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| (photo credit: Park City Mountain Resort) |
Summer is the time of year when resorts push to sell their season passes for the upcoming winter. By offering big discounts to those who buy early, resorts are able to generate revenue when the mountain is closed and are more likely to have a constricted cash flow.
Utah's Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) is no different, except in one regard. Embroiled in litigation with its landlord (Talisker, owner of the nearby Canyon's resort), PCMR cannot say with absolute certainty that it will be open for the 2012-2013 season. At this point, all indications are that PCMR will in fact operate, but lawyers are risk averse so there are some changes to the PCMR season pass process for 2012-2013.
What you need to know if you're considering buying a PCMR season pass after the jump.
What you need to know if you're considering buying a PCMR season pass after the jump.
The Park Record ran a story on the passes which read, "PCMR-Talisker case: resort selling season passes, with a
major disclaimer." Despite what the slightly hysterical newspaper headline would suggest,
except for one paragraph on the bottom of the resort's season pass
webpage, everything is business as usual.
The "disclaimer" referenced in the Record reads:
Park City Mountain Resort is confident it will be
open for the 2012-2013 season, but in the unlikely event the pending
lawsuit against Talisker Land Holdings results in the Resort closing for
the season, the Resort will refund the full season pass price paid by
holders of 2012-2013 season passes. If the Resort is required in the
lawsuit to close for a portion of the 2012-2013 season, the Resort will
prorate the refund based on the period the Resort is closed.
To call the above text a "disclaimer" is absolutely inaccurate. It would be a disclaimer only if the resort actually disclaimed something, e.g. a customer's right to a refund in the event the resort did not open. A disclaimer by the resort would cut against consumers. Here the language instead confers to passholders a right to refund.
Actually, the language above is more aptly described as a guarantee. PCMR guarantees passholders a refund if the resort is closed and a pro-rated refund if it is closed for something less than a full season. The guarantee is good business and the right thing to do, not a legal gimmick as the Park Record's misleading headline implies.
However (and isn't there always a however...), the language in PCMR's guarantee conflicts with the language of the resort's season pass waiver, which in two separate places indicates a no-refund policy.
Note the highlighted sections below.
I would not be comfortable with either the boldfaced, underlined NO in the "NO REFUND ON SEASON PASSES" (pg. 1) or the "Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) season and other passes are non-refundable...[and] non-cancelable." Of course, hardly anyone ever reads their season pass agreement anyway...so I might be the only one experiencing any unease, but this is a legal blog so we'll give you our thoughts.
Part of the concern is that as between the guarantee and a waiver agreement like the one above, the waiver would generally receive more weight in a court of law because it is a contract. The guarantee is not part of the agreement (though for you lawyers out there, the agreement lacks an integration/merger clause so an argument for incorporating the guarantee could be made). It is merely a representation, an inducement to sign the contract.
Of course, it is highly unlikely that if PCMR did not open for 2012-2013, the resort would not refund passholders money based on the highlighted language in the season pass waiver. It would be a PR nightmare (and a strong case for fraud in the inducement). However, personally, I do not sign contracts that do not accurately reflect the terms of an agreement.
In this case, the "no refunds" policy should be qualified by the language contained in the guarantee. If it were me, I'd cross out the highlighted language or put something above it like, "except as provided in the refund policy located at www.parkcitymountain.com/winter/tickets/season-passes." Then initial above the changes.
Again, however, the exercise will hopefully prove academic since skiers everywhere, Ski, Esq. included, hope and believe that PCMR will open this winter.
As a side note, this site has a disclaimer below, please read it. This is not intended as specific legal advice. The full language of the disclaimer applies.
Actually, the language above is more aptly described as a guarantee. PCMR guarantees passholders a refund if the resort is closed and a pro-rated refund if it is closed for something less than a full season. The guarantee is good business and the right thing to do, not a legal gimmick as the Park Record's misleading headline implies.
However (and isn't there always a however...), the language in PCMR's guarantee conflicts with the language of the resort's season pass waiver, which in two separate places indicates a no-refund policy.
Note the highlighted sections below.
 |
| pg. 1 of 2 |
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| pg. 2 of 2 |
I would not be comfortable with either the boldfaced, underlined NO in the "NO REFUND ON SEASON PASSES" (pg. 1) or the "Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) season and other passes are non-refundable...[and] non-cancelable." Of course, hardly anyone ever reads their season pass agreement anyway...so I might be the only one experiencing any unease, but this is a legal blog so we'll give you our thoughts.
Part of the concern is that as between the guarantee and a waiver agreement like the one above, the waiver would generally receive more weight in a court of law because it is a contract. The guarantee is not part of the agreement (though for you lawyers out there, the agreement lacks an integration/merger clause so an argument for incorporating the guarantee could be made). It is merely a representation, an inducement to sign the contract.
Of course, it is highly unlikely that if PCMR did not open for 2012-2013, the resort would not refund passholders money based on the highlighted language in the season pass waiver. It would be a PR nightmare (and a strong case for fraud in the inducement). However, personally, I do not sign contracts that do not accurately reflect the terms of an agreement.
In this case, the "no refunds" policy should be qualified by the language contained in the guarantee. If it were me, I'd cross out the highlighted language or put something above it like, "except as provided in the refund policy located at www.parkcitymountain.com/winter/tickets/season-passes." Then initial above the changes.
Again, however, the exercise will hopefully prove academic since skiers everywhere, Ski, Esq. included, hope and believe that PCMR will open this winter.
As a side note, this site has a disclaimer below, please read it. This is not intended as specific legal advice. The full language of the disclaimer applies.
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