According to new research commissioned by Nationwide, it’s a worrying time as ticket scams occur every day across the UK. Alarmingly, one in four Britons confesses to having been duped by these deceptive ruses featuring must-have happenings. The implications are ugly when you look at the trend between younger adults. People between 25 and 34 are the most susceptible to fraudulent schemes.
These results show a fascinating pattern. Over a fifth of those polled – 22% – would buy tickets at a premium due to the fear of missing out (FOMO). This urgency has forced too many into the arms of untrustworthy suppliers. Just over half (51%) of respondents admitted they would contemplate buying tickets from questionable platforms to avoid losing out on popular events.
Recent events, including Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, have made an extreme short-term spike in demand highly visible, and caused fans to shed billions in avoidable ticketing losses. British fans collectively lost over £1 million after tickets for the tour went on sale, illustrating the severe impact of these scams. According to Lloyds Bank, more than 90% of scam incidents originated from fraudulent ads or social media posts. It’s a tactic fraudsters are using more and more for scams.
The scariest thing our research revealed was… It showed that two-fifths of respondents aged 25-34 would deliberately purchase fake tickets in order to gain entry to sold out, in-demand events. £82 is the average loss per victim in these types of scams, highlighting the scale of the financial risk.
Jim Winters, Nationwide’s director of economic crime, provided a particularly helpful perspective on the subject. He continued, “When fans are faced with low-cost or scarce high-demand tickets, they frequently have their options taken from them. Their hearts win out, pushing them to act on impulse.”
Nationalwide employs Google reCaptcha on their website — so scammers can’t get in. This open source approach helps you stay compliant with the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. These provisions are intended to improve safety and safeguard the public from confusion for scores of con artist ticket resellers.
Ticket demand is through the roof — and that’s even before we see the resale of the canceled and returned Glastonbury festival tickets reselling in the next fortnight. Authorities are asking those attending to exercise vigilance and precautions. The increase in ticket scams is an unmistakable alert. It brings attention to the risks of purchasing tickets through unauthorized channels.