Reselling tickets at inflated prices to be banned by UK government
At last, the UK government is set to outline plans to crack down on “extortionate and pernicious” ticket resale sites.
Just last week, world-renowned artists the likes of Sam Fender, Dua Lipa and Coldplay, issued an open statement to the UK Prime Minister, Kier Starmer urging him to stay true to his promise to crack down on ticket touts. Now, the UK government has declared that the resale of tickets for profit will be outlawed, with more detailed plans to be announced today (19th November).
The discussion around how to tackle unfair ticket touts and bots has been ongoing for years, as fans all over the world have been priced out of attending events like music concerts, theatre shows and sporting events. Back in January this year, the government launched a ticketing consultation in a bid to “tackle greedy ticket touts and give power back to fans.
The so-called ticketing crisis has seen fans paying mark-ups over 50% for tickets, with these profits not necessarily going back into the live music ecosystem. Rather, hidden fees applied by ticket resale platforms take revenue from regular fans – officially to cover operating costs and similar expenses, though many believe these unfair tactics are actually designed to inflate the companies’ profits. The government had discussed capping resale prices at 30% of the original value, as The Guardian notes. But, the decision has been made to ban the reselling of tickets for any more than the original price.
The target of this new ban will be bouts and professional resale sites such as ViaGoGo and StubHub. Vendors will still be allowed to charge additional fees on top of the ticket price, and mercifully these will also be limited. This means that extra fees can’t be bumped up just to cover the cap on the sale price – a typical workaround tactic that is all too common in companies beyond ticketing and events alone.
The Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) will announce its plans around the ban today, which will be enforced by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). If sellers do not adhere to the new rules, the ticket resale platforms hosting them will be legally liable.
BBC News shared that, speaking to BBC Breakfast, Housing Secretary Steve Reed highlighted that profiteering ticket touts was “such an important issue”, and described it as “hugely damaging to individuals having to pay through the nose for tickets”.
As to be expected, resale sites have pushed back, claiming that a cap on resale tickets will increase the risk of fraudulent tickets bought on unregulated sites like social media. However, the consensus from live music industry bodies like UK Music is that a cap is absolutely necessary to protect genuine music fans.
If implemented effectively, the ban could be a major win for UK fans. Ticket mark-ups on resale sites are estimated to cost consumers £145 million a year, with some high-profile tickets listed for thousands of pounds. Limiting resale prices to the original cost, alongside capped fees, aims to make live events fairer and more accessible. This could be that change we’ve all been desperately waiting for.