Texas – The Better Business Bureau is warning boxing fans to be on the lookout for phony Manny Pacquiao ticket sales. In their excitement to get tickets, sometimes fans aren’t as careful as they need to be, and they end up becoming victims.
The secondary-ticket market for sporting and entertainment events, which includes tickets bought and sold by professional brokers, speculators and season-ticket holders, is a $10-billion-a-year industry, with online sales accounting for one-third of transactions and growing 15 to 20 percent a year, according to StubHub.com.
?Any time you purchase products from an unverifiable source, you’re taking a big risk?, said Mechele Agbayani Mills, President and CEO of the Better Business Bureau serving Central East Texas. ?Our fear is that some die-hard boxing fans will get bad news at the gate.?
From its BBBOnLine database of more than 30,000 online businesses, BBB reports that a number of secondary-market ticket firms offer highly regulated Web sites, providing buyer protections that include money-back guarantees on the legitimacy of tickets. For example, TicketsNow.com takes possession of tickets and verifies them in-house before listing for resale. StubHub and RazorGator hold seller’s credit-card numbers ? if they sell fake tickets, they get charged for the replacements.
It is on the hundreds of online auctions, online classifieds, and bulletin boards using person-to-person sales that sports fans need to be the most skeptical and on the alert. BBB reports that every big sporting event is followed by complaints from people who got ripped off buying fake tickets ? almost invariably online.
BBB offers the following advice when purchasing tickets for any event:
* When buying from a merchant, always look for the BBBOnLine seal. The logo will tell you that you?re dealing with a company that has a good reputation for satisfying customers and a secure Web site for processing your payment.
* When buying from an individual through an online exchange don?t be lured away from the Web site by the seller. Even if you met the seller on the exchange Web site, the company may not guarantee any lost money if a transaction occurs outside their domain.
* If you buy tickets through an online auction, choose a seller with a long, continuous, history of satisfied customers. Scammers can hijack old accounts, so make sure they have recently bought or sold other items.
* Never pay with a cashier?s check or wire money to the seller; you?ll have no way to get your money back if the tickets never arrive. Pay with a credit card or through PayPal, which offer some amount of protection and potential reimbursement.
* Many sellers will include pictures of the tickets with their posts on auction sites or bulletin boards. Scrutinize the tickets closely for any inaccuracies or alterations, and cross-check the seat assignment with the map on the venue?s Web site before you buy.
For more tips and advice you can trust for safe shopping online go to www.bbb.org.
