Ticket fraud is when you buy tickets from a website, but the tickets do not arrive or turn out to be fake.
How do scam ticket websites work?
- The website offers you the chance to buy tickets to a popular event. The event is often actually sold-out, or the tickets haven’t officially gone on sale yet.
- You pay for the tickets but they are never delivered.
- In some cases you might be told that a customer representative will meet you at the venue on the day. Nobody turns up.
- You may even receive tickets, but when you arrive at the event, the organisers tell you the tickets are fake.
- When you try to call the company you bought the tickets from, your calls are not answered or do not connect.
- Remember that it’s easy for scammers to set up a fake website that looks genuine. Some even use a name or website url that is similar to a legitimate website. If you’re unsure or it sounds too good to be true, leave the website immediately.
Get safe online: Protect yourself from scam ticket websites
- Check with the event organiser, promoter or venue how and when tickets are being distributed.
- Check where the company’s office is and whether they have a landline in this country and a proper address rather than a PO box.
- Check online if there is adverse criticism of the company.
- Ask questions, such as when the ticket will be dispatched and what type of ticket you are buying.
- Read the terms and conditions on all but particularly not known websites (some ticket websites state quite clearly that there are no refunds).
- If you’re buying football tickets, be aware that it’s illegal to re-sell football tickets under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act in most instances.
- Pay for tickets by credit card – the card issuer is jointly liable for a failure for goods or services to be provided as long as the price of a single ticket is more than £100 (but less than £30,000) but check with your card provider how long the period of liability is if the event is further ahead .
- Check the payment pages are secure by looking for a padlock symbol in the address bar, and making sure the website address begins with ‘https’.
If you have lost money to a ticket scam, report it to Action Fraud.