Six Flags has agreed to pay $11.2 million to settle a lawsuit accusing its predecessor company of tacking hidden processing fees onto online ticket purchases at Knott's Berry Farm, Knott's Soak City and California's Great America. California residents who bought eligible tickets online between June 28, 2020, and July 1, 2024, and were charged a processing fee can now file a claim for $8 — or do nothing and still get an $8 credit automatically.
How the Lawsuit Started
The case traces back to a class-action lawsuit filed in Los Angeles in June 2024 by Sargis Isayan, who accused Cedar Fair of adding undisclosed processing fees to online ticket purchases at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park and California's Great America in Santa Clara, according to The Independent. Court documents cited by the outlet accused the company of the unlawful practice of “drip pricing,” alleging that customers saw an initial ticket price before an additional processing fee appeared later in checkout. The lawsuit claimed the fee provided no additional value to customers and that shoppers were less likely to abandon their purchases after already spending time selecting tickets — meaning, the suit claimed, customers ended up paying more than the prices initially advertised. California law requires businesses to disclose fees upfront before a purchase is finalized, per the same report. Cedar Fair and its amusement park portfolio merged with Six Flags Entertainment Corporation in July 2024, not long after the lawsuit was filed. Six Flags has not admitted any wrongdoing, and the settlement agreement for the case states that defendants deny the allegations and deny any and all liability, according to the class action settlement agreement.
Who Qualifies and What They Get
The settlement class covers people who entered a California ZIP code as their billing address when buying eligible non-season tickets online to Knott's Berry Farm, Knott's Soak City or California's Great America during the roughly four-year window, and who paid a processing fee on that purchase, per the settlement agreement. Season pass purchases are not included. Defendants estimate, based on their own sales records, that approximately 1,405,235 people fall into that class, and the agreement puts the total value of cash benefits and credits to be distributed at approximately $11,241,880.
Each participating class member is set to receive $8. Those who submit a valid claim form by the deadline will get that $8 as cash — sent electronically or by check — while anyone who does not file a claim will automatically receive an $8 credit for a future purchase on sixflags.com, according to the official settlement website. Per The Independent's reporting, those credit vouchers expire 36 months after they're issued. Customers can submit claims through that same settlement website, and the claim form indicates submissions can be made online or by mail, per the claim form itself.
Key Dates to Know
The deadline to file a claim, opt out of the settlement, or object to it is December 22, 2026, according to the settlement website. The court has already granted preliminary approval of the deal and approved the notice being sent to class members, but it has not yet decided whether to grant final approval. The Independent reports a final approval hearing is scheduled for March 30, 2027.
Not an Isolated Case
The Knott's and Great America settlement fits into a wider pattern of litigation over undisclosed online fees at entertainment venues. Festival Fun Parks recently agreed to an $850,000 settlement resolving a separate lawsuit accusing it of failing to disclose a mandatory processing fee added to online ticket purchases at Raging Waters until late in checkout, according to classaction.org. That settlement covers U.S. residents who bought admission tickets from RagingWaters.com between June 1, 2020, and June 22, 2026, and paid a processing fee. Ticketing platform SeatGeek has also agreed to a $7.75 million settlement over claims it failed to disclose fees on ticket purchases in Nevada, covering people who bought electronic tickets to Nevada events through its site or app between November 7, 2020, and May 12, 2025, per Top Class Actions.
Other Six Flags Headlines
The settlement lands amid a busy stretch for Six Flags. The company has announced that California's Great America, which sits on a 112-acre property in Santa Clara, will close after the 2027 season when its lease expires — Cedar Fair sold that property to Prologis for $310 million in 2022, The Independent reports. Six Flags is also facing more than 150 expected claims alleging brain injuries linked to the X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, as well as three federal lawsuits over riders allegedly ejected from attractions at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey. The Independent says it has reached out to Six Flags Entertainment Corporation for comment.
