Ludacris performing at Juicy Fest in Perth on January 15. He was due to appear in the NZ shows but they were cancelled in December. Photo / Getty Images
Ludacris performing at Juicy Fest in Perth on January 15. He was due to appear in the NZ shows but they were cancelled in December. Photo / Getty Images
Frustrated ticketholders of the cancelled Juicy Fest NZ concert series are yet to receive promised refunds worth hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars, with the Commerce Commission currently “assessing concerns” raised.
Organisers have continued to tell ticketholders that refunds are coming, blaming the complexity of “thousands of customers acrossmultiple events and multiple payment methods”, for the delay.
“Again, we’d like to humbly ask for your patience as we do this. This is not an easy task with thousands of customers across multiple events and multiple payment methods. We are working through this to ensure you receive your refunds in an appropriate time frame.”
More recently, in early February, another email was sent claiming that the refund process was on track.
“We wanted to send this email to ensure you all that this remains strong on our radar, and we continue to work on this. We will have this information to you as promised this month,” it read.
Fans at Juicy Fest Tauranga 2024 at Mercury Baypark in Mount Maunganui.
On Thursday, Juicy Fest organisers Timeless Live provided the Herald with a statement, saying: “We acknowledge the frustration surrounding the cancellation of Juicy Fest New Zealand. We will be updating Juicy Fest NZ ticket holders in the coming days.”
A public Facebook group “Juicy Fest – Refund Issues” currently has 1800 members, with many of them posting their frustration and sharing their dealings with organisers.
One post mentioned that the official Juicy Fest social media channels have turned off their comments, which have been inundated with people chasing their promised refunds.
Another claimed they had contacted their bank, which has since lodged a dispute.
One of the many customers struggling to obtain a refund is Midz, who told the Herald she purchased two VIP tickets and merchandise for the Wellington show scheduled for January 10 worth roughly $847.
Midz said she felt like questions were not being efficiently answered in a timely manner by organisers.
“Juicy Fest needs to set a deadline on when refunds can be expected, not update upon update,” she said.
“They have all our payment methods for ticket purchasers, so there shouldn’t be a long delay in getting a refund”.
She has also lodged a dispute with her banking institution.
“We appreciate and acknowledge [organisers] have been enduring to rectify the issue in a timely manner, however, the refunds have taken longer than anticipated and questions have not been answered regarding my ticket purchases.”
Others on the Facebook group encouraged one another to lodge a complaint with the Commerce Commission.
The commission confirmed it had received 115 enquiries about Juicy Fest regarding refund timelines.
“We are currently assessing the concerns raised with us. In deciding whether to investigate issues that come to its attention, the Commission considers the available information for its relevance to the Commission’s responsibilities and current work programme, its enforcement criteria and priority areas for new enforcement work.”
It noted that the timing of a refund will vary according to the terms and conditions of the goods or service in question, and consumers should be aware of this at the point of purchase.
“Businesses must not make false or misleading representations to consumers about their right to a refund, including the timing of refunds or the process that will be followed for refunds.
“Misleading consumers about their rights is likely to breach the Fair Trading Act.”
The Commission said it encouraged any consumers who are having trouble getting a refund to reach out to organisations that may be able to assist.
These included their bank if they used a credit card to purchase the tickets, the Citizens Advice Bureau, or the Disputes Tribunal.
“If a consumer thinks that a business is breaching the Fair Trading Act or one of the other laws we enforce, we encourage them to report it.”
Consumer NZ said it had also received several complaints from Juicy Fest ticket holders who are disgruntled about how long it’s taking to get their money back.
This comes after the organisation received similar complaints on refund delays in early 2023, when weather events caused cancellations.
Consumer NZ said it expects refunds to be processed within a reasonable timeframe.
“In our view, two or three weeks is reasonable. No one should have to wait months to get their money back.”
They said people who paid by credit or with debit card can try contacting their bank and asking for a chargeback, but there’s a limited timeframe to apply this so people should contact their bank as soon as possible.
“It’s also possible to lodge a claim at the Disputes Tribunal but it costs $59 (for claims up to $2000) and may take several months to get a hearing date.”
Culture Club singer Boy George was set to headline the event alongside Bonnie Tyler and Starship.
Timeless Live did not give the Herald any indication of new dates for this festival, but commenters online said they received an email on Thursday that further pushed any update.
“We know we had mentioned having an update on the postponement today – but we do need a little extra time. Please know we will have an update for you later this month.
“Please bear with us. We know this has been a frustrating time for many of you, but we thank you for your patience.”
Mitchell Hageman joined the Herald’s entertainment and lifestyle team in 2024. He previously worked as a multimedia journalist for Hawke’s Bay Today.
