A leading consumer group has renewed calls to smash scalping scams after tennis fans were turned away at the Australian Open with dodgy tickets bought from on-line re-selling agency Viagogo.
As weekend crowds pushed Melbourne Park’s first-week attendance past 500,000, News Corp reported that a quarter of tickets sold by Viagogo weren’t valid due to being sold multiple times or as child tickets.
“With the Australian Open tennis in full swing, online ticket resellers will be targeting fans with overpriced and sometimes fraudulent tickets,” a spokesman for consumer group CHOICE told AAP on Monday.
Tennis Australia said it has tried to protect fans from falling victim.
“We’ve tried to educate the public for a number of years not to buy from unauthorised resellers and use our official channels,” a spokeswoman said.
On Monday, $805 prime-location seats for the men’s final, which have been sold out, were on-sale for as much as $4450 on Viagogo.
It is also advertising children’s ground passes for Wednesday for $31, despite ample availability through official sources for $5.
Viagogo has not responded to requests for comment.
CHOICE said buyers have the right to know the face value of the ticket and where in the stadium the seat is located.
Victoria’s parliament is considering proposed laws that would reclassify events such as the Open as a “declared” major event, similar to the AFL grand final.
Any scalpers caught price-gouging 10 per cent more than the ticket’s face value could face fines of up to $475,000 if the legislation gets a green light.
Until the proposal becomes law Tourism Minister John Eren warned those heading to Melbourne Park for the second week of the grand slam to steer clear of illegitimate ticketing sites.
“We urge people to only buy tickets from authorised sellers – it’s the only way to ensure you’re not getting ripped off,” Mr Eren said in a statement to AAP.
CHOICE has called on the federal government to make the ticket resale market fairer.
“While reforms in NSW and Victoria look set to go some way to addressing issues in the resale market, we need a national approach to stop fans being ripped off,” the spokesman said.
“In our submission to Treasury, we support the federal government’s proposal for better disclosure measures. This includes resellers having to list the seat and section number of a ticket or any restrictions on the ticket, as the most efficient way to make ticket resale fair for fans.”
