UPDATE: AUGUST 2024
Since the date when this article was originally published, StubHub has revised its Global User Agreement to make certain changes regarding the arbitration of claims brought against StubHub. You should review the current version of the Global User Agreement (https://www.stubhub.com/legal?section=ua) before asserting any arbitration claim against StubHub. In particular, we note that the mailing address for the pre-arbitration Notice of Dispute form discussed in this article has been changed; therefore, we have removed the form as a download from our website. You will need to download the form from StubHub’s website. You can find the link to download the form in Part B, titled “Arbitration Procedures,” to Clause 22 of the Global User Agreement.
PLEASE NOTE: This law firm is not presently handling arbitration actions against StubHub.
(originally published Jan 2021)
This article is not here to tell you about how, in response to the COVID-19 virus outbreak, StubHub initially sent out a reassuring email to its customers that it would refund their ticket purchases for canceled events only to then update its policies a short time later to remove that very option.[1] You already know that. It’s been well-reported in the media[2] and is the subject of a class-action lawsuit.[3]
What you may not know, however, is that StubHub’s user agreement[4] contains a provision that lets you file a refund arbitration claim against StubHub and requires StubHub to pay all of your (and their) arbitration costs.[5] Better yet, because the arbitration proceeding is administered by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA“) and its consumer arbitration rules permit the arbitrator to award you any legal fees and costs you could have received in court (consumer-friendly California law applies per the user agreement),[6] you can hire a lawyer to file your refund arbitration claim and StubHub will likely have to pay his/her fees and costs too. And best of all, the practical effect of StubHub’s user agreement requiring it to pay all the arbitration costs (these costs alone can run several thousand dollars, which is probably a lot more than the cost of the concert tickets you’re asking to be refunded), and possibly your lawyer’s fees and costs too, is that StubHub should be strongly incentivized to pay your refund claim rather than dispute it.[7]
If you want to file a refund arbitration claim against StubHub for COVID-19 related event cancellation, you should follow the steps below.
STEP ONE – FILE A NOTICE OF DISPUTE WITH STUBHUB
Pursuant to StubHub’s user agreement,[8] you’re required to complete a Notice of Dispute form and submit it to StubHub by certified mail at the following address before you can file a refund arbitration claim:
StubHub Inc.
Attn: Litigation Department
Re: StubHub Notice of Dispute
199 Fremont Street, 4th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
A copy of the Notice of Dispute form is available through a link in the user agreement on StubHub’s website (or by searching for “StubHub notice of dispute” on Google), and a copy is appended to this article as Exhibit A, StubHub Article, Notice of Dispute
StubHub is supposed to respond to your Notice of Dispute form within 30 days after the date your form is sent (mailed) according to the user agreement.[9] But go ahead and set this down for review on your calendar because in this author’s experience, StubHub may not respond.
STEP TWO – FILE A REFUND ARBITRATION CLAIM WITH THE AAA
If no timely response is received from StubHub regarding your Notice of Dispute form, you may then initiate an arbitration proceeding against StubHub by filing a Demand for Arbitration Consumer Arbitration Rules form with the AAA. A copy of the Demand for Arbitration Consumer Arbitration Rules form is available for download from AAA’s website[10] and a copy is appended to this article as Exhibit B, StubHub Article, Consumer Demand for Arbitration
In addition to the Demand for Arbitration, Consumer Arbitration Rules form itself, you’ll also want to include the following:
- A copy of StubHub’s user agreement, which you can print off from its website (the link to the user agreement is the bottom of StubHub’s home page and you can also find it by going to: https://www.stubhub.com/legal/?section=ua);
- Don’t submit any filing fee even though the form says that you should. Per StubHub’s user agreement, and as described above, StubHub is required to pay all of the arbitration costs (including your filing fee).
- Submit a request for StubHub to pay the filing fee because this will explain to the AAA why you didn’t include the filing fee. Suggested language for your request that StubHub pay the filing fee is appended to this article as Exhibit C, StubHub Article, Request for StubHub to Pay Fees(the author recommends that you attach the demand for StubHub to pay the filing fee as the first page of your claim form).
- Copies of your ticket information, including the order number.
These documents may be submitted to the AAA via its website (www.adr.org) or by mail. No matter which option you choose, you must also send a copy to StubHub at the following address (which is different from the address where you sent the Notice of Dispute form):
StubHub, Inc.
c/o National Registered Agents, Inc.
2875 Michelle Dr., Ste. 100
Irvine, CA 92606
The AAA, upon its receipt of your refund arbitration claim, will notify you and StubHub that your claim has been received and StubHub will then be required to submit its written response (and its payment for the costs of the arbitration) within 14 days. For the reasons described above, the likely result of these quick-fire response and payment requirements is that StubHub will agree to pay your refund claim on or around the due date.
CONCLUSION
StubHub’s “FanProtect” promise boasts that “every order is 100% guaranteed … because 99% guaranteed just sounds sketchy.”[11] If you think that is a broken promise because receiving future credit for an event that may never happen “just sounds sketchy” too, file a refund arbitration claim to get your money back. That may be the best way to protect you, the fan, from StubHub.
[1] This article is written for use by U.S. residents; if you reside outside of the U.S., certain parts of the user agreement discussed in this article may be inapplicable.
[2] “StubHub said they’d refund canceled tickets, but now they’re taking that back (StubHub is here for you. Unless you want a refund).” SBNation.com. March 28, 2020 (https://www.sbnation.com/2020/3/28/21198101/stubhub-refunds-canceled-event-ticket-nhl-nba-concerts).
[3] “StubHub Hit with Class Action After Pulling ‘FanProtect’ Cash Refund Promise for Coronavirus-Related Cancellations.” ClassAction.org. April 7, 2020 (https://www.classaction.org/blog/stubhub-hit-with-class-action-after-pulling-fanprotect-cash-refund-promise-for-coronavirus-related-cancellations).
[4] The formal name of the user agreement is “StubHub Marketplace Global User Agreement,” and you can find a copy of it here: https://www.stubhub.com/legal/?section=ua
[5] If your refund demand is for more than $10,000 (which seems unlikely in most cases; if you’re buying those kind of tickets, take me with you next time), you may be required to “demonstrate that the costs of accessing arbitration will be prohibitive as compared to the costs of accessing a court for purposes of pursuing litigation on an individual basis.” If you can do that, it will be up to the arbitrator to determine how much StubHub must pay for the arbitration costs. See Paragraph 22, Section C, titled “Costs of Arbitration,” in the user agreement.
[6] See Paragraph 21, titled “Applicable Laws and Jurisdiction,” and Paragraph 22, titled “Legal Disputes,” of the user agreement.
[7] There is a provision in the Paragraph 22, Section C of the user agreement, titled “Costs of Arbitration,” which provides that “in the event the arbitrator determines the claim(s) you assert in the arbitration to be frivolous, you agree to reimburse StubHub for all fees associated with the arbitration paid by StubHub on your behalf that you otherwise would be obligated to pay under the [AAA] Rules.” But given California’s consumer-friendly laws that apply to any arbitration claim, including its ticket seller laws in Cal Bus & Prof Code Div. 8, Ch. 21, et. seq., it seems unlikely that an arbitrator would find a claim demanding a refund in the context of a COVID-19 event cancellation to be so frivolous as to award arbitration fees against the consumer.
[8] See Paragraph 22, Section B, titled “Arbitration Procedures,” regarding the requirement that you must submit a Notice of Dispute form before filing a refund arbitration claim.
[9] See Paragraph 22, Section B, titled “Arbitration Procedures.”
[10] https://www.adr.org/sites/default/files/Consumer_Demand_for_Arbitration_Form_3.pdf
[11] https://www.stubhub.com/promise/
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