Which? calls on Oasis and Ticketmaster to refund fans hit by inflated ‘in demand’ ticket prices
Following controversy over the dynamic pricing model used by Ticketmaster for the band’s long-awaited reunion gigs, Which? asked Oasis fans to send in screenshots of the ticket buying and checkout process to see if fans were warned that ticket prices could surge due to high levels of demand.
The consumer champion received dozens of screenshots from fans who had tried to buy tickets - both before and after prices increased - none of which showed a warning message that Ticketmaster would increase prices during the sale.
Instead, Which? saw evidence that fans were shown one price for tickets, only to have that price taken away at the last second and replaced with a far higher, and unexpected, ticket price.
Which? saw a screenshot showing that due to ‘in demand’ pricing the cost of standing tickets at a Heaton Park show - originally advertised for £148.50 - surged to £337.50 each. This meant that four standing tickets could cost an eye-watering £1,400 once service and order processing fees were included.
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs) protect consumers from unfair or misleading trading practices. Under the CPRs, when advertising a product, traders must not mislead consumers with how prices are presented or leave out key pricing information that they might need to make an informed decision about their 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 when the trader knows that it cannot offer that product or only has a few in stock at that price.
Which? believes Ticketmaster’s lack of transparency around its ‘in demand’ pricing for the Oasis concerts could have breached the CPRs as many fans were not informed about the increases until after they had already tried to add cheaper tickets to their baskets. The use of ‘dynamic pricing’ is mentioned in the terms and conditions on the website but fans were not warned that this practice would be used for Oasis tickets.
The Competition and Markets Authority is also investigating whether Ticketmaster’s sale of Oasis tickets may have breached consumer law. A finding from the CMA that the ticketing approach breached consumer law would enable fans to seek refunds and compensation from Oasis and Ticketmaster - but that would likely be a lengthy and arduous route to pursue. Oasis have previously stated that they had no involvement in the decision to implement dynamic pricing.
The consumer champion is calling on Oasis and Ticketmaster to do the right thing and refund the difference to fans who may have been misled into paying huge sums for tickets that were half the price just hours earlier.
Which? will be sharing its findings with the Competition and Markets Authority for their investigation into Ticketmaster’s pricing practices.
Lisa Webb, Which? Consumer Law Expert, said:
“It seems extremely unfair that Oasis fans got up early and battled through the queues only to find that tickets prices had more than doubled from the originally advertised price.
“Which? believes that Ticketmaster’s ‘in demand’ pricing practices for Oasis tickets could have breached consumer law as it appears fans weren’t properly warned about the use of ‘in demand’ pricing until far too late in the purchase journey - leading to a nasty shock at the checkout.
“Oasis and Ticketmaster should do the right thing and refund fans who may have been misled into paying over the odds for tickets that would have been half the price just hours earlier.”
-ENDS-
Notes to editors
Ignition Management (who manage Oasis) had not provided a comment at the time of publication.
Ticketmaster said: “We are committed to cooperating with the CMA and look forward to sharing more facts about the ticket sale with them.”
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