Photo credit: Ajay Suresh / CC by 2.0
A Taylor Swift fan is leading a class-action lawsuit against StubHub over its “FanProtect Guarantee,” which the company allegedly refused to honor.
A disgruntled Taylor Swift fan is the lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit filed against StubHub over allegations that the company refuses to honor its “FanProtect Guarantee,” leaving fans with demonstrably “inferior” seats after spending thousands of dollars for premium seats.
Alexis Christensen says she spent $14,000 on tickets to Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, which were suddenly canceled the day of the concert. As a replacement, she says she was offered “clearly inferior” seats offering a “steeply angled side view of the stage” as a replacement.
StubHub’s “FanProtect Guarantee” promises buyers that the tickets they purchase on the platform are valid. If they prove otherwise, the company promises to “find you comparable or better tickets to the event” or offer you a refund or credit. However, the fine print is more nuanced; “comparable or superior” is determined in StubHub’s “sole discretion” based on “cost, quality, availability and other factors.”
Although StubHub cited its “FanProtect Guarantee” as a reason why viewers should do business with the company, StubHub reportedly refused to honor this policy due to the easy opt-outs present in its fine print. According to the lawsuit, this left fans with substandard seats at exorbitant prices previously paid for top-tier arrangements.
“Less than forty minutes before the start of the unique concert, and with no other option or remedy offered by the defendant, Ms. Christensen was forced to use the substandard tickets provided by StubHub,” the plaintiff’s lawyers write. “StubHub exploits consumers’ lack of alternatives and coerces them into using tickets that are significantly less valuable than the ones they purchased.”
According to Christensen’s lawyers, she is far from the only fan to be misled by StubHub’s policies. The lawsuit claims the company uses it to convince consumers to use the platform, but “regularly and knowingly provides substandard tickets” or “refuses to offer refunds.”
“We are aware of and take seriously all customer concerns regarding our FanProtect Guarantee,” a StubHub spokesperson said in a statement to Billboard last month. “While we cannot comment on pending litigation, our commitment is to reach a fair resolution in every valid case, guided by transparency and customer trust.”
The class action lawsuit seeks to represent “hundreds of thousands, if not millions” of people who it says have faced similar treatment at the hands of StubHub. However, the suit was only filed in Washington state, where Christensen resides, which could hamper plans to represent a broader class in the case.
Additionally, StubHub’s Terms of Service require individual arbitration, which does not allow consolidation of similar cases. It remains to be seen whether Christensen’s case will gain traction against the ticket reseller.
