Reserve California operator hit with class action over ‘junk fees’ on state park reservations

Tyler Technologies class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: Plaintiffs James Chowning and Adam Fitzgerald filed a class action lawsuit against Tyler Technologies Inc.
• Why: They claim Tyler Technologies charges “junk fees” to reserve campsites at state parks in California.
• Where: The Tyler Technologies class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.

Two consumers are suing Tyler Technologies over allegations that it charges “junk fees” to reserve campsites at state parks in California.

Plaintiffs James Chowning and Adam Fitzgerald filed the Tyler Technologies class action lawsuit on May 8 in California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.

According to the lawsuit, Tyler Technologies charges “junk fees” to Californians looking to access state parks and public lands. The company was awarded a 10-year contract by the California Department of Parks and Recreation (Cal Parks) to operate ReserveCalifornia.com, a platform for booking state park reservations, the plaintiffs say.

Despite being obligated to comply with federal and state laws, Tyler Technologies allegedly fails to include mandatory reservation processing fees in the initial price displayed to consumers, only adding them at the final checkout screen.

“Last minute, mandatory fees like those charged by Tyler Technologies are called ‘Junk Fees’ by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and this type of Junk Fee pricing strategy is commonly called ‘drip pricing’ or ‘bait and switch’ advertising,” the Tyler Technologies lawsuit says.

Tyler Technologies set to make $400M in ‘junk fee’ profits, lawsuit claims

The plaintiffs argue that this practice is illegal under California’s Honest Pricing Act, which prohibits businesses from advertising prices that don’t include all mandatory fees.

The law, which went into effect in July 2024, was intended to specifically prohibit drip pricing and bait-and-switch advertising, the plaintiffs say.

The lawsuit claims Tyler Technologies will make nearly $400 million in reservation processing fees over the life of the contract, while consumers are led to believe these fees are paid to Cal Parks.

Chowning and Fitzgerald say they were charged additional fees when making reservations through Reserve California, increasing the total cost by 18% and 11%, respectively.

The plaintiffs claim they would have avoided the fees if they had known the true nature of the charges.

The Tyler Technologies class action lawsuit seeks to represent all consumers who were charged reservation processing fees by Tyler Technologies that exceeded the initially displayed price on Reserve California.

The plaintiffs are demanding a jury trial and requesting the return of the unlawfully charged fees and an end to the company’s “deceptive” pricing practices.

In related news, tour booking company Viator is accused in a class action of violating the New York Arts and Cultural Affairs Law by not disclosing handling fees for tickets sold online.

What do you think of the allegations made in this Tyler Technologies class action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Wesley M. Griffith and John Roussas of Cutter Law P.C. and Karen Dahlberg O’Connell of Almeida Law Group LLC.

The Tyler Technologies class action lawsuit is Chowning, et al. v. Tyler Technologies Inc., Case No. 3:25-cv-04009, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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