MSE News:Ticket sellers targeted in booking fee crackdown

Percy1983

ashleypride wrote: »

I've never seen the issue with touts myself, they purchase a product and sell it at a price the market will pay, just like every other business out there. If the price is too high, then don't buy - its not like its an essential purchase.

I agree, and personally I have never paid or will ever pay a tout.

Does it not bother you that at times fans can't get tickets, not because they have sold out to fans, but sold out to touts who are ready to scalp fans.

They aren't really offering a service are they, they are just beating people to them and adding an extortionate handling fee.

Honey_Bear

Our local theatre and the associated event venue started charging booking fees about 10 years ago, and then slapped a charge on for paying by credit or debit card. For a while I was willing to go there in advance and pay by cheque, given that wandering around a city with £80 in cash was probably not a brilliant idea.

In the end, having walked down with a cheque already made out, to be told that they wanted to charge me an additional £1.50 fee for some spurious reason to see some band I loved, I had a very calm discussion with the clerk and said that not only would the venue lose that £80 booking, but that I would probably knock going to concerts completely on the head if they went ahead with the charge. I didn't buy the tickets.

I've never been back since, and sadly for the venue, realised that this discretionary spending is something that I can live quite happily without. I don't *need* to go to the theatre. I don't need to see bands live and I don't miss it.

If they put the charges on the ticket price in the first place, I would have known how much it was going to cost to go to the concert, play, event or whatever and could make an informed decision. Being told that I have to pay several more pounds on top of what I thought was the price seems like a rip off to me, and being told, 'It's the industry standard' sounds like double-speak to me. I don't care how you choose to run your industry and I don't need to be trained to know. I just want to buy a product you say you're selling at a clear price.

Having got out of the habit of going, they've lost me as an audience member permanently, as I've found other ways to spend my disposable income. Their loss, and all for a £1.50 charge.

frand1

I'm delighted to see the Government doing something about this now.
I complained to the Manchester United Ticket Office General Manager over 3 years ago and accused them of endorsing and 'legalising touting' by Viagogo, who Man Utd refer you to when (United) they have sold out for a game.
The mark up on a face value ticket was 57% when I enquired, which is outrageous.
They would not allow my friend to give me his 2 season tickets for a game. They informed him the only way was for him to sell them to Viagogo and they would sell them on for him. They of course would have charged him a fee and me a booking fee.
Out of principle anyway, I refused to buy.

campervan_traveller

Bought what I thought were "normal" Early Bird tickets for C2C @O2. Thought I was dealing with a normal ticket seller - didn't realise Viagogo was a market place re-seller.


Paid £454.33 in total
(2 tickets @£189.99 per ticket + booking fee (£57)+ handling fee (£5.95) +VAT (£11.40)


What really bugged me though was the ticket price: got a big surprise when the .PDF tickets arrived with face value of £85 each. There's a big jump from £170 to £454.


Viagogo explained that they are an online ticket marketplace and have no control over the ticket costs and just add 15%.


I'm pretty savvy, but this caught me out, so be warned. Yes, I was prepared to pay that price at the time - but I just thought that was the price of the tickets, not that somewhere along the line there was over 100% mark-up.:mad:

andrewjonesapt

Buyer STILL be very Aware of the extra over rip off charges added without clarity to the total .

Payment Method: Mastercard: ************
Number of Tickets: 2
Price per Ticket: €120.00
Total Ticket Cost: €240.00
Booking Fee: €71.49
Handling Fee: €19.95
VAT: €14.30
Adjustment: -€0.00
Total Charge: €345.74