Bromley Trading Standards is warning residents to be wary of fraudsters when buying event tickets online, following reported losses of over £154,000 in June this year.
June 2024 alone saw high numbers of ticket fraud incidents reported to Action Fraud, 50 of which involved Bromley residents. The monies lost in these Bromley related incidents totalled over £154,000. This warning is particularly timely as the Olympics are now underway, and some residents may still be seeking tickets.
The news follows Action Fraud's warning earlier this year, which aimed to warn and protect residents from ticket fraud. Residents are warned that tickets for sporting events such as the Paris Olympics, as well as entertainment events, may never arrive or turn out to be fake.
To protect yourself when searching for event tickets online, please take note of the following advice:
- Only buy tickets from the venue’s box office, official promoter or agent, or a well-known ticketing website.
- Avoid paying for tickets by bank transfer, especially if buying from someone unknown. Credit card or payment services such as PayPal give you a better chance of recovering the money if you become a victim of fraud.
- The password you use for your email account, as well as any other accounts you use to purchase tickets, should be different from all your other passwords. Use three random words to create a strong and memorable password, and enable 2-step verification (2SV).
- Be wary of unsolicited emails, texts or adverts offering unbelievably good deals on tickets.
- Is the vendor a member of STAR? If they are, the company has signed up to their strict governing standards. STAR also offers an approved Alternative Dispute Resolution service to help customers with outstanding complaints. The STAR website has a guide on how to safely buy tickets online.
Report
Get Safe Online Self-Help Tool Centre
Contact your bank if you have given your financial details. Call 159 — Stop Scams UK.
Contact Citizens Advice for help and advice on 0808 223 1133 or on the Citizens Advice website.
Report to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or on the Action Fraud website.
Forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk.
Report suspicious text messages to your phone provider on 7726.
Report a suspicious website via the National Cyber Security Centre website.
You can also visit the scams page for more information.
Stay safe this summer from ticket fraud | Action Fraud
Bromley Trading Standards
To keep up with the latest scam alerts and warnings from Bromley Trading Standards sign up on www.bromley.gov.uk/TradingStandardsAlertSignUpForm.
Bromley Trading Standards also runs a fair-trader directory to help you find a safe, reliable trader that you can trust, visit www.bromley.gov.uk/tradingstandardschecked to learn more.