Festival Cancelled – CC Refund Claims Being Rejected

wary

I purchased a ticket for a music festival in Nov 2024, to be held Jun 2025, but it was cancelled circa 1 month prior to the event.  (It seems that it was due to financial viability as the organiser cancelled several festivals, but their company status is still “Active” at CH.)

I paid with my Mastercard and bought the ticket through the official website for £115.  The ticket seller and the organiser have each issued a blanket statement effectively claiming that the other party is liable; hence neither will issue a refund.

I’ve filed a claim under S75, and I believe that my CC company (my bank) has contacted the seller.  However, other claimants are ahead of me and some are now getting a rejection from their CC supplier (with any temporary refund being clawed back).

In brief, the ticket seller’s defence is they acted only as a technical service provider and payment processor, and the organiser is the legal seller of the ticket (& recipient of the payment).  This, they claim, was reflected in the T&C that was accepted at checkout.

It seems that this defence has been accepted by some CC companies, but without pursuing a claim against the Organiser.  One purchaser has received an outright rejection from their CC company, arguing:

• S75 is only applicable under a “debtor-creditor-supplier” agreement

• They believe the contract to be with the organiser, but as the payment transaction was made to a third party (the ticket seller), the CC company has no legal liability for any breach of contract by the organiser

• Furthermore, the ticket seller (the party with whom they do have a joint liability) fulfilled their obligations by processing the payment

• They also quote some of the sellers T&C, one of which is the option to purchase cancellation insurance.  (I don’t recall seeing any such option, and this is not mentioned in the T&C contained within the purchase confirmation email.)

Would appreciate some advice on the legal position, please, and whether there is any course of action one can take if their CC company refuses to refund?  For example, which way would the Ombudsman likely rule?

Thanks

DullGreyGuy

wary said:

I purchased a ticket for a music festival in Nov 2024, to be held Jun 2025, but it was cancelled circa 1 month prior to the event.  (It seems that it was due to financial viability as the organiser cancelled several festivals, but their company status is still “Active” at CH.)

I paid with my Mastercard and bought the ticket through the official website for £115.  The ticket seller and the organiser have each issued a blanket statement effectively claiming that the other party is liable; hence neither will issue a refund.

I’ve filed a claim under S75, and I believe that my CC company (my bank) has contacted the seller.  However, other claimants are ahead of me and some are now getting a rejection from their CC supplier (with any temporary refund being clawed back).

In brief, the ticket seller’s defence is they acted only as a technical service provider and payment processor, and the organiser is the legal seller of the ticket (& recipient of the payment).  This, they claim, was reflected in the T&C that was accepted at checkout.

It seems that this defence has been accepted by some CC companies, but without pursuing a claim against the Organiser.  One purchaser has received an outright rejection from their CC company, arguing:

• S75 is only applicable under a “debtor-creditor-supplier” agreement

• They believe the contract to be with the organiser, but as the payment transaction was made to a third party (the ticket seller), the CC company has no legal liability for any breach of contract by the organiser

• Furthermore, the ticket seller (the party with whom they do have a joint liability) fulfilled their obligations by processing the payment

• They also quote some of the sellers T&C, one of which is the option to purchase cancellation insurance.  (I don’t recall seeing any such option, and this is not mentioned in the T&C contained within the purchase confirmation email.)

Would appreciate some advice on the legal position, please, and whether there is any course of action one can take if their CC company refuses to refund?  For example, which way would the Ombudsman likely rule?

The Consumer Credit Act requires the link as you say "D-C-S" and given you bought from a ticket agent you are only covered for what the agent was required to do, what the ultimate supplier was to do isnt covered because you didnt pay them directly. 

born_again

Go back & say you want a chargeback for non receipt of services.
You are within the 540 max from date of debit. 
That will claim funds from merchant bank who received the funds. How they get it back is their problem. 

Quite why this was not done as a chargeback is beyond me, & one reason people should leave it to bank to decide on the best route to take, rather than say S75...

saajan_12

wary said:

I paid with my Mastercard and bought the ticket through the official website for £115.  The ticket seller and the organiser have each issued a blanket statement effectively claiming that the other party is liable; hence neither will issue a refund.

s

What is the organiser saying is the reason that its the seller's fault? On the off chance that relates to the contract with you (as opposed to the contract between seller and organiser) then you might be able to use the same argument to claim via S75 from the seller. 

The CC company's explanation is broadly correct, that you wouldn't have a claim on the organiser as there's no direct relationship with them due to the intervening seller. 

So if ultimately it is the organiser's fault then your option is a court claim from them. 

wary

saajan_12 said:
What is the organiser saying is the reason that its the seller's fault? 

The organiser has said very little. I was only aware that it had been cancelled as I follow their FB page, and you have to dig deep into the festival website to find any indication.  Indeed, some people did actually turn up to the event, totally oblivious of the cancellation! 

Wrt refunds, their FB announcement simply says “Please contact your ticket provider or card issuer for refund information.”
Any email sent to the organiser is simply ignored.

DullGreyGuy

wary said:

saajan_12 said:
What is the organiser saying is the reason that its the seller's fault? 

The organiser has said very little. I was only aware that it had been cancelled as I follow their FB page, and you have to dig deep into the festival website to find any indication.  Indeed, some people did actually turn up to the event, totally oblivious of the cancellation! 

Wrt refunds, their FB announcement simply says “Please contact your ticket provider or card issuer for refund information.”
Any email sent to the organiser is simply ignored.

So they arent claiming its the ticket sellers fault, just saying thats who you should deal with.

As said, this is a chargeback not a S75 situation

penners324

Request a chargeback  services not received.

Doesn't look like a S75 situation