Calls for crackdown as ticket resellers claim 700% mark-up on Super Rugby ticket

One rugby fan paid a whopping 700 per cent mark-up on the face value of a ticket to watch the Hurricanes take on the Crusaders. Photo / Photosport

A sports fan was stung with a 700 per cent mark-up for a super rugby ticket and annoyed concertgoers paid big for cheap seats as calls are made to crack down on the ticket resale market.

More than 1000 people have told Australian and New Zealand consumer groups about their rip-off experiences by online ticket reseller sites.

Results of a joint investigation into the ticket resale industry by Consumer NZ and Choice released today reveal massive mark-ups, hidden fees and misleading sales tactics at play.

Alarmingly the majority of those buying tickets from Viagogo or Ticketmaster Resale had no idea they were dealing with a resale site.

Consumer NZ is calling for the Commerce Commission to take action against Viagogo and other resellers that risk breaching the Fair Trading Act and to address major problems in the industry.

Consumer NZ's head of research Jessica Wilson said tickets were being marked up by more than 500 per cent with one rugby fan paying a whopping 700 per cent mark-up on the face value of a ticket to watch a clash between the Hurricanes and Crusaders.

Music fans also revealed being stung buying online in a mad rush to see performers such as Adele and Jonathan Lemalu only to find they have forked out top dollar for the worst seats in the house.

Lynda Hill this year paid more than A$1127.45 ($1235) in a mad rush to see Adele perform in Auckland using the Viagogo website and expected to get decent tickets.

However, when the tickets arrived a fortnight before the show she discovered they were worth $102 and in the cheapest stands.

She described herself as "one of those unfortunate people who were ripped off by Viagogo".

Wilson said the investigation found tickets were not only marked up but had extra fees charged on top of the ticket price. The majority of complaints involving hidden fees were about Viagogo.

Around 10 per cent who bought online never received tickets or ended up with fake tickets.

Wilson said ticket buyers were being duped by the reseller industry's sales tactics with claims they were official sites and tickets were in high demand and selling fast.

One unfortunate concertgoer bought tickets costing more than $300 to hear opera singer Jonathan Lemalu online thinking he was buying the last available prime seats from an official ticket seller.

But when Mike Boyes arrived at the Dunedin theatre he discovered his seats that were billed in a Czech currency were the cheapest seats with a face value of $34.78. He said he felt "scammed of $253.56".

Wilson said more action was needed from event promoters and official ticket agencies.

Promoters and ticket companies needed to be clear about the number of tickets available for general sale, the number of events planned and the number of seats per venue.

Practices used by resellers created the impression tickets were in short supply, pressuring consumers to pay excessive prices for tickets from resale sites.

The industry also needed to invest in measures to stop professional scalpers buying up large quantities of tickets that ended up being sold on the resale market.