Fearless fraudsters, broken-hearted buyers: Expert says Taylor Swift scams show flaws in ticket system
A Taylor Swift ticket scam in southern Ontario has left potentially hundreds of fans with broken hearts and empty wallets. Multiple individuals have reported purchasing what they believed to be legitimate tickets to one of the pop star’s six Toronto shows, only to never receive them. All of these individuals had obtained their tickets from the same reseller, a woman in Burlington, Ontario.
Legal expert Daniel Tsai, a business and law lecturer at the University of Toronto, asserts that this type of fraud will continue until Ticketmaster’s North American monopoly over big-ticket events is broken. Tsai points out that Ticketmaster’s control over ticket sales, including resale markets through its affiliate StubHub, leaves consumers with limited options, leading them to potentially risky sources like Craigslist, Kijiji, and Facebook Marketplace.
The Halton Regional Police Service has received over 40 complaints totaling about $70,000 related to the Taylor Swift ticket scam. Toronto police have also reported upwards of 150 fraud complaints regarding Swift tickets since last year, with about 40 new complaints in the past week. Despite the numerous reports, no charges have been laid by either police service.
One victim of the scam, Alaina Attard, shared her heartbreaking experience of purchasing tickets for her daughter as a Christmas gift, only to discover they were never delivered. Many others have come forward with similar stories, with some individuals sharing that the same seats for the same nights were resold multiple times.
Melinda Tarantino, another victim of the scam, spent over $3,000 on tickets for her daughters and has heard from nearly 160 people who collectively bought about 420 tickets from the same Burlington reseller. While some victims may not expect to get their money back, others are calling for government regulation to protect consumers from such scams in the future.
Despite the widespread fraud, there have been some instances of hope. Namita Sapra, who also fell victim to the scam, received a surprise from her brother in the UK who managed to secure tickets at the last minute. This act of kindness allowed Sapra and her friend to attend the concert and experience a moment of joy amidst the turmoil.
As the Taylor Swift tour continues, fans are reminded to exercise caution when purchasing tickets from third-party vendors and to be wary of deals that seem too good to be true. Concertgoers are also encouraged to report any suspicious activity to the authorities to prevent further instances of ticket fraud.
