Live entertainment fans have a lot to look forward to this summer with numerous music events coming up. However, experts warn that these events could attract ticket scammers, so caution is advised.
In response to this, the ticket experts at SeatPick have shared tips to help you avoid being scammed when purchasing tickets. Recognising the challenge of securing tickets to popular events, they have also provided advice to increase your chances of obtaining one.
Protect Yourself from Ticket Scams with These Expert Tips
1. Only purchase from sellers you know and trust:
Although it might be tempting to purchase a ticket elsewhere if you weren’t successful on the day, be wary of who you’re buying from and do your research beforehand. Never allow someone to send you a screenshot of a ticket as these are invalid or send payment before receiving the tickets. If something looks too good to be true, it probably is.
2. Be cautious with social media:
Social media is filled with various hacks and tips for getting tickets, but it can’t always be trusted. Scammers can easily create fake ads with pictures of real tickets (which they don’t actually have). Always ensure you’re accessing ticket sites through your search engine or official emails from legitimate ticket providers. While it may be tempting to click on something shared on social media, there’s no guarantee it is the official site, and scammers often use social media to target fans.
3. Opt for debit or credit card payments instead of bank transfers:
Bank transfers provide minimal protection if issues arise. Using a credit or debit card offers better safeguards through Section 75 and Chargeback rules, which allow you to potentially recover your money if an item is broken, faulty, or fails to arrive.
PayPal is also a safer choice, but watch out for fake emails claiming that money has been deposited into your account. Always verify your account balance independently. When using PayPal, select ‘Paying for an item or service’ to ensure you are covered by PayPal’s Purchase Protection.
Top tips to ensure you secure the ticket you really want
1. Team up with friends and try multiple sites
This can significantly enhance your chances of securing a spot at popular events. By distributing tasks among multiple people, each person can concentrate on one ticketing system, increasing efficiency and reaction speed to quickly snag tickets, especially when they’re released in waves or become available through different presales. This approach also maximises the likelihood of success by having backups in case a site crashes.
2. Ensure you have a Ticketmaster account
You want to minimise issues on the day, so ensure everybody trying to secure the tickets has signed up and logged into the platform first. This will allow you to skip a few vital seconds in the process of paying and securing your tickets. It could make all the difference. Also, ensure your payment details are set up too!
3. Never refresh the page
Once you are in the ticket queue, never be tempted to refresh your browser. You may lose all your hard work and get kicked to the back of the very long queue. Being patient and not panicking is key to success.
4. Don’t stress if tickets sell out straight away
Missed the tickets? Be sure to check back on the sites after they say they’re sold out.Sometimes ticket payments don’t go through, the website crashes and more tickets are still available. Keep checking for roughly two hours after release. You might just be lucky.
Beth S, Billie Eilish fan from London, UK, also offers her own advice to secure tickets:
- Clear your browser cache – To free your device’s memory and ensure there is absolutely nothing slowing down your browser, clear the cookies and browser cache.
- Don’t have multiple tabs open – It is tempting to ‘increase’ the chances of getting tickets by opening multiple tabs but in reality it slows down your system adding valuable seconds to your purchase.
- Be prepared to wait – I have waited for 2 hours to secure tickets before – be patient, it takes a long time because they only allow a select few onto the site at a time, so don’t panic if you think it’s taking ages.
- Try not to panic and think positively! – There are always other opportunities to grab tickets so don’t lose motivation if it doesn’t work out the first time.
“I hope these tips are helpful for seeing your favourite musicians live!” – Gilad Zilberman, SeatPick Co-Founder
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