MONTREAL — A judge has authorized a class action lawsuit over emails Tim Hortons sent out in error to participants in its popular Roll Up to Win promotion -- but only for Quebec residents.
Montreal-based firm LPC Avocats claims some half-million customers across Canada received an email in April 2024 saying they had won a boat through the promotion, only to be told later this wasn't the case.
The law firm says those clients should be awarded the boat and trailer they were told they won, plus damages. It says the prize's value is about $64,000.
Superior Court Justice Donald Bisson ruled last week that the class action can move forward, but limited it to Quebec residents because the case hinges on that province's consumer protection laws.
"Indeed, and among other things, according to the court, refusing to give the boats to those who were told they had won them -- and even not offering them anything else -- could destroy the public’s trust in mobile app contests and justifies the claim for requested punitive damages," Bisson wrote in a judgment dated Friday.
The ruling cited statements by people who described celebrating the news of their "win" with family and Tim Hortons staff, only to be crushed to learn later that they hadn't won.
In a phone interview, lawyer Joey Zukran said the company didn't offer customers "even one free coffee" in return for the mistake.
"They took the loyalty of their customers for granted, they laughed at them, instead of offering them some form of compensation that maybe would have prevented the filing of a class action," he said in a phone interview.
He says the Quebec consumer protection law states merchants and not customers should be held responsible for errors.
A spokesperson for Tim Hortons says the company apologized last year to the customers who received the email, and declined to comment further because the case is before the courts.
"We apologized last year after some guests received an email in which some prizes that they did not win were included in their contest recap," communications director Michael Oliveira wrote in an email on Sunday. "We know that the millions of prizes won in the contest were distributed to winners accurately and as per our contest rules."
According to the court decision, the lead plaintiff in the suit received an email on April 17, 2024 informing him that he'd won a Tracker Targa 18 WT 2024 boat and its trailer as part of the Roll Up To Win promotion. Later that day, the company sent out a second email blaming "technical errors" for the fact that clients had been incorrectly informed they'd won certain prizes. The company also apologized for the frustration.
According to Friday's decision, the company argued in part that the communications did not constitute a consumer contract, and therefore should not fall under consumer protection laws.
Bisson rejected that argument, noting the promotion required consumers to purchase something to enter. However, he said the company would have the opportunity to argue its case in detail when it is heard on its merits.
The judge added that "an error in Tim Hortons' declaration or a defect in its systems does not exempt it from liability" under Quebec consumer protection laws.
Zukran says he isn't sure how many people will be members of the lawsuit under the narrowed criteria.
He said he has three months to file the formal lawsuit, called an originating application. The litigation could take a few years to wind its way through the courts unless the company settles, he added.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 29, 2025.
Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press
