Oasis and Ticketmaster must refund fans hit by dynamic pricing, watchdog demands
Oasis and Ticketmaster have faced calls to do the right thing and refund fans hit by dynamic pricing by consumer group Which?The band and ticketing giant have faced the fury of those eager to watch Oasiss hotly-anticipated reunion tour after the price of standard tickets doubled from £148 to £355.
Oasis and Ticketmaster have faced calls to do the right thing and refund fans hit by dynamic pricing by consumer group Which?
The band and ticketing giant have faced the fury of those eager to watch Oasiss hotly-anticipated reunion tour after the price of standard tickets doubled from £148 to £355.
Ticketmaster said prices were driven up by surging demand and the policy had been agreed with the bands management, Oasis itself said they were unaware of dynamic pricing would be implemented when tickets initially went on sale.
Since then the Government and the UKs competition watchdog have pledged to look into the implementation of the policy.
Now Which?, one of Britains most well known consumer groups, has called for those who paid more than expected to seal their place at the gigs to have some of their money returned.
Noel and Liam Gallagher announced that Oasis would reunite for a UK tour next year sparking a frenzied battle for tickets. Pictured: Noel (left) and Liam (right) at Wembley Stadium in 2008
Furious Oasis fans took to social media to criticise prices on Ticketmaster after they went up due to 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.
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.
Lisa Webb, Which? Consumer Law Expert, 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 Ticketmasters in demand pricing practices for Oasis tickets could have breached consumer law as it appears fans werent 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.
Last week the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over the sale.
Liam (left) and Noel Gallagher (right) have been criticised by fans over the ticketing chaos
Liam and Noel Gallagher, pictured here at the V Festival in Chelmsford in Essex in August 2005, have not played together after Oasis broke up in 2009
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 Ticketmasters in demand pricing practices for Oasis tickets could have breached consumer law as it appears fans werent 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.
