Oh the shame. After years of booking tickets online, I have fallen for a fake website and the promise of a ticket to gig and given away 50 of my hard earned pounds to a crook in Budapest.
Last month, after an unexpected addition to our party going to see The Killers at Hard Rock Calling, I boastfully claimed I would be able find a ticket somewhere: “Don’t worry, I know some people that know some people.” This was obviously not true – my friends are all as useless as me when it comes to finding tickets for a sold-out concert. Rather than admit defeat so easily, I decided a to have a quick look online. Bingo – I stumbled across, Hyde Park Box Office – looks professional enough, with a decent url, and offering me tickets at face value. I snapped one up and told my friends, rather smugly, I had sorted the situation.
Fast forward a month, without a ticket the day before the event and with no response to my emails, I start to investigate. There is no contact number on the website. Alarm bells. Google hydeparkboxoffice – oh dear. Check credit card bill – money was taken by a company in Budapest. Oh dear, I’ve been scammed.
Lessons to be learnt: don’t leave the safety of ticketmaster and seetickets unless you really have to, a site you’ve never heard of is unlikely to be selling tickets to a sold out concert at face-value and perhaps most importantly don’t be a smart-arse.
So bad you fell for one of the fastest scams online.
I have now stopped using my credit card on sites that I don’t know or used before.
Hope you resolve it soon 🙂
Ah, James, James, James, James, James. You fool!
Actually, uh, I fell for it too (last year), feel your pain.
£100 worth of Mighty Boosh tickets.
Hate those online ticket scammers.
Ticket Master for me from now on…
This is quite sad –
It goes to show that anyone can fall victim to these guys’ scams. Like Helen said, I too always buy from reputable sites that I’ve used before.
I’d contact my credit card company to get a refund.