Are venues trying to pull a fast one with cancellations?

powerful_Rogue

I don't know whether it's a case or pulling a fast one, or whether they are just unfamiliar with consumer law.

I understand these are difficult and challenging times, both for the consumer and also the venues. Heard so many cases, from events i've booked and friends have booked.

The lastest today is the other half paid £120 for 4 tickets to see Derren Brown live in early April. This has now been cancelled. What has the theatre said?

My show is not being rescheduled – what should I do?

Your booking will be reimbursed through a voucher system. You need to complete the request form as soon as possible to claim your voucher. Our Box Office team will arrange for the voucher to be issued and it will be sent to you by email.

Vouchers will be for the full value of your booking (including any fees). They can be redeemed against a future show (online, by telephone and at the Box Office counter once the counter is reopened).

Upon asking for a refund, she was advised that no refunds would be issued, only vouchers.

I'm guessing they hope most people will just accept this, but when you've booked a specfic show quite a distance from your location, refusing a refund I believe is shocking. Have to call the credit card and see whether they can assist, however this was book a year ago.

KatrinaWaves

Theyre trying to avoid going under by having to mass refund people. I don’t blame them.
You can probably force a refund but honestly I don’t know that I would given the circumstances. 

Manxman_in_exile

I'm disappointed Derren Brown had a tour scheduled.

You'd think he would have known better...

powerful_Rogue

KatrinaWaves said:

Theyre trying to avoid going under by having to mass refund people. I don’t blame them.
You can probably force a refund but honestly I don’t know that I would given the circumstances. 

These are tough times for both people and businesses. However forcing people to take vouchers that have no interest in any other shows coming up I personally believe is not acceptable.

What makes it more furstrating to me personally, is  the companies that showed no slack in the many years before this happening. Wasn't well or some other kind of emergency and wanted to transfer your ticket to another show? Not on your nelly. Use or lose it was the motto of many.

JReacher1

Most companies have a massive cash flow issue at the moment. Forcing them to refund every customer will bankrupt them, leading to half of the customers getting nothing, and all staff losing their jobs. 

This is a national crisis and to get through it we need to pull together as a country and be more considerate than we have been in the past. 

A refund for Derren Brown should not be anyone’s priority at the moment. Take the voucher, wait for the reschedule and at that point you may be able to get a refund as everything is operating as normal. 

powerful_Rogue

JReacher1 said:

Most companies have a massive cash flow issue at the moment. Forcing them to refund every customer will bankrupt them, leading to half of the customers getting nothing, and all staff losing their jobs. 

This is a national crisis and to get through it we need to pull together as a country and be more considerate than we have been in the past. 

A refund for Derren Brown should not be anyone’s priority at the moment. Take the voucher, wait for the reschedule and at that point you may be able to get a refund as everything is operating as normal. 

There is no reschedule. Most shows have been rescheduled, this one was not possible. I'm sure £120 would be a priorty for a lot of people at this present time.

I'm sure most companies will be taking advantage of the generous pacakges announced by the Government to help them through these tough times.

JReacher1

powerful_Rogue said:

JReacher1 said:

Most companies have a massive cash flow issue at the moment. Forcing them to refund every customer will bankrupt them, leading to half of the customers getting nothing, and all staff losing their jobs. 

This is a national crisis and to get through it we need to pull together as a country and be more considerate than we have been in the past. 

A refund for Derren Brown should not be anyone’s priority at the moment. Take the voucher, wait for the reschedule and at that point you may be able to get a refund as everything is operating as normal. 

There is no reschedule. Most shows have been rescheduled, this one was not possible. I'm sure £120 would be a priorty for a lot of people at this present time.

I'm sure most companies will be taking advantage of the generous pacakges announced by the Government to help them through these tough times.

Get yourself in the newspapers pulling a sad face holding your four Derren Brown tickets. See what sort of response you’ll get when people are dying in their hundreds. 

More seriously you do need to be a bit more considerate at the moment and wave many of the normal consumer rights we enjoy.  We need a society to come back to and driving companies bust doesn’t help anyone. 

Once this crisis is over and normal trading resumes that would be the time to argue this point and maybe get your refund. 

prowla

I've never been comfortable with booking well in advance, because you never know whet might happen in the interim.

I had tickets a while back to see one of my heroes and then I went and got flu that weekend, so I couldn't go.

Since then I've not bought ahead.

As for this case, I'd go for the refund, as there's no knowing when a suitable event will reappear and/or if the company will still exist at that point in time; I'd view vouchers as effectively writing off the loss.

powerful_Rogue

JReacher1 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

JReacher1 said:

Most companies have a massive cash flow issue at the moment. Forcing them to refund every customer will bankrupt them, leading to half of the customers getting nothing, and all staff losing their jobs. 

This is a national crisis and to get through it we need to pull together as a country and be more considerate than we have been in the past. 

A refund for Derren Brown should not be anyone’s priority at the moment. Take the voucher, wait for the reschedule and at that point you may be able to get a refund as everything is operating as normal. 

There is no reschedule. Most shows have been rescheduled, this one was not possible. I'm sure £120 would be a priorty for a lot of people at this present time.

I'm sure most companies will be taking advantage of the generous pacakges announced by the Government to help them through these tough times.

Get yourself in the newspapers pulling a sad face holding your four Derren Brown tickets. See what sort of response you’ll get when people are dying in their hundreds. 

More seriously you do need to be a bit more considerate at the moment and wave many of the normal consumer rights we enjoy.  We need a society to come back to and driving companies bust doesn’t help anyone. 

Once this crisis is over and normal trading resumes that would be the time to argue this point and maybe get your refund. 

Might as well close this section of the forum down for the foreseable then going by that logic. Where as a consumer do we draw the line?

I can't see what there is to argue. The theatre have rescheduled the majority of events, this is one of the few they can't. I could appreciate if they offered the choice of a voucher OR refund, however they have written of refunds completly.

lucy03

Might as well close this section of the forum down for the foreseable then going by that logic. Where as a consumer do we draw the line? 

I can't see what there is to argue. The theatre have rescheduled the majority of events, this is one of the few they can't. I could appreciate if they offered the choice of a voucher OR refund, however they have written of refunds completly.

To a large degree, consumers shouldn't be shouting out about venues pulling a fast one at this stage IMO. Locations are short of staff, unsure of their cash flow, they don't know if they can reschedule and there are almost certainly external factors at play they can't say yet. Just send a message saying that you want a full refund and leave it at that until things become clearer.

powerful_Rogue

lucy03 said:

Might as well close this section of the forum down for the foreseable then going by that logic. Where as a consumer do we draw the line? 

I can't see what there is to argue. The theatre have rescheduled the majority of events, this is one of the few they can't. I could appreciate if they offered the choice of a voucher OR refund, however they have written of refunds completly.

To a large degree, consumers shouldn't be shouting out about venues pulling a fast one at this stage IMO. Locations are short of staff, unsure of their cash flow, they don't know if they can reschedule and there are almost certainly external factors at play they can't say yet. Just send a message saying that you want a full refund and leave it at that until things become clearer.

I did mention in the original post that they have been contacted and are not offering any refunds.

I wasn't shouting that, I was clearly asking whether they were or whether it was there lack of knowledge regarding consumer law.