Timeless Summer Tour cancelled and in liquidation with Juicy Fest NZ

Timeless Summer Tour artists Boy George (far left), Little River Band, Bonnie Tyler (second right) and Starship had been set to perform in New Zealand, including Tauranga on January 17. Photo / Supplied

The Timeless Summer Tour has been cancelled and put into liquidation three months after being postponed.

A Rotorua ticketholder feeling “ripped off” after trying for weeks to get her $632 refunded says she’s “gutted” and even less confident of getting her “hard-earned money” back.

The tour had the same promoter as the cancelled Juicy Fest New Zealand music festival series.

Three companies linked to the events have been put into voluntary liquidation: Juicy Festival Ltd, Timeless Events New Zealand and Timeless Events Australia Ltd.

The Timeless Summer Tour was to feature 80s stars Boy George, Bonnie Tyler and Starship and visit Tauranga, Christchurch, Napier, New Plymouth and Auckland.

It was postponed on December 20 with plans to reschedule for later this year.

An email sent to ticketholders on Friday said the Timeless tour was now cancelled “due to matters outside our control”.

“We have found ourselves in this gut-wrenching position after losing three of our sites on the New Zealand tour. We were sharing the infrastructure at three sites with Juicy Fest New Zealand, but when that event was cancelled it was no longer viable to run these shows.”

Fans at the Juicy Fest Tauranga 2024 concert at Mercury Baypark in Mount Maunganui, but the event failed to return this summer.

Organisers had not been to find dates that would work for the majority of the artists so had to cancel. The event was being put into liquidation due to “significant expenses” incurred.

“Liquidators will now take control of the company and will be working through how to best resolve the company’s financial obligations, including funds and funds held to be refunded.”

Event organisers were “gutted” by this outcome and regretted any disappointment or inconvenience to ticket holders.

A similar email was sent to Juicy Fest NZ ticketholders, saying it was being put into voluntary liquidation and refunds were in liquidators' hands.

Ticketholders had previously complained of refund delays after the event’s cancellation in December due to its liquor licence being refused in Auckland.

‘Ripped off’

A Rotorua resident who held a ticket for the Tauranga show, who asked not to be named, said she bought two VIP tickets in September, intending it to be a birthday celebration.

She paid $632.96 for her and her partner to attend the January 17 concert at Mercury Baypark.

“[We] were so excited as we both love Boy George and were so disappointed when I was advised via email the concert was postponed.”

She waited at first but with no new dates announced, requested a refund from the promoter, and contacted the ticketing agency.

Despite sending 20-plus emails, she was still waiting for concert promoter Glenn Meikle to “honour his promise” to make refunds.

“It’s now March, and me and hundreds of other customers – including Juicy Fest concertgoers – are waiting for our money back, I feel we’re being ripped off.”

She said she complained to the Commerce Commission last month and the Disputes Tribunal a few days ago – the latter at a cost of $59.

Her bank gave her a “temporary reversal” of her credit card payment on Wednesday but she feared this could be reversed given the liquidation.

“Not getting a guaranteed refund is unacceptable and crushing.”

An apologetic notice on the event website on Friday morning still said it was expected new dates could be announced “in February” and these would be at indoor venues later this year.

Tickets would be “automatically transferred” and refund information provided to anyone who could no longer attend.

NZME asked Timeless Live and Meikle to respond to the ticketholder’s criticisms and Commerce Commission comments, as well as when new dates or refund information would arrive.

In a written statement earlier this week, a Timeless Live spokesperson acknowledged the “frustrations” and said ticketholders would be updated soon.

A Ticket Fairy statement prior to Friday’s announcement said its team continued to work behind the scenes to obtain official news from the promoter.

Friday’s emails to ticketholders said Ticket Fairy was being “unfairly harassed” and did not hold any funds or deal with refunds.

The ticketholder NZME spoke to rejected the claim of harassment.

“All I’ve done is sent daily emails to Ticket Fairy asking for my hard-earned money back, I don’t consider that harassment.”

Commerce Commission investigation

Commerce Commission general manager of competition, fair trading and credit Vanessa Horne said earlier this week that as of March 3, it had received 296 complaints about Juicy Fest and 67 about the Timeless Summer Tour.

Commerce Commission general manager of competition, fair trading and credit Vanessa Horne. Photo / Supplied

The commission’s investigation was currently about the Juicy Fest cancellation and refund delays but could be extended to include Timeless Summer Tour issues if necessary, she said.

Horne encouraged consumers having trouble getting a refund to reach out to other organisations that may be able to assist, including their bank if they used a credit card to buy tickets, the Citizens Advice Bureau or Disputes Tribunal.

“If a consumer thinks that a business is breaching the Fair Trading Act or other laws we enforce, please let us know using the ‘report a concern’ on our website.”

Consumer NZ’s advice

A Consumer New Zealand spokesperson said earlier this week that ticketholders were entitled to refunds within a reasonable period.

“In our opinion, two to three weeks is more than enough time for refunds to be processed. No one should have to wait months to get their money back.”

Consumer recommended ticketholders report delays to the Commerce Commission. They could also lodge a Dispute Tribunal claim but it would cost $59 and “may take some time to get a hearing date”.

Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.