Price of reselling tickets could be capped in crackdown on touts

The proposals come after tickets for Oasis' reunion tour were resold for as much as £8,000. ITV News reporter Chloe Keedy has more

When tickets for Oasis’ long awaited comeback tour went on sale last summer, fans queued for hours online, desperately hoping to get their hands on one.

But anxiety turned to anger when, within a matter of minutes, seats started appearing on resale websites. Many were being sold at hugely inflated prices - some for as much as £8,000.

Seasoned gig goers will know that this is nothing new. Reselling concert tickets for profit on sites like Viagogo and Stubhub isn’t illegal in the UK (although it is frequently in breach of terms and conditions set by bands and their promoters) - but that could be about to change.

The government is proposing a cap on the price of resold tickets for concerts, live sport and other events, as part of a range of measures it claims will clamp down on ticket touts.

The big question is where that cap would fall. The government is consulting on proposals that could put it anywhere between 0% (meaning tickets can only be resold at face value) and 30%, a figure which campaigners have called "ludicrous".

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Adam Webb, Campaign Manager at FanFair Alliance, told me that if resale prices are capped at face value, it could be "game changing".

“Other countries, notably Ireland, have demonstrated how legislation to prevent the resale of tickets for profit can massively curb the illegal and anti-consumer practices of online ticket touts and offshore resale platforms’, he said.

“The UK simply needs to follow their example."

The government is also proposing to limit the number of tickets resellers can list, introduce a new licensing regime for resale platforms and issue stronger fines to those that don’t comply.

"For too long fans have had to endure the misery of touts hoovering up tickets for resale at vastly inflated prices", said Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary.

"As part of our Plan for Change, we are taking action to strengthen consumer protections, stop fans getting ripped off and ensure money spent on tickets goes back into our incredible live events sector, instead of into the pockets of greedy touts."

As prices got out of control amid resales of their reunion tour tickets, Oasis responded at the time: "Tickets can ONLY be resold, at face value, via Ticketmaster and Twickets. Tickets sold in breach of the terms and conditions will be cancelled by the promoters."

Viagogo and Stubhub are two of the UK’s biggest resale platforms. We approached both for a comment, and Viagogo responded to say it would "continue to constructively engage with the government and look forward to responding in full to the consultation and call for evidence on improving consumer protections in the ticketing market".

The websites themselves do not decide the resale price as the seller can choose how much to charge.

In addition to the consultation, ministers say they also want to investigate dynamic pricing, where primary ticket sites adjust ticket prices based on demand and availability.

The practice caused outrage amongst Oasis fans last year. Hundreds complained after queuing for hours, only to find the cost of the ticket they were eventually offered was far greater than the one originally advertised.

The government claims its plans will put money back in the pockets of working people. But after years of regulators promising and failing to get a grip on the secondary market, fans may well be wondering what, if anything, will be different this time.

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