COLUMBUS, Ohio — Cedar Point season pass holders are not entitled to money back for the two months the park was shut down in the summer of 2020 due to the government-mandated shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
Justices unanimously ruled that Cedar Fair, the amusement park’s parent company, was not in breach of contract, nor was it unjustly enriched, for selling season passes valid from May 2020 to October 2020, in spite of the park being closed for two months, because the season pass terms and conditions state the park “could change its dates of operation without advance notice and close rides and attractions ‘for weather or other conditions,’” the court’s decision states. Justices agreed that a government-mandated shutdown in May and June was included in the ”other conditions” in the pass’s terms.
The case was originally brought to the Erie County Court of Common Pleas on behalf of a woman who bought a 2020 season pass and other individuals who purchased a 2020 season pass.
The case was dismissed by the Erie County court, with the court noting that the season pass terms included: “All operating dates and hours are subject to change without notice. All rides and SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 4 attractions are subject to closings and cancellations for weather or other conditions. * * * A Gold Pass is the property of Cedar Fair L.P. and is non-transferable, nonrefundable, non-exchangeable, and not valid for cash.”
The court also noted that the season pass did not include a specific opening day date or specific dates of operation, with the terms and conditions permitting Cedar Fair to modify the operating dates for Cedar Point. Because the park opened for the season on July 9, 2020, the woman had received the benefit of her bargain, the complaint was dismissed with prejudice.
The season pass holder appealed to the Sixth District Court, which reversed the decision, agreeing with her that Cedar Fair had entered into a contract with her when it sold her the pass. The court found that the parties were subject to the terms and conditions of the pass, and Cedar Fair could “not simply revoke the season pass at will and without compensating the season-pass holder.”
The appeals court noted that because the word “season” holds special meaning in the context of an amusement park in Northeast Ohio, “where the weather is not conducive to its year-round operation,” and because of the ambiguity of the word “season,” it was obligated to accept the season pass holder’s allegation that Cedar Point’s “season” runs from May to October.
Cedar Fair appealed the Sixth District Court’s ruling, and the justice unanimously sided with the amusement park company, accepting that the revocable license granting its holder access to the property does not obligate the grantor to open its business in violation of government shutdown orders. The decision also states that the term “season” is not ambiguous, and that, “Where there is a written agreement between the parties, a quasi-contractual claim based upon the same written agreement cannot exist.”
The opinion concludes that the season pass holder’s “breach-of-contract action, therefore, fails as a matter of law, and she cannot sue for unjust enrichment when Cedar Fair abided by the terms of its agreement with her.”
View the Ohio Supreme Court's full decision here.
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