South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
In Disney glitch, some passholders get surprise bills
Disney annual passholders were enraged on social media Friday over a glitch in which they were apparently charged a lump sum for their monthly payments.
“When we saw our bank account this morning…not very magical,” one woman wrote on social media.
When reached for comment, Disney acknowledged the charges were a mistake and the company was working to fix it.
“Passholders on the monthly payment program were incorrectly charged today. We are in the process of reversing these charges and apologize for the inconvenience this caused,” Disney spokeswoman Andrea
Finger said in a statement.
On Facebook fan sites and Twitter, Disney fans voiced their frustrations as payments appeared in their bank accounts at a time when many people have seen their income drop because of the coronavirus pandemic. Unemployment in metro Orlando reached almost 23% in May and 14.5% statewide, the Sentinel reported last month.
“I got hit for 8 months all at once,” one person wrote.
“Tsk, tsk, Disney! Bad move without notifying your Passholders!” stated another woman, who posted a screenshot of her bill for more than $800.
“Just got hit with the charge from Disney. 4 months worth of payments!
Lanes leading to the parking plaza entrance of Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom sit empty March 24.
I tried calling and was on hold forever! Has anyone gotten through?” another wrote.
Some people said they were annoyed enough to cancel their passes completely. Disney didn’t provide details how the mistake happened.
The issues come as some passholders are dealing with the new realities of going to Disney World since the pandemic shut down the theme parks March 16.
The Magic Kingdom and the Animal Kingdom reopen
July 11 — followed by Epcot and Hollywood Studios on July 15 — but the unlimited-access benefit is gone to passholders who previously had no blockout dates. Instead, Disney is requiring reservations, which were swept up almost immediately through online booking for July. Special days exclusively for passholders in advance of the July 11 opening also reached capacity quickly.