NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Eleven PSL holders are suing the Titans, alleging that by labeling them as “ticket resellers” the team violated the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act and breached the ticket contract, entitling them to punitive and compensatory damages in amounts that are not spelled out.
“[T]he Titans represented that PSLs had certain characteristics that they did not have,” the suit filed in the chancery court of Tennessee for the 20th judicial district at Nashville reads. “Namely, the right to purchase season tickets at a fair and reasonable rate comparable to similarly situated seats, that the PSL owners had the right to transfer their PSLs and the rights contained within their PSL agreements, and that the PSL owners would be treated fairly and reasonably by the Titans and similarly to other PSL owners.”
The Titans said they cannot comment on active litigation. [Unlocked]
Indications have been for a while that the franchise is working to limit the number of fans of opposing teams in Nissan Stadium for Titans’ games. That has become a big issue in a destination city where die-hards are often eager to make a weekend trip to see their team play on the road, something that spoils a potential home-field advantage.
Tennessee Tickets, the title sponsor of PaulKuharsky.com, is not involved in this suit.
Timothy L. Warnock of Riley Warnock and Jacobson, PLC, one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, did not return a message.
The suit alleges that while the team “routinely encourage[s] season ticket holders to resell tickets through emails and literature included with their season tickets” the Titans have also “actively changed the way they interact with PSL owners who resell their tickets.”
“These efforts have become more and more egregious, such that, now, the Titans admittedly actively discriminate against individuals they deem ‘ticket resellers’ and hope that, by making sales to these individuals more and more onerous, those PSL owners will simply abandon the PSLs," the suit says. "In short, in a classic ‘bait and switch,’ the Titans appear to be systematically attempting to destroy the value of any PSLs owned by those whom the Titans deem ‘ticket resellers.’”
Five of the plaintiffs reside in Tennessee with the others from other states including Texas, Florida and Illinois.
The suit refers to a successful class-action settlement against the St. Louis Rams which seems to have no relevance, as that was related to the team’s departure to Los Angeles before the terms of the agreements ended.
Among the other complaints:
- A lack of clarity about what defines a "ticket reseller."
- A "grossly inflated" price for season tickets for "ticket resellers," as compared to what others pay in the same section or even the same row.
- Only a two-week time window to purchase season tickets when other PSL holders were provided a much longer window.
- No allowance for some to use a payment plan for some deemed to be "ticket resellers."
- Removed PSL-holder perks including "concession gift cards, special events, gifts, and, in general, email communications from the team.”
- The loss of seat relocation based on tenure.
My sense is that the franchise has sought to identify ticket buyers who have not attended a game themselves for multiple years.
Whether those purchasers are entitled to all the benefits of owning PSLs and buying the connected tickets regardless of what they do with them is part of what could be determined here.
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