STAR Campaign: 3,000 Fraud Cases

The campaign will see agents and venues participate in an “industry-wide website and social media takeover,” according to a statement. The launch of #lookfortheSTAR coincides with UK body Action Fraud presenting numbers on entertainment and sport ticket fraud in the six months leading up to October 2015.

According to those numbers, £1.3 million (about $1.96m) was lost in that period. It marks the first time Action Fraud released isolated numbers on sport and entertainment ticket fraud.

Some 2,885 fraud reports were registered in total, which sets the average loss at £400 and the median loss at £200 per case. According to the STAR statement, “a high number of these reports relate to two companies, Circle Tickets and GetSporting.com, and cover such events as Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac, Foo Fighters, One Direction and the Rugby World Cup, as well as the key festival season.”

By highlighting these numbers, STAR aims to lead the way in reducing fraud by educating customers and encouraging them to always look for the STAR kitemark when buying tickets. This mark identifies members of STAR who have signed a Code of Practice. The initiative is backed by the Concert Promoters Association (CPA), the National Arenas Association (NAA), and the Society of London Theatre, as well as ticket agents, performers, venues and others within the entertainment industry. Other supporters include Action Fraud, Metropolitan Police and City of London Police.

STAR members include Ticketmaster, See Tickets, TicketWeb, ATG Tickets, The Ticket Factory, Eventim and Ticketline, as well as theatre and concert venues across the country. Their websites are currently featuring the campaign, including “homepage” takeovers, putting the #lookfortheSTAR message in front of customers.

Adrian Sanders, Chairman of STAR, said: “As well as cheating the consumer, every case of fraud damages the reputation of Britain’s vital entertainment and sporting industries. Buying tickets from a STAR kitemarked seller will give consumers the confidence that their purchase comes with certain guarantees that protect their rights.”

Rob Edwards, Managing Director, Eventim UK Ltd added: “This level of ticket fraud shows that as an industry we have to come together to help ticket buyers avoid ticket sellers who deliberately set out to defraud them. We are a proud member of STAR and believe the best advice for customers is to only buy tickets from companies that display the STAR kitemark, a symbol of trust that shows the company has signed up to the STAR Code of Practice.”