A Florida man has sued Universal Orlando Resort for $50,000, claiming that a Harry Potter ride malfunctioned and left him stranded midair for over an hour.
Casey Causey claimed to have suffered “mental anguish” after he was injured on a park ride known as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey in July 2023. The indoor ride is part of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and located at Universal’s Islands of Adventure.
The lawsuit, filed on May 28, claimed the rollercoaster “came to an abrupt stop, stranding their cart midair at an angle that left him tilted backward and to the right.”
It took about an hour for the cart to be moved to an upright position, according to the suit that called the rollercoaster a “defective product.”
He is suing on two counts, premises liability and negligence.
Causey’s lawyer claimed Universal was “aware that the rollercoaster had similar problems in the past and failed to take adequate or reasonable steps to remedy this known problem.”
The suit accused Universal of having a financial motive not to fix the rollercoaster, shut it down or tell park goers about the potential for the ride to stop, “out of desire to obtain money for ticket sales for the park.”
Causey’s lawyer also claimed Universal failed to implement proper inspection procedures, train employees to inspect “dangerous conditions” and to “safely and timely” remove riders from rollercoasters in cases of power outages.
According to the suit, Causey suffered injuries from the ride stoppage that resulted in “disability, disfigurement, scarring, mental anguish,” among other losses.
He also claimed to have medical expenses as well as a loss of earnings and a loss of the ability to earn money.
When reached for comment about the lawsuit, Universal Orlando Resort told The Independent on Tuesday, “We do not comment on pending litigation.”
The Independent has also reached out to Causey’s lawyer for comment.
Millions of guests flock to Universal Orlando Resort every year in hopes of experiencing some of the movie magic that the theme park is known for.
Universal recently opened its Epic Universe park after six years of construction.
The 750-acre park cost $6 billion to create and allows guests to experience The Wizarding World of Harry Potter — Ministry of Magic, Super Nintendo World, How to Train Your Dragon — Isle of Berk and Dark Universe.
