fifteenth Might 2025
Studying Time: 8 minutes
The summer time is all the time a riot relating to leisure. From native out of doors festivals to large occasions like Glastonbury, there’s a ton of enjoyable available within the sunny months. Nonetheless, tickets will be costly – and that additionally makes it simple to get sucked in by ticket scams. Learn to get monetary savings in your summer time leisure tickets with out being fooled by ticket scams.
Take into account Cashback Websites to Save
Save Cash on Live performance Tickets
The best way to Keep away from Ticket Scams
Why Ticket Costs Rocket
There was an enormous hoo-haa when Taylor Swift, Harry Types, and bands like BlackPink have been revealed to make use of one thing referred to as ‘dynamic pricing’. Which means that the extra individuals which can be making an attempt to purchase the tickets, the upper the worth would rise. Whereas some artists denied permitting this technique was their selection, utilizing verified ticket retailers that do that (like Ticketmaster) will be seen as implicit settlement to utilizing dynamic pricing in ticket gross sales.
What this implies for you, the client, is that you simply might need budgeted round £300 for a pair of live performance tickets for the one you love’s particular birthday. You sit within the ticket queue ready for them to be launched… after which these tickets now value £600! And, as a result of stay music has die-hard followers, there are numerous who will take the hit on the upper value as a result of the expertise is a once-in-a-lifetime likelihood for them.
There aren’t any guidelines in opposition to dynamic pricing within the UK. And whereas it’s imagined to be a technique to ‘cease touts and provides extra again to artists’, what it’s truly doing is pushing second-hand ticket gross sales by way of the roof at even larger costs. And the individuals who can afford to purchase these tickets to resell? They’re usually the ticket touts this technique is designed to cease.
Use a Verified Retailer
So, how will you be sure to’re not a sufferer of ticket scams? Nicely, sadly, some venues and a few artists will solely use a single ticket gross sales outlet like Ticketmaster. This implies you’ll be able to solely formally purchase a ticket by way of them. Whereas it offers you some purchaser safety, for instance if the live performance is cancelled you’ll be able to declare a refund, it does restrict your choices.
Nonetheless, utilizing a verified retailer is far safer than shopping for tickets second-hand from public sale websites or your native Fb Market. Many tickets aren’t transferable to others, and must be bought again to the unique ticket vendor company if the client can not attend. Which means that the ticket you’ve purchased from Mr. Mysterious down the native pub won’t allow you to contained in the venue, and also you gained’t have any recourse for a refund from him both.
Whereas utilizing a verified retailer means you must pay the worth they set, you do get purchaser protections. Additionally they have resale platforms that are official, so if you should resell your ticket you are able to do so correctly with out risking dropping your cash or getting scammed.
Widespread Ticket Scams : The Final Minute One
Ticket scams additionally come within the type of ‘final minute’ gross sales – somebody says they’ll’t make it on the final minute, however you’ll be able to meet them on the venue to get the ticket off them if you happen to ship them money to ‘reserve’ it first.
Once more, tickets are often for the client solely – however even when they aren’t, assembly a stranger to get a ticket isn’t going to finish nicely (they usually often gained’t even flip up). In the event that they do flip up, they could demand more money from you earlier than handing the (dud) ticket over.
Widespread ticket web sites embrace TicketMaster, LiveNation, See Tickets and StubHub. TicketSwap and ViaGoGo are verified ticket reseller web sites. TicketSwap caps resale costs at 20% above face worth to keep away from ticket scams.
Get Cashback on Tickets
We discuss cashback websites lots on Moneymagpie – and for good purpose! It’s a good way to primarily get a reduction on something you should buy by way of them. Whenever you’re shopping for a gig or competition ticket, that might quantity to a pleasant chunk of change again in your pocket, for doing nothing!
All you should do is signal as much as a cashback web site and discover the ticket gross sales web site by way of it. So, if you happen to use TopCashBack, you’d log in and search ‘TicketMaster’ or have a look at the ‘Tickets and Occasions’ class to discover a ticket gross sales retailer that provides you with cashback. Click on the hyperlink and purchase as normal – simply bear in mind to pick out ‘permit all cookies’ once you get to the ticket web site, as this implies your buy will probably be tracked by the cashback web site. It wants to do that so it will probably pay you the correct quantity of cashback.
Going by way of a cashback web site is one other solution to keep away from tickets scams as you’ll be assured to solely go to a verified ticket retailer.
Widespread Ticket Scams: The Money Solely Supply
For those who suppose you’re on a verified retailer web site, however you must pay by financial institution switch or accumulate with money in particular person, STOP!
Paying on your tickets on a credit score or debit card offers you client protections if one thing goes improper – whether or not that’s since you’ve been scammed, or as a result of the live performance has been cancelled, or related. Your financial institution or card supplier has an obligation to you below these safety legal guidelines to make sure a refund is processed – however if you happen to pay by financial institution switch or money, you don’t get this safety.
Search for Companion Tickets
You probably have a incapacity, you would be entitled to a free companion ticket for occasions. The Cinema Companion Card is a nationally-recognised scheme, for instance. Theatre venues may even usually supply companion seats, although you should purchase by way of the venue on to guide.
For stadium occasions, some ticket websites can have disabled seats with companion seats, however bear in mind: typically, this implies an empty area subsequent to a seat, as a result of the belief is that the disabled particular person wants area for a wheelchair. Whereas this feels very inclusive, it clearly excludes lots of disabled individuals (corresponding to those that require mobility aids however want to take a seat down for lengthy intervals of time). Verify prematurely with a venue about their disabled seating preparations, and whether or not they supply free or discounted companion tickets.
Widespread Ticket Scams: Scattered Seats
You would possibly suppose you’ve discovered a tremendous group ticket take care of an enormous low cost on seats for the theatre or a gig… however once you get the tickets, you realise they’re single seats all through the venue and also you’re not going to be sitting with your mates.
Scammers that do that supply attractive group reductions, usually utilizing social media posts that hyperlink to what appears like an official web site, as a result of single seats at venues are all the time lowered. So, they purchase all the one seats up in a present and promote them to you as a bunch package deal. If you wish to go along with a bunch that’s bigger than the utmost ticket allowance on the verified ticket retailer, contact the venue instantly to rearrange reductions.
Save Cash on Live performance Tickets
There are a couple of extra methods you’ll be able to strive to save cash on shopping for a ticket on your favorite artist’s world tour or one of many huge music festivals this summer time.
Signal As much as Mailing Lists
Search for the occasion mailing listing AND the artist mailing lists. Arrange a brand new e-mail handle only for these, if you happen to don’t need to get lots of additional spam. These newsletters will let you know how one can get monetary savings with group reductions, provide the likelihood to win tickets and VIP experiences, and in addition be sure to’re the primary to know when tickets will go on sale.
Verify Your Cellphone Supplier
It sounds unusual, however some cell phone suppliers give you the prospect to save cash on live performance and competition tickets, in addition to leisure just like the theatre, for his or her prospects. O2 Precedence is a widely known instance, ensuring prospects get unique entry to some presales and different provides.
Use Loyalty Scheme Factors
Do you know that you would earn loyalty factors to spend in your dream competition or live performance ticket year-round? Loyalty schemes like Virgin Pink can help you do exactly that.
American Categorical prospects might do one thing related, with unique entry to specially-reserved seats at every kind of experiences and leisure nights.
Attending to and from festivals and live shows additionally usually entails lots of journey. Ensure you’re utilizing your Tesco Clubcard or your Nectar factors to save cash on the journey and lodging on your gig weekend.
Take a look at LNER Perks App
Even if you happen to don’t use LNER trains to journey, you’ll be able to nonetheless join the LNER perks app. Why would you try this? As a result of till July 2024, you will get 30% off an annual ATG membership, ranging from £35. For those who’re a frequent gig or theatre goer, this membership provides you with advance entry to tickets and particular costs, so the annual charge might simply pay for itself inside a few occasions.
And if you happen to do use LNER to journey by practice, you can even reap the benefits of the free £5 credit score to spend on an LNER journey simply by becoming a member of the app!
The best way to Keep away from Ticket Scams
There are a couple of steps you’ll be able to take to guard your self from ticket scams, each saving your self some huge cash and frustration – and never being upset once you get turned away from that live performance of a lifetime you’ve been trying ahead to.
- Use a verified retailer – if you happen to’re unsure the place it’s protected to purchase a ticket, the venue will all the time have this data, so use their web site. You can too test the Safe Tickets from Authorised Retailers web site or the Affiliation of Secondary Ticket Brokers to see if a web site or reseller is on the listing.
- Don’t use social media – don’t purchase tickets from somebody on-line in a discussion board, native promoting group, or perhaps a web site that advertises too-good-to-be-true resale costs.
- Use your debit or bank card – by no means pay money or financial institution switch on your ticket.
- Verify your ticket Ts & Cs – legit tickets can have resale or refund directions
- Verify the ticket Ts & Cs BEFORE you purchase – have a look at tickets from the ticket retailer to see if they’ve a resale coverage, buyer-specific QR codes, or something that identifies the ticket purchaser as this might imply you’re shopping for a dud ticket (for instance, a QR code ticket will be bought to a number of individuals as a rip-off, however just one particular person will be capable of get contained in the venue with it).
- Search for dodgy hyperlinks earlier than you click on – all the time hover over a web site hyperlink earlier than you click on it and if the URL displaying shouldn’t be the web site you need to go to, don’t click on!
- If an internet cost fails, DO NOT pay once more – contact the ticket gross sales web site to substantiate in case your transaction went by way of. A rip-off web site is not going to have customer support you’ll be able to discuss to, and will take a number of ‘failed’ funds from you.
Volunteer As an alternative
Tickets for any sort of leisure are costly, even when you could find methods to save cash on them whereas avoiding ticket scams. Nonetheless, there may be one path to entering into your required competition: volunteering.
Competition volunteers work a shift (often 4-6 hours every day) and will be something from visitors wardens to crowd management. In return for his or her work, they get free tickets to the competition (often together with tenting tickets in a particular workers space, too). It does imply you might need to compromise on which acts you get to see, in case your shift is scheduled for a specific time, however it’s a great way to see issues free of charge. Competition volunteering is bodily demanding, nevertheless, so that you’ll must be in prime situation to do it!
