Watchdog calls on Oasis and Ticketmaster to refund fans hit by inflated prices
Consumer group Which? has called on Oasis and Ticketmaster to “do the right thing” and refund fans hit by inflated ticket prices.
Many fans were shocked by the price of standard tickets for the reunion tour more than doubling from £148 to £355 on Ticketmaster amid surging demand, prompting the Government and the UK’s competition watchdog to pledge they will look into the use of dynamic pricing.
Following the controversy, Which? asked Oasis fans to send in screenshots of the ticket-buying and checkout process to see if they were warned that ticket prices could surge due to high levels of demand.
Which? said it 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.
Evidence
Instead, Which? said it 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? cited one 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.
Under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs), 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.
Which? said many fans were not informed about the increases until after they had already tried to add cheaper tickets to their baskets.
While the use of ‘dynamic pricing’ was mentioned in the terms and conditions on the website, fans were not warned that this practice would be used for Oasis tickets, the watchdog said.
Last week the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over the sale.
Dynamic pricing
The CMA said its investigation would include how so-called ‘dynamic pricing’ may have been used and would scrutinise whether the sale of Oasis tickets by Ticketmaster may have breached consumer protection law.
Ticketmaster has said it does not set concert prices and its website states this is down to the “event organiser” who “has priced these tickets according to their market value”.
Oasis have previously stated that they had no involvement in the decision to implement dynamic pricing.
Which? said it would share its findings with the CMA.
Over the weekend, Oasis sent out invites for a private invite-only ballot for their “final” Wembley Stadium dates, having extended their Live ’25 tour to include two more London shows on September 27 and 28.
Which? consumer law expert Lisa Webb 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.”
Oasis and Ticketmaster have been approached for comment.
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I suppose if one good thing comes from this reunion is highlighting the stranglehold ticket master has on the market, the rip off pricing that can happen especially when touts and the attendant tout sites that will make a mint from this get involved. But it has been going on for a long time. Dynamic pricing isn’t new for this ticket issue. Then they ladle on booking fees and handling charges. Complaints have been going in for over a decade about the way these sites also interact, that is allow for easy rip offs. So, don’t drop this story after… Read more »
If people want to waste money then they can. ‘ Buyer beware.’ No-one made them buy these items so tough luck – but it’s the buyer’s fault.
The “buyer beware” argument might work if people knew what they were getting beforehand. But they didn’t. People didn’t know they were going to have to pay two to three times the price until right at the very last second. In order to even be in with a chance of getting tickets, you have to wait in a queue for hours. Then you get to checkout, try to buy face value tickets, and fail. Then you’re offered a higher price ticket instead, and you have no more than 10 seconds to make a decision before you’re kicked out and put… Read more »
Ticketmaster are nothing more than a cartel at this point. They have a completely stranglehold on live music and will keep pushing the boundaries of greed because there is nothing and no one to stop them. In all of Cardiff, I’ve only been to two live music venues in the last 5 years or so where the tickets were not organised by either Ticketmaster or the parent group LiveNation. A gig at the CIA (Utilita Arena, or whatever we’re calling it these days) for even a moderately successful band will easily command anywhere from £45 to £80 for a single… Read more »