Viagogo ordered to improve transparency in ticket tout tussle
Ticket reseller Viagogo is facing fresh regulatory pressure from the UK’s Competition and Market Authority after being ordered to ‘overhaul’ its business practices by mid-January as part of a raft of measures designed to squeeze out ticket touts and enhance consumer rights.
Viagogo ordered to improve transparency in ticket tout tussle
The ratcheting up of pressure comes after Viagogo was dragged to the High Court over concerns that it was actively flouting consumer protection law, following which judges decreed that the ticket reseller must inform its customers if there is a risk they will be turned back at the door.
Other measures include a requirement to pass on which individual seat has been allocated to customers as well as a stipulation to hand over information about the ticket seller in addition to ceasing its practice of relaying misleading information about the availability and popularity of tickets.
The combined effect of these interventions will serve to improve the odds of customers clawing back their hard-earned cash under Viagogo’s own money back guarantee.
Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the CMA said: “This court order is a victory for anyone who decides to buy a ticket through Viagogo. We have been clear throughout our investigation that people who use these resale websites must know key facts before parting with their hard-earned money, including what seat they will get and whether there is a risk they might not get into the event at all.”
The decision follows a brush with the ASA last year in which Viagogo was instructed to end 'misleading' ticket prices.