the last five years.

Lead plaintiff Jason Herman says there’s potentially 125,000 Class Members who signed up for a one-year SeaWorld EZ Pay pass who were systematically charged for an additional annual membership after the one-year pass expired.

The SeaWorld lawsuit claims that EZ Pay pass holders must agree to a contract which allows patrons to pay for the year-long membership in 12 installments. However, Herman says that the theme park breaches its own contract by renewing annual memberships if a customer pays off the financial commitment in less than 12 months.

“The predominant issue in this case is straightforward: what does it mean when a standardized form contract to a theme park states that a one-year park pass will renew EXCEPT FOR ANY PASSES PAID IN LESS THAN 12 MONTHS? This legal issue should be resolved,” the motion for Class certification states.

The potential class action lawsuit alleges that SeaWorld is not only aware that it automatically renews EZ Pay pass memberships without the permission of its customers, but that it actually trains employees how to handle upset phone calls from individuals who call to complain.

According to the plaintiffs, SeaWorld instructs workers to first stick with the “no refunds” policy because some guests might be “OK with that if we explain it nicely.”

After that, court documents state that SeaWorld employees who decide to offer a refund to customers automatically renewed in the EZ Pay pass program make sure they inform guests that “this is an exception to the rule.”

Herman says he purchased two one-year EZ Pay passes to SeaWorld in 2013 and agreed to be charged $35.40 each month for 12 months. When he paid off the balance one-month early, his membership was automatically renewed for the following year.

The plaintiff claims that he noticed several months later and called to explain the “improper charges” being made to his credit card. Herman alleges that a SeaWorld representative informed him that the EZ Pay Contract was automatically renewed and that it was policy not to issue any refunds for such charges.

If approved, the SeaWorld class action lawsuit will be open to all U.S. Class Members who signed up for an EZ Pay one-year pass to any of SeaWorld’s theme parks and paid it off in less than 12-months but were then charged additional amounts after the membership was paid for.

The plaintiffs are represented by Paul R. Fowkes and Ryan C. Hasanbasic of the Disparti Law Group PA.

The SeaWorld Auto-Renewal Class Action Lawsuit is Herman v. SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment Inc., Case No. 8:14-cv-03028, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

UPDATE: On Apr. 11, 2016, SeaWorld defended its experts who testified that the proposed Class is too complicated to ascertain.

UPDATE 2: On May 3, 2016, SeaWorld has asked the court to compel the plaintiffsto hand over information about other, similar payment plans they subscribe to with other businesses.

UPDATE 3: On July 13, 2016, a Florida federal judge denied SeaWorld’s motion to compel production of contractual documents it says are necessary to their defense in a consumer class action lawsuit over the theme park’s EZpay annual passes, calling it a “fishing expedition.”

UPDATE 4: On Sept. 6, 2016, SeaWorld filed a motion for partial summary judgment asking a Florida federal judge to dismiss the breach of contract claim from a class action lawsuit that takes issue with its EZPay annual pass auto-renewal policies.

UPDATE 5: On March 10, 2017, a federal judge in Florida granted Class certification in a consumer lawsuit challenging SeaWorld’s EZ Pay automatic renewal terms.

UPDATE 6: On June 29, 2018, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment Inc. has agreed t

o pay $11.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit over allegations it automatically renewed year-long passes without consumers’ consent.

UPDATE 7: March 2019, the SeaWorld EZ pay class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim. 

UPDATE 8: On Aug. 20, 2019, Top Class Actions viewers started getting checks from the SeaWorld EZ Pay class action settlement worth as much as $97.47. Congratulations to everyone who filed a claim and got PAID!