Frequently Asked Questions





Why did I get a mailed or emailed Notice?

If you received a shorter mailed or emailed Notice of the Settlement of this litigation, it is because Expedia's records showed that you booked one or more hotel reservations through Expedia during the Class period, and paid a "Tax Recovery Charge" and a "Service Fee" in connection with that purchase. The Notice documents explained that there was a Settlement of a class action lawsuit that may affect you. Judge Monica J. Benton of the Superior Court of Washington in and for King County is overseeing this class action and has approved the Settlement. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

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What is this case about?

In 2005, consumers who booked hotel stays through Expedia filed a nationwide class action against Expedia alleging breach of contract and violations of the Washington Consumer Protection Act ("CPA") arising from Expedia's assessment of bundled "Tax Recovery Charges" and "Service Fees." Expedia collects these charges each time a consumer books a hotel reservation, regardless of whether the reservation is booked through Expedia's website or through its telephone operators.

Plaintiffs alleged that, from February 18, 2003 through December 11, 2006, Expedia breached its contractual obligations by charging excessive amounts in its bundled "Tax Recovery Charge" and "Service Fees" charge that it collects every time a consumer books a hotel reservation through Expedia. This is known as the "breach of contract claim," and it applies to every consumer who booked a hotel stay through Expedia and paid a "Tax Recovery Charge" and a "Service Fee" during the period from February 18, 2003 through December 11, 2006.

Plaintiffs also alleged that, from January 10, 2001 to June 11, 2008, Expedia violated the Washington CPA by deceptively bundling its "Tax Recovery Charges" and "Service Fees" in a single charge in order to make it impossible for consumers to learn the true nature and amount of either the "fees" or "taxes" they are charged. This is known as the "CPA claim." Unlike the breach of contract claim, the CPA claim applies only to consumers who booked a hotel stay that was not part of a "package" including airfare and/or a car rental, and paid a bundled "Tax Recovery Charge" and "Service Fee." In other words, the CPA claim applies only to "standalone" purchasers of hotel reservations, and it applies to "standalone" hotel reservations booked between January 10, 2001 through June 11, 2008, excluding the period from December 20, 2002 to December 27, 2002.

On May 7, 2008, Judge Benton issued an order granting Plaintiffs' motion for certification of a nationwide class against Expedia. The Court's class certification order is available at www.hbsslaw.com. Subsequently, extensive discovery occurred in which the Parties produced and reviewed thousands of documents and voluminous data, and conducted numerous fact and expert witness depositions.

In April 2009, both Parties filed motions for summary judgment asking the Court to rule in their favor without the need for a trial based on all the facts revealed through discovery.

On May 28, 2009, Judge Benton issued her Summary Judgment Order. In that Order, Judge Benton (i) granted Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the breach of contract claim, and awarded $184 million in damages to the Class, but denied Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the CPA claim; and (ii) denied Expedia's motion for summary judgment on the CPA and the breach of contract claims. Under the Order, then, the contract claim was resolved but the CPA claim was to go to trial. The Court's Summary Judgment Order is available at www.hbsslaw.com.

Expedia believes that the Court's Summary Judgment Order was incorrect, and filed a motion for discretionary review with the Court of Appeals urging that the Summary Judgment Order be reversed. The hearing on Expedia's motion for discretionary review has been postponed pending consideration of the Settlement.

Expedia denies Plaintiffs' allegations, and, in the absence of this Settlement, would continue to vigorously defend itself in this litigation, including on appeal. Expedia denies that it did anything wrong and asserts that its practices about which Plaintiffs complain are reasonably required to maintain and preserve Expedia's business of facilitating hotel reservations for the benefit of consumers. Expedia also asserts that consumers are not entitled to recover damages where they paid only the amounts that Expedia disclosed to them before they finalized their booking of a hotel stay through Expedia with full knowledge of the amounts they would pay to do so.

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Who is a member of the Class?

You may be a Member of the nationwide Class and entitled to Settlement Benefits if:

  • You made a "standalone" hotel reservation through Expedia between January 10, 2001 and June 11, 2008 and paid a bundled "Tax Recovery Charge" and "Service Fee" in connection with that booking and/or you made any hotel reservation (either "standalone," or as part of a "package" including airfare and/or car rental) through Expedia between February 18, 2003 and December 11, 2006 and paid a "Tax Recovery Charge" and "Service Fee" charge in connection with that booking.

You are NOT a Member of the nationwide Class and NOT entitled to Settlement Benefits if:

  • The only hotel booking you made through Expedia was a "standalone" booking between December 20, 2002 and December 27, 2002, as that period is excluded from the Class Period in this case; or
  • You made only "package" bookings, and all of them were placed prior to February 18, 2003 or after December 11, 2006; or
  • You were not a resident of the United States when you placed a hotel reservation through Expedia; or
  • You timely submitted an "Opt-Out" Form in response to notice of the Court's class certification order in the fall of 2008; or
  • You are an employee or agent of Expedia, or you are a state or other governmental entity, and/or you were not assessed a "Tax Recovery Charge" and "Service Fee" charge in connection with your booking of any hotel reservations through Expedia.

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What benefits are available under the Settlement?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The Court granted final approval of the Settlement on December 1, 2009. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

Please remember to notify the Claims Administrator, in writing, of all changes to your email and/or mailing address. Address changes cannot be made by telephone.

Depending on the outcome of the appeals, Settlement Benefits in the amount of $123.4 million may be distributed in the form of cash payments and Expedia Settlement Credit. Expedia Settlement Credit will be useable for the purchase of hotel reservations for "Expedia Special Rate" or "ESR" hotels and for "package" reservations that include a hotel reservation. Expedia Settlement Credit will be good for either one year from the date of issuance, or until you use it up, whichever comes first. Based on the Court approved Settlement, the $123.4 million in Settlement Benefits will be divided amongst three Subgroups as follows:

Subgroup One: For Class Members who made at least one Standalone Reservation during the period from January 10, 2001 through February 17, 2003 (excluding those placed during the period from December 20, 2002 to December 27, 2002), $10.1 million in Settlement Benefits will be provided;
Subgroup Two: For Class Members who made at least one Standalone Reservation or one Package Reservation during the period from February 18, 2003 through December 11, 2006, $75.3 million in Settlement Benefits will be provided;
Subgroup Three: For Class Members who made at least one Standalone Reservation during the period from December 12, 2006 through June 11, 2008, $38 million in Settlement Benefits will be provided.

You may be a member of one, two, or all three Subgroups.

At your election, using the Expedia Cash Election Form, you could have chosen to receive a cash payment equal to about 30% of the amount of Service Fees you paid for covered reservations. Alternatively, you may receive Expedia Settlement Credit equal to about 65% of the amount of Service Fees you paid for each reservation. (Note: The above percentages are approximate, and may be adjusted upwards or downwards depending upon the total amount of the cash payment elected by Class Members within each Subgroup. It is certain, however, that your available Expedia Settlement Credit will be 2.17 times higher than your available cash payment.)

If you made no election, you will automatically receive Expedia Settlement Credit. If you preferred Expedia Settlement Credit to a cash payment, you were encouraged to use the Expedia Settlement Credit Verification Form to ensure that you receive all the Expedia Settlement Credit to which you are entitled, even if you have used multiple email addresses and had multiple Expedia accounts during the Class Period.

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Since the appeal process can be lengthy, how will I receive Settlement benefits if my address or email address changes?

If your mailing address and/or email address changes, you must notify the Claims Administrator in writing and provide your most current information. Please do not call the Claims Administrator with any address changes.

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Did I need to do anything in order to obtain Settlement benefits?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The Court granted final approval of the Settlement on December 1, 2009. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

Please remember to notify the Claims Administrator, in writing, of all changes to your email and/or mailing address. Address changes cannot be made by telephone.

The answer depends upon whether you prefer (1) a cash payment or (2) Expedia Settlement Credit.

  1. Cash Payments


    2. In order to obtain a cash payment under the Settlement, you needed to fill out the Expedia Cash Election Form no later than December 31, 2009.

  2. Expedia Settlement Credit

    If you received a shorter Notice of the Settlement by email delivery to your correct address, your current email address is maintained correctly in Expedia's database, and you will automatically receive Expedia Settlement Credit. If you received a shorter Notice by regular mail, or if you did not receive an email Notice but believe that you should have, or if your address changed, you could have updated your current email address using the Expedia Settlement Credit Verification Form.

    Even if you preferred Expedia Settlement Credit, you could have updated your information by answering a few simple questions. If you did so, this will ensure that you get all of the Expedia Settlement Credit to which you are entitled under the Settlement, including Expedia Settlement Credit for reservations you may have made using an email address that is no longer valid.

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How can I use my Expedia Settlement Credit?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The Court granted final approval of the Settlement on December 1, 2009. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

Depending on the outcome of the appeals, if you did not make a cash election you will receive an email advising you of the amount of your Expedia Settlement Credit; the email will also tell you how to use the Expedia Settlement Credit and will inform you of the expiration date of the Expedia Settlement Credit (which will be one year after the date of the email advising you of the amount of the Expedia Settlement Credit). Your Expedia Settlement Credit can be used for hotel reservations for "Expedia Special Rate" or "ESR" hotels, which constitute the majority of hotel reservations offered by Expedia. You may also use Expedia Settlement Credit for "package" reservations that include a hotel reservation. When you use your Expedia Settlement Credit, any remainder of the Expedia Settlement Credit will be available for your use until the Expedia Settlement Credit expires. When you use Expedia Settlement Credit, you will pay the same prices as customers who do not have Expedia Settlement Credit or who choose to pay in regular currency.

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What are the reasons for Settlement?

Plaintiffs' Counsel believe that this Settlement is fair and reasonable to the Members of the Class. They have reached this conclusion for several reasons. First, Class Members will receive a significant recovery equaling a very high percentage of the maximum damages they could have obtained after success on the remaining claims at trial and on appeal. Second, the Settlement will allow all those Class Members who choose to do so to receive cash payments. Third, the Settlement will allow Class Members to receive those benefits now, rather than after years of additional litigation of uncertain result. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

Expedia, while continuing to deny all allegations of wrongdoing and disclaiming any liability with respect to any and all claims, considers it desirable to resolve this litigation consistent with the terms of the Settlement, in order to avoid further expense, inconvenience, and interference with its ongoing business operations, and to dispose of burdensome litigation, and therefore has determined that settlement of this litigation under the terms of the Settlement is in its best interest.

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Who represents the Class?

  1. Plaintiffs' Counsel

    The Court appointed the following law firm as Lead Class Counsel ("Plaintiffs' Counsel"):

    Steve W. Berman
    Andrew M. Volk
    HAGENS BERMAN SOBOL SHAPIRO LLP
    1301 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2900
    Seattle, WA 98101


  2. Named Plaintiffs

    The following individuals are the Named Plaintiffs and Class representatives:

    Michelle Huggins
    Jose Alba

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How will the lawyers and the named plaintiffs be paid?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The Court granted final approval of the Settlement on December 1, 2009. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

On or before November 20, 2009, Plaintiffs' Counsel filed a motion for an award of attorneys' fees and expenses for Plaintiffs' Counsel. The motion was considered and approved by the Court at the Final Approval hearing. The attorneys' fees and expenses award is $10 million, and will be paid by Expedia in addition to the Settlement Benefits discussed above.

The Named Plaintiffs will share in the allocation of Settlement Benefits on the same basis as all other Class Members, except that, in addition, the Named Plaintiffs applied to the Court for compensation up to $7,500 as incentive awards in recognition of the benefits each has generated for the Class by coming forward and devoting time and knowledge to the prosecution of this case. The petition for incentive awards was considered and approved at the Final Approval hearing, and the amounts awarded by the Court are to be paid by Expedia in addition to the Settlement Benefits discussed above.

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Can I exclude myself from the Class?

The date by which Class Members could opt out of the Settlement has passed. You must have returned a completed Opt-Out Form to the Settlement Claims Administrator by November 11, 2009.

Read on for information about the effects of excluding yourself from this case and the procedure for excluding yourself (or "opting out") if you chose to do so.

  1. Effects of Excluding Yourself from This Class Action

    If you opted out of this Class Action you will NOT be eligible to receive any benefits under the Settlement, and you will NOT be permitted to object to the Settlement or any of its terms. You WILL retain any rights you may have to file or pursue individually, at your own expense, any claims and lawsuits against Expedia arising out of its assessment of "Tax Recovery Charges" and "Service Fees" you paid when booking hotel stays through Expedia. State laws may limit the time within which any suits must be filed. You will not be permitted to use the existence of terms of this Notice or the Settlement as evidence of any admission by Expedia regarding fault, liability, level of damages, or any similar issues.


  2. Procedure If You Elected To Opt Out

    If you did NOT want to remain a Class Member, you must have completed and mailed an "Opt-Out Form" to the Settlement Claims Administrator at the following address: The Garden City Group, Inc., Attn: Expedia Litigation, P.O. Box 91084, Seattle, WA 98111-9184.

    The Opt-Out Form must have been postmarked on or before November 11, 2009. The date of the postmark on the return-mailing envelope was the exclusive means used to determine whether a request for exclusion has been timely submitted.

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Can I object to the Settlement, the requested attorneys' fees and expenses, and/or the requested incentive awards for the Named Plaintiffs?

The date by which Class Members could object to the Settlement, to Plaintiffs' Counsels' request for attorneys' fees and expense awards, or the incentive awards has passed. If you are a Class Member and you did not exclude yourself from this litigation, you could have objected to the terms of the Settlement and urged that the Court not approve the Settlement. Whether or not you object to the terms of the Settlement, you could have also objected to the requested attorneys' fees and expenses and/or the requested incentive awards for the Named Plaintiffs.

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When and where is the Final Approval hearing and what will occur there?

The Final Approval hearing was held on December 1, 2009 before the Honorable Monica J. Benton, at King County Superior Court, Maleng Regional Justice Center, 401 Fourth Avenue North, Kent, WA 98032. At the hearing, the Settlement was approved as fair, reasonable and adequate and the Named Plaintiffs were approved to receive incentive awards in an amount of $7,500 each. The Court also approved the award of attorneys' fees and costs to Plaintiffs' counsel of $10 million and an Order of Final Judgment and Dismissal was entered. However, appeals were filed challenging aspects of the Final Approval Order. The Settlement benefits cannot be distributed unless and until the appeals are withdrawn or after the appellate court affirms the Final Approval Order. The appeal process can be lengthy. Please be patient.

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How do I obtain additional information?

The Notice contains only a summary of the terms of the Settlement. A complete copy of the Settlement Agreement may be downloaded here. The records in this litigation (to the extent they are publicly available and not filed or lodged under seal) may be examined and copied at any time during regular office hours, and subject to customary copying fees, through the Clerk's Office of the King County Superior Court; if you wish to do so, you should contact the Clerk's Office at (206) 296-9300.

DO NOT WRITE OR TELEPHONE THE COURT, DEFENDANT, OR DEFENDANT'S ATTORNEY FOR INFORMATION.

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