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Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran fans lose out as online ticket fraud costs victims average of £200

£1.3m in sport and entertainment tickets lost in six months with one rugby fan paying £550 for bogus World Cup tickets

Adam Sherwin
Media Correspondent
Tuesday 24 November 2015 11:34 GMT
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Online re-sale sites have been accused of ignoring re-sale restrictions
Online re-sale sites have been accused of ignoring re-sale restrictions

Victims of ticket fraud have suffered an average loss of £200, figures released by the body Action Fraud revealed, as ministers were urged to take a tougher line against secondary ticketing sites.

Nearly £1.3 million was lost through entertainment and sport ticketing fraud in the six months to the end of October 2015, the first figures to exclude areas such as holiday and airline tickets, found.

The victims included a rugby fan who paid more than £550 for tickets to the England V Australia World Cup match from a company which subsequently changed its website address and failed to supply the tickets.

Fans failed to receive tickets for concerts by Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac, One Direction as well as Summer festivals, according to Action Fraud.

Some of those who bought tickets for Foo Fighters concerts at Wembley Stadium said their supplier had failed to provide the tickets and then ignored demands to refund their payments when the concert was subsequently cancelled at short notice.

The Society of Ticket Agents & Retailers (STAR) has launched a #lookfortheSTAR campaign, which aims to help reduce fraud by educating and encouraging customers to always look for STAR’s kitemark when buying tickets. Members of STAR sign up to a strict Code of Practice and the kitemark guarantees that the ticket is from a reliable source.

The Department of Culture Media and Sport is currently carrying out an investigation into secondary ticketing. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, consumers must be notified of any restrictions on the tickets, all seating details and the original face value of the ticket. However Which? recently found these rules being repeatedly flouted on all the major secondary ticketing sites.

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fyfe, City of London Police, said: “The key to making sure you don’t fall victim to this crime is to only use authorised sellers and if you have any doubts about the website check out the reviews online. And when it comes to making a purchase always use a payment card and never transfer the funds directly into another bank account.”

Adrian Sanders, Chairman of STAR said: "As well as cheating the consumer, every case of fraud damages the reputation of Britain's vital entertainment and sporting industries. Buying tickets from a STAR kitemarked seller will give consumers the confidence that their purchase comes with certain guarantees that protect their rights.”

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