Is it worth complaining?

cvw55

Me and a friend went to see Lady Gaga last night at the NEC in Birmingham and I was horrifed how bad our seats were - granted we were quite far back, but a massive bar across the ceiling completely blocked our view of the top of the stage and the two large tv screens. so we saw half a concert and she was a tiny dot in the distance! so disappointed.

what makes me really cross is i went to see her back in March at the same venue. tickets were half the price (£27.50), and we had great seats. i was not going to go to this May show because ticket prices doubled but the Nec sent me a priority booking link two days before the tickets went on general sale and i couldnt resist ended up booking some. Have learnt my lesson! There was no warning the seats were restricted viewing. priority booking my a***! :mad:

Really feel like i want to complain but not sure who too? The NEC has a feedback email address, but it is worth the bother? do they do anything?

miniemma

I think it is definitely worth sending in a complaint.

If their website is to be believed then they have a great system in place to deal with compliants:

http://www.thenec.co.uk/feedback-policy.htm

They offer many ways to complain and then give a chance for you to ask them to review the initial response you receive and if you are still not happy, even after the review, then you can write to their chief executive.

cherie1122

How disappointing!

You paid a lot of money and couldn't see the performance very well so I think you definitely should write and complain.

I would send an email first and then if I got no reply I'd send a letter. I'm always polite and to the point. It's worth a try (they might refund part of your money)

cvw55

will do. thanks both for your advice

RadoJo

Was the bar part of the structure of the building, or part of the rigging?

andyrules

RadoJo wrote: »

Was the bar part of the structure of the building, or part of the rigging?

What difference does that make? The fact that they had restricted viewing should have been available at the time of booking.

If the rigging was put up afterwards, that is hardly the customer's fault either.

When I go to the theatre, I'm always very fussy about seats regarding space, view etc, and any decent venue makes this very clear so you can choose.

I would definitely complain. I bet you paid a hefty fee (£55?).

RadoJo

Whoa - calm yourself, I was only asking out of curiosity as if it was part of the permanent structure then it's something the venue should have known about in advance and shown on the seating plan, which would add weight to the OP's case.

andyrules

Sorry, don't mean to jump down your throat, :)but I'm sick of people posting poor service on these boards and being told to accept it.

These tickets are expensive and customers deserve the courtesy of the organiser bothering to have a decent pricing system based on seat quality.

I don't think it's acceptable that no-one would know if seats (already sold) would become restricted viewing.

RadoJo

No worries ;-) I was just thinking that the OP would have a better case and an easier time of complaining if it was structural as there is no reason why the venue couldn't have made it clear from their seating plan. If it was a part of the rigging, they may try and pass the buck in which case my advice would have been different, but I agree that there's no reason why anyone should have to pay full price to see only half of a concert.

Crazy_Jamie

Did you know what seats you were getting (i.e. block, row and seat numbers) at the time of booking?

cvw55

it was part of the structure of the building, im pretty sure.

the block/seat numbers were on the tickets but i didnt think for a second they'd be up in the gods. we were literally the back row, no one behind us! and the view was awful, still cant get over it!
if i had of booked last minute when it was nearly sold out, then i'd accept that they would be the kind of seats you get at last minute, but the fact that this was supposed to be a priority booking before the tickets went on sale is what really gets my goat!

when ive booked tickets for the theatre before, im sure they tell you if a seat has a restricted view?

havent had chance to email them yet but i will. Im still hopping mad!