Oasis tickets: Ticketmaster's 'in demand' pricing could be in breach of consumer law

Ticketmaster may have breached consumer protection law during its Oasis ticket sale, an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has found.

The long-awaited Oasis reunion tour faced controversy back in September, following Ticketmaster’s use of ‘in demand’ pricing, which is where prices surge if demand is high.

Which? warned that Ticketmaster's lack of transparency over inflated ticket prices could have potentially breached consumer law.

The CMA's investigation has since uncovered similar concerns with how Ticketmaster presented information about ticket prices.

One concern is around 'platinum' tickets, which sold for nearly two-and-a-half times the price of equivalent standard tickets. According to the CMA, Ticketmaster failed to sufficiently explain that these tickets didn't offer additional benefits and were often located in the same area of the stadium.

The CMA also found that fans weren't informed that there were two categories of standing tickets at different prices, with the cheaper standing tickets sold first before more expensive tickets were released.

This meant that many fans waited in a lengthy queue without realising they'd face far higher prices than expected when they finally got through to buy tickets.

Given that both the CMA and Which? have found serious legal concerns with the ticket sale,  Which? has called for Ticketmaster to refund fans who may have been misled into paying over the odds for tickets.

Tickets surge to more than double the advertised price

Back in September, following the Oasis ticket sale, Which? looked to see whether fans were warned that ticket prices could increase due to high levels of demand.

We received dozens of screenshots from fans who had tried to buy tickets (both before and after prices increased), which we shared with the CMA to inform its investigation.

None of these screenshots showed a warning message that Ticketmaster would increase prices during the sale.

Instead, Which? saw evidence that fans were shown one ticket price when they were queuing for tickets, only to have that price taken away at the last second and replaced with a far higher - and unexpected - ticket price when the page reloaded.

In one example, the cost of standing tickets - originally advertised to the consumer for £148.50 - had surged to £337.50 each due to ‘in demand’ pricing. This meant that four standing tickets could cost an eye-watering £1,400 once service and order processing fees were included.

Which? believes Ticketmaster’s lack of transparency around its ‘in demand’ pricing could have breached the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs), as many fans weren't informed about price rises until after they'd tried to add cheaper tickets to their baskets.

Under the CPRs, when advertising a product, traders must not mislead consumers with how prices are presented or leave out key pricing information that might be needed to make an informed decision about a purchase.

The regulations also blacklist 31 specific practices, including bait advertising. This is when the trader lures in the consumer with attractive advertising around special prices without letting consumers know there is a risk the trader cannot offer that product at that price or only has a few in stock.

• Read more: how to complain if you've been misled by a sale or special offer

Which? calls on Ticketmaster to refund the difference for inflated prices

Following the CMA's investigation - which also found that Ticketmaster could be in breach of consumer law - it has been working with Ticketmaster to address its concerns.

But while it's positive that the CMA is speaking to Ticketmaster about changes to its processes, this will offer little comfort to Oasis fans who felt they had no choice but to pay much more than they'd expected for tickets.

Which? is therefore calling on Ticketmaster to refund the difference to fans who paid inflated prices for tickets.

The CMA needs to make sure this happens so that fans aren't forced to go down the legal route to get their money back.

When Which? contacted Ticketmaster in September, it said: 'We are committed to cooperating with the CMA and look forward to sharing more facts about the ticket sale with them.'

• Read more: how to get a refund from a ticket seller

This article was originally published on 10 September 2024 and was updated on 26 March 2025 with the news that the CMA has found Ticketmaster could have breached consumer protection law.