ViaNOgo

Nemesis44UK

I am a concert newbie. I bought tickets to see Metallica from Viagogo, which I hadn't realised was an unofficial reseller.


After research, I realised the extent of my failure. ID is checked before entry to the venue and it must match the name printed on the ticket. After more checks, I have verified that no, my son and I will not be allowed entry.

Viagogo has said: "No refunds." I have spoken to the bank regarding a chargeback as this is essentially fraud and they have advised me to contact Viagogo and try to work it out with them. They are standing pat that there is no problem and we will be able to get in, 02 are adamant we will not.

Suggestions?

Oakdene

Do a search on viagogo on here & you'll see you're not the only one who has found themselves in this position..

dj1471

Viagogo offer a money-back guarantee in the event that you can't gain entry, but you can only claim after the event (within 48 hours). See their T&Cs (section 2.15).

If Viagogo won't play ball then be firmer with your bank and raise an official complaint with them if necessary.

Diamandis

Viagogo are ridiculous, however although the o2 are saying you won't get in it's still possible that you might. I've chanced it a few times and got in without ID even though the tickets say you need to have it. Up to you if you want to give it a shot.

pulliptears

Unfortunately chancing it on this one is very unlikely as the orders are coming directly from Metallica themselves.

Much like the Foo Fighters last month they decided to take a stand against resellers and have requested all tickets to be ID'd on entry and a maximum of 4 tickets per lead booking.

Personally, I applaud their stance. Whilst this is rolling out there will be fans who will suffer, but ultimately if all artists took this stance the secondary ticket market would cease to exist pretty quickly.

I do feel for you OP. I'm a met club member myself and we've currently got club members who can't go but cannot pass on their tickets to other members. I guess the solution is twofold - ID for the lead booker at the entrance but some kind of refund option for genuine fans who find themselves unable to make the show.

SouthUKMan

In theory, viagogo (they like to be cool and have their name in lower case) is a marketplace for allowing individuals to sell-on tickets for events and concerts that they have purchased but can no longer use. In reality though the site has become associated with characters who bulk buy tickets from official promoters and venues and sell them on to turn a quick and often very large profit.

While there is nothing illegal about the practice, and while viagogo do offer a money back guarantee, there is one large fundamental problem that consumers face. The terms and conditions of entry for most events and concerts state something along the lines of the "original purchaser must be part of the group, that ID can be asked for and that ID must match the name on the ticket." In other words if you buy a ticket from viagogo and it has the name Miss Doris Smith printed on it, and yet your name is Mr Sam Brown, then the venue can refuse you - and the rest of your party - entry.

In reality most venues don't check ID - so you can scan the ticket and get in. However some venues do check ID, while others carry out random checks... in which case you've got a problem. The internet and media is littered with complaints from people who have been turned away after failing an ID check.

Of course, emotions often run high at this point, as if you've potentially paid several hundred pounds to see your favourite artist (remember, most ticket prices for popular concerts on viagogo are often heavily inflated), if you've traveled a couple of hours to get to a venue, if you've booked a hotel for the night and if you've generally been looking forward to seeing the concert for several months - then it's a lot of hassle and disappointment.

The best advice is to steer clear of such secondary ticket websites unless you are totally clear about the costs and risks involved, and to only buy tickets from official sources - these often being the actual venue website or the promoter website.

adeo

I purchased tickets for manic Street Preachers at Manchester arena for this Saturday, originally informed tickets would be sent via ups Spain, next day informed I can download them as e-tickets,which I've done but the name in top of each e-ticket is russian type name with unknown foreign address, I've emailed them asking for partial refund as they originally billed me for tracked delivery via ups! My worries are the tickets genuine or fruadulent? If genuine will I be able to use e-tickets to get into venue with someone else name on ticket? Is there anywhere I can phone to check authentication of e-tickets? Here's what I've paid, I know I've been ripped off, must of been having a dumb moment!!!
Number of Tickets:2
Priceper Ticket:£41.19
TotalTicket Cost:£82.38
BookingFee:£20.60
HandlingFee:£25.35
VAT:£4.12
Adjustment:-£0.00
TotalCharge:£132.45
Anyone have recent experience from Manchester arena, do they always do id checks, especially since the bombing last year?

JReacher1

Keep on saying in English with a Russian accent;I am sorry I do not speak English. They will get sick of it and let you in.

waamo

Not being able to get in is a risk you take when buying from ticket tout. Even a ticket tout with a nice flashy website.