Chipotle fees class action overview:ย
- Who: Chipotle customers Hudson Gill and Clair Awad are suing the fast food chain.
- Why: Gill and Awad allege the fast-casual restaurant charges exorbitant service fees to its online customers while disguising them as taxes.
- Where: The Chipotle fees class action lawsuit was filed in a California federal court.
Chipotle lies to its online customers when they place delivery orders, disguising โeye-poppingโ service fees as sales tax, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
Plaintiffs Hudson Gill and Clair Awad filed the class action complaint against Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. on July 31 in a California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.ย
The plaintiffs claim that whenever consumers go to Chipotleโs website or app and place a delivery order, they are taken to a checkout page that discloses a delivery fee, tax, and total. However, included in the โtaxโ is an undisclosed service fee, the lawsuit states.
โIn other words, Chipotle is hiding its hefty service fees inside of a โtaxโ burrito,โ the lawsuit says. โThis is textbook fraud.โ
Customers tricked into paying faux taxes, Chipotle class action claims
The lawsuit shows an example from the Chipotle website, where a customerโs order states the โtaxโ on a particular order is โ$10.97.โ However, on closer inspection through a drop-down menu, the plaintiffs say Chipotle admits the โTaxโ itselfย is only $3.43.ย
This means the โserviceโ fee represents a โwhoppingโ 20% of the subtotal, the lawsuit says.ย
The plaintiffs claim that law-abiding consumers pay the misleading tax charge because they believe they have to.ย
โAs such, many consumers will simply grumble and pay, without ever even clicking the drop-down button for the taxes that hides details about the service fee,โ the lawsuit says.ย
โBy hiding its service fees under the cloak of taxes, Chipotle can unjustly enrich itself by falsely making people believe they are paying taxes for the public good. They are not.โ
Chipotle takes advantage of consumers, lawsuit alleges
Chipotleโs allegedly false and intentionally misleading advertising is โparticularly deceptiveโ as the consumers at purchase are likely โhungry, their blood sugar is low, and their concentration levels are waning.โย
As a result, they are less likely to notice Chipotleโs bait-and switch tactics, the lawsuit alleges.ย
As a result, the plaintiffs seek to represent all United States residents who paid Chipotle a โService Feeโ while ordering food for delivery through Chipotleโs website or app. They are suing for violations of Californiaโs Unfair Competition Law, Californiaโs False Advertising Law, New Yorkโs General Business Law, Fraud and Unjust Enrichment.ย
Meanwhile, another class action filed against Chipotle in February claims the companyโs policy of denying refunds for orders paid for with gift cards is a violation of several deceptive trade laws.
What do you think of the claims in this Chipotle fees class action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments.ย
The plaintiff is represented by L. Timothy Fisher, Stefan Bogdanovich andย Philip L. Fraietta of Bursor & Fisher P.A.ย
The Chipotle fees class action lawsuit is Hudson Gill et al., v. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., Case No. 8:24-cv-01672 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Donโt Miss Out!
Check out our list of Class Action Lawsuits and Class Action Settlements you may qualify to join!
Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:
108 thoughts onChipotle class action claims restaurant misrepresents service fees as tax
Add me.
Please add me
Add me.
Add me.
Add me
Add me
Please add my name/email, a customer for years. โน๏ธ
PLEASE ADD ME FOR IโVE BEEN EATING CHIPOTLE FOR SEVERAL YEARS AND MY FAMILY AS WELL WEโD GO THERE AT LEAST TWICE A WEEK AT SEVERAL LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT ILLINOIS AND EVEN THOUGH THEIR FOOD ITEMS ARE SHORTER IN SIZE MY NIECES AND COUSINS STILL GO AND GET OUR FOOD
please add me
YES, include me!! Two kids in college and they have placed 100โs of orders in the past 6 years.
Please add me as I order from here all the time! Both in person and delivery thru the app