Scalper warning on derby

There will be some winners and losers among footy fans who try to grab a ticket to Geraldton’s upcoming Fremantle v West Coast derby.

Tickets for Fremantle and West Coast Eagles members went on sale today, but with ground capacity limited to 10,500 there is a chance non-members might miss out when general admission tickets go on sale tomorrow.

Great Northern Football League chief executive Colin Cox said there had been no specific allocation for general admission.

He said the GNFL had received an allocation of 350 tickets for the local league’s sponsors and partners, but the rest of the tickets would be sold first to members of the two WA AFL clubs and then to the public, if available.

“I’d be surprised if they sold all the tickets in one day, but I suppose it could happen,” he said.

“I guess it remains to be seen.”

Neither Ticketmaster nor the AFL could give any indication on ticket sales progress today.

If a worst case scenario eventuates and the event is a sellout, it will make the climate rife for scalpers.

Thankfully Consumer Protection Officer for the Mid West region Danni Bloomfield has some advice for anyone looking to resell tickets or buy them after they get snapped up.

“Ticket on-selling is not illegal in Australia, however there are risks associated with doing so,” she said.

“It is always recommended that you use an authorised agency to purchase tickets. By doing so, you have rights as a consumer under the Australian Consumer Law.”

The ACL requires that a seller must provide tickets that are fit for purpose and match their description; advertise one price which includes all fees, plus the minimum postage costs, if known by the seller at the time; provide a receipt; and not mislead in any way.

To avoid getting hit by a scalper or scammer Ms Bloomfield recommended that buyers only use authorised sellers, avoid giving out personal details where possible, only use secure payment methods, save a record of all transactions, and before buying check WA ScamNet, the terms and conditions of the ticket.

Ms Bloomfield said that while WA currently had no ticket scalping laws Ticketmaster could still invalidate a ticket if it breached their purchase policy, and consumers could report the ticket details of suspicious sellers to the retailer.

Ticketmaster has an official resale website for those looking to pick up spare tickets as safely as possible.

General admission tickets go on sale at 9am tomorrow.

Ticket sales: http://www.ticketmaster.com.au/venueartist/156541/1414842?artistid=1414842&minorcatid=711&date=2017-2-25