On Monday, a California judge denied an attempt by StubHub Inc. and its parent company eBay Inc. to escape a class action lawsuit accusing them of hiding ticket fees from buyers until checkout.
Superior Court Judge Harold Kahn noted that there were sufficient factual questions to allow plaintiff Susan Wang to get โpast the pleading hurdleโ but that it may be insufficient to โget her past any other hurdle.โ
Wang claims in the StubHub class action lawsuit that the defendants advertise tickets to live shows at artificially low ticket prices. She says they hide the ticket fees until after the would-be buyer logs in to the website and enters payment information.
StubHub and eBay argue that Wangโs allegations do not amount to the type of โbait and switchโ that a California appellate court found unlawful in the case of Veera v. Banana Republic. In that case, the court reportedly found that customers could allege they were lured into a store by a sign advertising sale prices and were coerced into paying the full retail price for merchandise after being told that some items were not covered by the sale.
Attorneys for the defendants argued that, unlike the Veera v. Banana Republic case, Wang purchased tickets on the internet and was never promised a bargain. StubHub claims that it did not defraud anyone because it did not misrepresent the price, such as by suggesting the price would be discounted by 40 percent as in the Veera case.
Further, all customers are notified in the terms and conditions that StubHub may impose fees, the company argues.
Judge Kahn found that Wangโs arguments were likely to meet the legal framework of a bait and switch claim and could successfully meet the pleading standard but that her arguments might not be strong enough to get pass the pleading stage.
However, the judge told StubHub that it could have given customers a little more information about the potential fees it charges, such as a flat rate fee or a percentage of the ticket price.
Judge Kahn rejected StubHubโs attempt to force Wang into arbitration, finding that it didnโt make sense to handle her claim individually because her request for injunctive relief would make it such that, if she prevailed, she would be the only customer to see the added ticket fees up front.
Wang filed the StubHub class action lawsuit in February, claiming the company offers tickets to live concerts, sporting events and other events at one price but does not reveal the fees that are associated with the ticket purchase until the customer has entered the billing information.
The StubHub class action lawsuit asserts claims for violations of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, Unfair Competition Law and False Advertising Law.
Wang is represented by Annick Persinger of Tycko & Zavareei LLP.
The StubHub Hidden Ticket Fee Class Action Lawsuit is Susan Wang v. StubHub Inc., et al., Case No. CGC18564120, in the California Superior Court for the City and County of San Francisco.
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8 thoughts onStubHub Hidden Ticket Fee Class Action Lawsuit Stays Alive
Has this been resolved?
I bought tickets from stubhub and took my 12 year old son to game and found my tickets were not good as owner decided to attend the Warrior game. Since I drove two hours to the game they got me seats next to the moon. When I paid about 800 for great seats. Still waiting for my refund. I could have bought seats for 75 on stubhub the day same day I paid 800 for row 13 behind the Warriors bench.
add me
Theyโre an awful company. I bought tickets to a leafs game on March 10th for $640. 3 days before the game on April 14th they cancelled the order and refunded the money. Stated the seller put the tickets for sale by mistake. Said my money was refunded and nothing could be done to help me. In reality prices had spiked and the tickets were worth more than double what I paid. I looked on their site later that night and bought the same tickets for $1560. Called them and they too bad. They collected %40 more from the seller and the seller made %100 more. Stubhub made out the seller made out and I got the shaft
I would like to be a part of this class action lawsuit, This company is very dishonest. It is impossible to reach them via telephone and their chat repโs are very rude. I was charged 40% for the cost of the tickets I posted and couldnโt remove from their website.
I would like to be part of this class action suit. Please contact me so I can join
i agree with the above sfate ment. I paid 1200 for a twenty one pilots show. the tickrts say under 100. we paid 1200 for 2 tickets- i would have bought more for my kids but not after that.
Strange that this lawsuit doesnโt include the fact that StubHub inflates prices of tickets by 400%. I just bought Bruce Springsteen tickets for NYC from them for โ$2500โ each plus the last minute $650 service fee? and when I got the tickets (ticketmaster purchased) the face value was $800 USD. How did this go up to over $3000 when right on the ticket it says itโs unlawful to resell for higher than face value. This illegal online scalping MUST stop!!