Hopper’s ‘Price Freeze’ Tool Comes With a Hidden Catch, Class Action Claims

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A proposed class action alleges Hopper has marketed its fee-based “price freeze” tool without adequately informing consumers that the company may not cover the entire difference when the price of a trip increases beyond the amount at which it was “frozen.” 

The 19-page suit relays that the travel-booking website touts its “price freeze” option as a way for consumers to lock in a ticket price for a certain length of time in exchange for a fee, which Hopper calls a deposit. According to the case, however, consumers are unaware that Hopper will cover them for up to only $100 in savings per traveler—what Hopper calls a “service cap”—should their locked-in price increase after it has been frozen. 

The only way for a traveler to find out about the service cap, the lawsuit says, is by clicking the circled “i” next to the “Buy now, pay later” option, or “More Information” under the price freeze description. 

“Nowhere throughout the flight selection process are travelers put on notice of the limitations of the Price Freeze,” the complaint says, noting that the “opaque and non-disclosed limitations” of the price freeze tool have been the subject of consumer complaints found on the TripAdvisor and Better Business Bureau websites. 

Fine print on Hopper’s website explains that the “service cap” is the maximum amount that the company will pay in connection with a price freeze, the suit says. According to the case, the service cap is only mentioned to customers in a confirmation email, after they’ve already purchased a price freeze. 

The filing argues that the value of the tickets and price freeze service purchased by consumers in certain states were materially less than represented by Hopper. 

The lawsuit says that as a result of Hopper’s “false and misleading representations,” the cost of a price freeze averages $28 for 12 hours of limited protection, which is higher than the cost of similar travel protection services and the price Hopper could otherwise charge had the service been truthfully advertised. 

The lawsuit looks to represent all persons in Illinois, Iowa, Arkansas, Wyoming, North Dakota, Delaware, Indiana, Georgia, New Mexico, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia, Maine, Nebraska, Alaska, Idaho, West Virginia and Utah who bought tickets and/or price freeze protection from Hopper during the applicable statute of limitations periods. 

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