No ticket to hide… you CAN get a gig refund!

OVER THE past few weeks readers have been contacting me in their droves with complaints over refunds for cancelled concerts and festivals. One name that keeps recurring is Viagogo, a secondary ticket seller with a history of flouting consumer laws.

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING

Disgruntled consumers seem to fall into three camps: i) They cannot raise a response from Viagogo after a refund request. ii) They have been promised a refund, but told it will take several months. iii) They have been denied a refund on the basis the event has been rescheduled. Dianne Harrington, for instance, bought tickets for her daughter to attend the Lytham festival in Lancashire in March. It was cancelled and she has been trying to get a refund ever since. So far, she has received no response from Viagogo. Another reader, Dave Lewis, bought tickets to see Elton John this November. The concert was cancelled but Viagogo has refused to give Dave a refund on the basis that the date has now been rescheduled. And Kim Appleton booked tickets to see pop star Lewis Capaldi. After the concert was cancelled, Viagogo offered Kim a refund but said it might take up to seven months.

VIAGOGO’S POSITION

The firm says that if an event is rescheduled, tickets remain valid and, in these circumstances, its terms and conditions provide that there is no entitlement to a refund. However, it also says consumers always have the option of relisting their tickets for sale to others.

If an event is completely cancelled, Viagogo concedes the customer is entitled to a cash refund or a 125 per cent voucher.

THE LEGAL POSITION

Viagogo is wrong. Its terms and conditions do not trump consumer law. And the law is clear: if an event is cancelled or even rescheduled, the consumer is entitled to a full cash refund. This position has also been confirmed by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in relation to its investigation into holiday and wedding refunds. Consumer laws also provide that refunds should be processed in a reasonable amount of time – seven months, in Kim’s case, falls firmly outside of that.

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO NEXT

Unfortunately you have fewer rights against a secondary ticket seller like Viagogo, as they simply act as an agent for the actual seller. However, in many cases Viagogo will not yet have passed your cash to the seller and they are clearly the party putting up the barriers to a refund.

My advice is to: i) Report Viagogo to the CMA (the more complaints, the more likely it is to take action). ii)Write a letter demanding a refund and ask that a copy be passed to the actual seller. iii) If you paid by debit card, contact your bank and make a chargeback claim or, if by credit card, a section 75 claim.