Class Action Claims Six Flags ‘Bilked’ Customers Out of Monthly Fees While Parks Were Closed Due to Coronavirus [UPDATE]
Last Updated on November 5, 2021
Strassburger v. Six Flags Theme Parks Inc. et al.
Filed: October 8, 2020 ◆§ 2020CH06208
A class action alleges Six Flags breached its contracts with membership and season pass holders by charging monthly fees while its theme parks were closed amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. Six Flags Theme Parks Inc. Great America LLC Six Flags Great America
Illinois
Case Updates
November 5, 2021 – Six Flags Monthly Fees Lawsuit: Settlement Website Is Live
The official settlement website for the proposed class action detailed on this page is live and can be found here:
https://www.membershipfeessettlement.com/
Eligible monthly Six Flags members can file a claim for compensation on this page by inputting the class member ID included in their settlement notice and following the prompts. The deadline by which to file a claim is November 24, 2021.
Through the settlement, eligible monthly Six Flags members can receive one or more months of free membership, upgraded membership status, a guest pass, membership rewards points, a gift card for park use and/or other benefits.
Head over to this page to contact the settlement administrator with any questions you may have. Six Flags denies engaging in any wrongdoing or unlawful conduct and the court has not decided in favor of either party.
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September 30, 2021 – Six Flags Settles Class Action with Monthly Members
Six Flags has agreed to settle the proposed class action detailed on this page. Under the deal, monthly members covered by the case can receive free visits to certain theme parks, among other benefits.
According to Cook County Record reporter Jonathan Bilyk, Six Flags has agreed to give current and former monthly members free admission to Six Flags Great America and access to their membership benefits and other perks for “varying lengths of time.” The value of Six Flags members' benefits are to be based on whether members kept their memberships active, paused their memberships or canceled their plans between March 13, 2020 and September 10, 2021, the report says.
The Record report says that those with active and paused memberships would receive a free month of membership for every month they were charged while the parks were closed – or the equivalent amount in a Six Flags gift card – as well as higher-tier upgraded membership status that includes access to more benefits and perks. Those who canceled their memberships are set to receive a complimentary admission ticket for each six months their accounts were charged while the parks were closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Six Flags monthly members who’ve received refunds are ineligible to participate in the settlement.
The deal between Six Flags and monthly members was granted preliminary approval by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Sophia Hall on September 10. A final approval hearing is slated for December 15.
Six Flags faces a proposed class action lawsuit over what an Illinois consumer alleges is the company’s “unconscionable decision” to continue charging membership and season pass holders monthly fees while its theme parks nationwide were closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The lawsuit, filed October 8 in Cook County, Illinois Circuit Court, claims Six Flags Theme Parks Inc., Six Flags Entertainment Corporation and Six Flags America LLC (which operates as Six Flags Great America), have breached their contracts with monthly and season pass holders in that the companies charged consumers for access to theme parks that were shuttered through at least mid-May, while others under the entities’ umbrella remain closed amid the COVID-19 crisis.
“Defendants are able to unilaterally charge their customers monthly fees without their consent, as they are in possession of their customers’ debit and credit card information,” the complaint says. “Thus, Defendants have made the deliberate decision to bilk their customers on a monthly basis as the country is effectively shut down.”
According to the lawsuit, Six Flags announced on March 13 that each of its parks, including Gurnee, Illinois’ Six Flags Great America and Cherry Valley, Illinois’ Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Rockford, would be closed through the end of March due to the coronavirus pandemic. At the end of March, Six Flags announced it had extended the parks’ closure through mid-May or as soon as possible thereafter, the suit says. The plaintiff alleges Six Flags continued charging and has continued to charge monthly membership fees at full price even though customers were, and some still are, denied access to all parks nationwide.
Per the suit, Six Flags has also refused to reimburse customers for monthly payments made while parks were closed. The case alleges violations of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
The plaintiff asserts he would not have paid for a month-to-month Six Flags membership, or would not have paid for such on the same terms, had he known he would not have access to the company’s theme parks.
The lawsuit, which echoes cases filed against Six Flags in April and June over its handling of membership fees amid the pandemic, looks to represent all individuals in the United States who were charged fees for memberships while Six Flags parks were closed.
ClassAction.org’s coverage of COVID-19 litigation can be found here and over on our Newswire.
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