Bill
HB 2456
Requires written contracts for third-party reservation services to list restaurants; bans liability-shifting clauses and imposes penalties up to $1,000 per violation.
Status and timeline
- Introduced: February 5, 2025 (Ill. House)
- Passed both houses: May 22, 2025
- Sent to Governor: June 20, 2025
- Governor approved: August 15, 2025
- Effective date: January 1, 2026
- Public Act number: 104‑0227
Purpose and intent
- Prevent third‑party websites, apps, or internet services from listing, advertising, promoting, or selling restaurant reservations unless the third party has a written agreement with the restaurant (food service establishment).
- Protect restaurants from unauthorized listing or “reservation piracy,” limit shifting of liability to restaurants by contract, and provide remedies for restaurants and customers harmed by unauthorized reservation listings.
Key definitions
- Food service establishment: Broadly defined to include any place that provides individually portioned food service to consumers (sold or free; on‑ or off‑premises; includes pushcarts, stands, vehicles).
- Third‑party restaurant reservation service: Any website, mobile app, or other Internet service that (1) offers or arranges on‑premises reservation service for a customer at a food service establishment and (2) is owned and operated by someone other than the restaurant owner. Excludes reservation distribution channels that are authorized via contract with the establishment (or with an authorized entity).
Major provisions
- Written agreement requirement (Section 10): A third‑party restaurant reservation service may not list, advertise, promote, or sell reservations for a food service establishment on its platform unless it has a written agreement with that establishment authorizing such listings.
- Void indemnity clauses: The bill provides that any written agreement that attempts to require a restaurant to indemnify or assume liability for the third‑party service’s acts or omissions (i.e., clauses shifting liability to the restaurant) is void and unenforceable. (As described in the bill synopsis.)
- Enforcement and penalties (Section 15):
- Civil penalty: Up to $1,000 per violation; each day a third‑party service violates the Act as to a particular establishment is a separate violation.
- Attorney General: May bring proceedings to recover civil penalties or restitution.
- Private right of action: A person charged fees by a third‑party for a reservation listed/sold in violation of the Act, or a food service establishment similarly listed, may sue in circuit court for:
1. Injunctive relief;
2. Actual damages (not to exceed the total fees collected by the violating third‑party service for the reservation);
3. Attorney’s fees and costs; and
4. Other appropriate remedies.
- Statute of limitations: Claims must be brought within one year of the alleged violation.
Who is affected
- Directly affected: Third‑party reservation platforms and their operators (e.g., booking/aggregation services) that list restaurants without contracts; restaurants and other food service establishments (gain control over listings and protection from unilateral contractual indemnities).
- Indirectly affected: Consumers who use third‑party reservation services (may see changes in availability/visibility of listings) and search engines/aggregators that surface reservation options.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Platforms will generally need to obtain written agreements before listing restaurants; failure to do so risks fines and private suits.
- Restaurants gain legal tools to challenge unauthorized listings and to avoid blanket indemnity clauses in contracts with reservation services.
- Consumer experience could change if some third‑party platforms remove uncontracted listings (reduced discovery but potentially clearer transactional relationships).
- Enforcement through both the Attorney General and private suits may encourage compliance; damages in private suits are capped at fees collected for the offending reservation(s).
For reference: full text available in Public Act 104‑0227 (effective Jan 1, 2026).
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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