Over 100,000 eligible for payout in huge Disneyland class-action case

Over 100,000 Disneyland passholders are eligible for a cash payment from Disney after the company agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit over alleged false advertising.On Thursday, a preliminary agreement was reached between Disney and plaintiff Jenale Nielsen, a Bay Area woman who filed on behalf of all former Dream Key holders. Magic Key, which is Disneyland’s annual pass program, allows individuals to purchase year-long admission with differing blockout dates depending on how much the pass costs.Nielsen said she purchased the highest-tier Dream Key for $1,399 in part because Disneyland's advertising claimed it had "no blockout dates." Two other tiers, Enchant and Believe, were advertised with the line "blockout dates apply." Upon trying to make park reservations, however, Nielsen said she was "disappointed to learn that Disney had already blocked out many days, including all weekend days in the month of November 2021."When Nielsen checked to see if the park was at capacity, she alleged Disneyland was still selling single-day tickets for all days in November 2021. "It was misleading and fraudulent for Disney to sell passes that were advertised as having no blockout dates and not inform Ms. Nielsen and other consumers that Disney was reserving the right to make park reservations 'unavailable' whenever it wanted and even when park reservations are and were actually available," the complaint said.As a result of the preliminary approval of the class-action settlement, the terms of the agreement are outlined in Thursday's filing. "All persons who purchased a Dream Key" are eligible for compensation, estimated to be about 103,000 people. (This number is an interesting one for Disney fans, giving a rare insight into how many annual passes Disneyland sells – the Dream Key is the most expensive pass available, suggesting many hundreds of thousands more passes were sold at the cheaper tiers.)As part of the settlement, there will be a website set up for eligible individuals to read the terms of the agreement. Disney will be paying $9.5 million – far more than the $5 million initially sought by Nielsen – to be split evenly among former Dream Key passholders. That amounts to approximately $67 per person; any additional cash remaining after the first round of payouts may be split again among eligible individuals. They do not need to file a claim form to be part of the settlement, as they will be contacted via email if they are eligible. Nielsen is also seeking to secure attorneys' fees from Disney, which could be as much as $2.375 million, and an additional $5,000 for herself personally as the person who brought the class-action suit on behalf of all Dream Key holders.Both parties are due back in court on Oct. 16 to get approval for the settlement.