Watchdog Wednesday: The curse of the Harry Potter ticket touts

Rebecca Langridge, a self-confessed Potter fan, aged 27 from Pulborough West Sussex, jumped online last October to buy two tickets for her and her mate. But, before she could utter the incantation ‘Protego’, the curse of the re-selling websites was upon them. The tickets had sold out.

Rebecca Langridge

Out of curiosity Rebecca looked online to see if there were any for sale on re-selling websites.

Sure enough, within moments of the tickets being sold out, they were up for sale on websites such as Stubhub and Viagogo and the asking price was way above face value. Rebecca says "This angers me so, so, so, so much. Anyone can see that these tickets were purely purchased to re-sell and make money from".

Tickets were originally on sale for £140, but we’ve spotted some on secondary sites going for nearly £5k. And it has been reported that some tickets have been priced over £8,000.

Viagogo

It’s not the first time this has happened to Rebecca, "I tried to get tickets to the Rugby World Cup and couldn’t get any then either, there were loads on sale online but way over-priced. I think the price should be capped. Allowing something to be sold for £1000 when it only costs a tenner in the first place is crazy".

What are the producers of the show doing about it?

The Producers of the Cursed Child play, Sonia Friedman and Colin Callender, tell Watchdog, "The secondary-ticket market is an industry-wide plague, and one which we as producers take very seriously. Our priority is to protect all our customers and are doing all we can to combat this issue."

On the Harry Potter theatre tickets websites it clearly states that they reserve the right to refuse admission to people with tickets purchased from re-sale websites and they will be automatically void. Adam Webb, campaign manager for fan group FanFair Alliance says "It seems extraordinary that GetMeIn, Seatwave, StubHub and Viagogo are allowing them to be listed in the first place."

http://www.harrypottertheplay.com/

Staff at The Palace theatre have refused entry to around 60 people who bought tickets from unauthorised retailers. The Producers say, ‘We will continue to track down touts and refuse entry to anyone who has knowingly bought a ticket from a tout through the secondary market."

What if I bought a ticket from a re-seller and have been refused entry?

If you get turned away at the box office you will be given a ‘refusal of entry’ letter. You then need to get in contact with the re-seller to get your money back. Viagogo and Stubhub have confirmed you will receive a full refund if a replacement could not be found.

Is this all legal?

Yep! It is totally legal for secondary ticketing website to re-sell tickets and they can be offered at any price. The seller must provide information such as the seat, block, stall or standing area and also detail any restrictions that apply – such as if there's a restricted view. The seller must also tell you the face value of the ticket.

Labour MP Sharon Hodgson MP co-chair of a cross-party group looking into ticketing tells Watchdog, “The Government has continually dragged their feet when it comes to addressing the scourge of ticket touts and the lack of transparency in the secondary ticketing market, despite evidence showing that fans are still being ripped off by touts, the most recent example being Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. What we need now is action from the Government, who now have a blueprint before them after the publication of the Waterson Review earlier this year which if implemented will address many of the problems".

But what if I REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEALLY want to go? Is there a way to avoid the touts?

YES! Returned tickets and other late release tickets become available every day. Also, every Friday at 1pm 40 tickets are released for the following week. It’s called The Friday Forty. There will also be a new booking period announced later this year.

What do the second-hand ticketing websites say?

A spokesperson from Viagogo says: "Sellers set the prices on Viagogo and for popular events prices can be higher because there is huge demand and limited supply. However, tickets listed at silly prices rarely sell. The reality is that around half the tickets sold on Viagogo are priced at or below face value."

Stubhub reiterated that you will receive a full refund if a replacement cannot be found.

This article was first published on Wednesday 17 August 2016