Madrid Spain.- The Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) has filed a complaint with the Ministry of Consumption against Ticketmaster, accusing the company of applying irregular and abusive commissions in the sale of tickets online through its website, according to information published by Europa Press.
In a statement, OCU says that Ticketmaster charges a fixed commission of two euros as a “service fee” for the transaction, which is not visible until the moment of ticket purchase. In addition, it charges a commission of up to 13 percent on the ticket price as “management fees”, half-hidden in a link next to the ticket price.
OCU believes that the combination of the two commissions represents an “unjustified, abusive and non-transparent” expense for the same service, when, in addition, as the company itself announces, it is the only channel that users have to buy tickets on Ticketmaster.
The entity therefore requests that the Consumer Affairs Office sanction the company and force it to cease this type of practice, while recognising the right of those affected to claim the refund of these unduly charged expenses.
The OCU believes that the only websites that can apply management fees are resale websites, but they should be included from the start and applied per management fee, not per ticket. In this case, the “greatest abuse” comes from the excessive online surcharge for these fees, which is why the OCU insists that the Ministry of Consumption promote a regulation that limits the surcharge to 20 percent, as established in the regulations for the resale of tickets at the box office.
Ticketmaster sources have told Europa Press that there are no complaints, “especially against them,” and they add that the OCU is reviewing all ticket sales websites to study how management costs are detailed.
“It is a task focused on all platforms, not against Ticketmaster” they state, while reminding that the prices and costs are set by the promoter and the artist.
#Ticketmaster #sued #abusive #commission #charges