Administration Charge when booking Cinema and other tickets online

MyRealNameToo

Fozzie_Bear said:

I've just booked some cinema tickets online and been charged an extra £4,(£1 per ticket) for the privilege of doing so!!
Has this ever been challenged before?
We are pushed to book online as it saves on staff at the venue taking money and are then charged an admin fee for doing so. Cinemas are not the only trade that do this, its creeping in to other online bookings like Theme Parks, Theatres, Celebrity and sports events, and even museums. In my mind this is yet another hidden cost which is extra to the cost of the ticket.

Challenged on what basis? You arent legally obliged to go to the cinema, they dont only charge the £1 to blacks and Irish etc so they are free to charge what they want and you are free to decide if you want to buy from them or not. 

If you dont like the £1 online fee then make the effort to go to the cinema in advance to buy the tickets - hopefully your time, transport costs, parking etc dont work out more expensive than the fee. Fozzie_Bear said:

born_again said:

Online systems cost money to run. So you are paying for the service to run them.

I agree these systems cost money to run but that should be factored in to their overall running costs and reflected in ticket price rather than an "administration Charge". They have chosen to push customers to online systems in order to cut staff costs. The same principle could be applied for a service charge to cover window cleaning added to payments made at the cinema ticket office which would clearly be seen as nonsense.

Why should I pay more for my ticket that I bought in store to fund the extra IT needed to enable you to purchase it online without the effort of going into the cinema? 

There is no right or wrong, costs can be shared by all customers or pointed at those that use the additional services. There is certainly an argument that those that use it pay for it is a fairer mechanism than charging everyone irrespectively. 

Going on your logic you could also expand it saying that the popcorn and soda should also be built into the price of the ticket rather than being an extra charge on top and just bad luck to the diabetics that can't take the carb load. 

Fozzie_Bear

I think you are missing the point here. Its about competition. How can you compare the cost of tickets between different cinemas when there are extra charges added on at the point of checkout? 

The Competition and Market Authority, have already tried to clamp down on hidden fees attached to selling tickets for music events and shows etc. They now have to be included in the headline costs. Why are cinemas any different?
Why not include the cost of the IT infrastructure in the overall cost of running the business like any other company.
If we accept your premise, then every online retailer could set a price for an item and then add a fee for processing the order.
Don't forget we are being pushed to book online as it reduces the companies overheads on employing staff. If you go to a cinema now there is no dedicated ticket office just selling tickets, the staff are serving food and selling drinks etc.
Your argument about including popcorn and soda in the ticket cost does not stack up either. These are additional items which a customer would expect to pay for as they receive something physical for the cost. There is nothing tangible in a booking fee.

MyRealNameToo

Fozzie_Bear said:

I think you are missing the point here. It's about competition. How can you compare the cost of tickets between different cinemas when there are extra charges added on at the point of checkout? 

Who's ever chosen what film to see where based on price? 

Price really should only be one element, screen size, technology used in AV, seat service for the likes of Everyman etc all add to the experience and are equally opaque in most cases. 

Never heard of someone traveling 10 miles across town to go to a run down old cinema with projector from the 80s and sound system to match to save 50p off the price of the ticket compared to all the modern up to date cinemas they drove past to get there. 

Fozzie_Bear said:

Why not include the cost of the IT infrastructure in the overall cost of running the business like any other company.

Why not just charge the people that want to use the extra service for the service rather than loading everyone else's price? See previous response for further details. 

Fozzie_Bear said:

Don't forget we are being pushed to book online as it reduces the companies overheads on employing staff. If you go to a cinema now there is no dedicated ticket office just selling tickets, the staff are serving food and selling drinks etc.
Your argument about including popcorn and soda in the ticket cost does not stack up either. These are additional items which a customer would expect to pay for as they receive something physical for the cost. There is nothing tangible in a booking fee.

I've never been pushed to book online and never have booked cinema tickets online. Most our local cinemas have replaced staff with self service machines which charge no additional fee. Not sure why you feel pushed to buy online? You may want the convenience of booking your favourite seat without having to make a second trip to the cinema or want to avoid the queues from those also buying popcorn etc but thats different from being "pushed".  Thats more like paying a premium for convenience

I can't say I even remember the last time there was a dedicated ticket box separate from the snacks, certainly in the 90s our local cinema didnt have dedicated ticket sellers and no online booking either. 

I'd expect to pay extra for an additional service irrespective if it's tangible or intangible. It's not as if the web servers are free or the engineers that maintain them do it for free because the service is going to be non-physical. I sure as hell dont work for free even though all I do is give advice. 

Dont see it materially differently than those that pay to use the fast track security at the airport... they arent getting anything tangible for their money but are paying for the convenience of not having to queue. 

If you dont like the online price then queue and save the £1.

powerful_Rogue

Fozzie_Bear said:

I think you are missing the point here. Its about competition. How can you compare the cost of tickets between different cinemas when there are extra charges added on at the point of checkout? 

The Competition and Market Authority, have already tried to clamp down on hidden fees attached to selling tickets for music events and shows etc. They now have to be included in the headline costs. Why are cinemas any different?
Why not include the cost of the IT infrastructure in the overall cost of running the business like any other company.
If we accept your premise, then every online retailer could set a price for an item and then add a fee for processing the order.
Don't forget we are being pushed to book online as it reduces the companies overheads on employing staff. If you go to a cinema now there is no dedicated ticket office just selling tickets, the staff are serving food and selling drinks etc.
Your argument about including popcorn and soda in the ticket cost does not stack up either. These are additional items which a customer would expect to pay for as they receive something physical for the cost. There is nothing tangible in a booking fee.

What did they say when you contacted them?

kinger101

MyRealNameToo said:

Fozzie_Bear said:

I've just booked some cinema tickets online and been charged an extra £4,(£1 per ticket) for the privilege of doing so!!
Has this ever been challenged before?
We are pushed to book online as it saves on staff at the venue taking money and are then charged an admin fee for doing so. Cinemas are not the only trade that do this, its creeping in to other online bookings like Theme Parks, Theatres, Celebrity and sports events, and even museums. In my mind this is yet another hidden cost which is extra to the cost of the ticket.

Challenged on what basis? You arent legally obliged to go to the cinema, they dont only charge the £1 to blacks and Irish etc so they are free to charge what they want and you are free to decide if you want to buy from them or not. 

If you dont like the £1 online fee then make the effort to go to the cinema in advance to buy the tickets - hopefully your time, transport costs, parking etc dont work out more expensive than the fee. Fozzie_Bear said:

born_again said:

Online systems cost money to run. So you are paying for the service to run them.

I agree these systems cost money to run but that should be factored in to their overall running costs and reflected in ticket price rather than an "administration Charge". They have chosen to push customers to online systems in order to cut staff costs. The same principle could be applied for a service charge to cover window cleaning added to payments made at the cinema ticket office which would clearly be seen as nonsense.

Why should I pay more for my ticket that I bought in store to fund the extra IT needed to enable you to purchase it online without the effort of going into the cinema? 

There is no right or wrong, costs can be shared by all customers or pointed at those that use the additional services. There is certainly an argument that those that use it pay for it is a fairer mechanism than charging everyone irrespectively. 

Going on your logic you could also expand it saying that the popcorn and soda should also be built into the price of the ticket rather than being an extra charge on top and just bad luck to the diabetics that can't take the carb load. 

You do realize that there is a cost to the business  in selling the ticket at the cinema as well right?

TimeLord1

I used to be a regular at the cinema but really struggle today to even see anything worthwhile. But cinemas themselves in the current climate and streaming will probably be defunct in the future. But the cinema will also be paying to process the transaction, and lots are going cashless, so the card operators will increase fees for the privilege. 

kinger101

TimeLord1 said:

I used to be a regular at the cinema but really struggle today to even see anything worthwhile. But cinemas themselves in the current climate and streaming will probably be defunct in the future. But the cinema will also be paying to process the transaction, and lots are going cashless, so the card operators will increase fees for the privilege. 

Yes card transactions have a fee.  But cashiers take longer with cash transactions.  The the cash has to be counted and reconciled back office.  By someone trustworthy and meticulous.  And then has has to be securely collected and deposited in a bank.

An admin fee was never charged with cash transactions.  This is purely about advertising for a lower price than the actual sale price.

The price to the consumer should be the advertised price.  Not for most of the cost pending other charges.

TimeLord1

It's very easy to confuse today's youngsters with real money especially if you give them the odd change they look lost. 😂

molerat

Drip pricing, which includes these fees, is now part of a new CMA investigation.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-launches-major-consumer-protection-drive-focused-on-online-pricing-practices

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

molerat said:

Drip pricing, which includes these fees, is now part of a new CMA investigation.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-launches-major-consumer-protection-drive-focused-on-online-pricing-practices

This is because it's now covered under the DMCC (which gives the CMA powers without going to court), mandatory fees should be included in the headline price. Fine to charge a booking fee but it shouldn't be unexpected during the purchase flow process:

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2024/13/section/230

(1)For the purposes of this Chapter, a commercial practice which is an invitation to purchase omits material information if, considering the matters mentioned in subsection (8), it omits any of the information which is—

(a)set out in subsection (2), and

(b)not already apparent from the context.

(b)the total price of the product (so far as paragraph (c) does not apply);

(c)if, owing to the nature of the product, the whole or any part of the total price cannot reasonably be calculated in advance, how the price (or that part of it) will be calculated;

(4)For the purposes of subsection (2)(b) the total price of a product includes any fees, taxes, charges or other payments that the consumer will necessarily incur if the consumer purchases the product.