CMA demands StubHub fix concerns or face court action

As part of regular monitoring, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has identified issues with the information provided about some tickets for sale via StubHub’s UK website.

The CMA is now concerned that the firm is not complying with commitments it made to clean up its site following a CMA consumer law investigation. New issues have also been identified, which the CMA has told StubHub to resolve.

The CMA is concerned that StubHub has been:

  • failing to adequately warn people that tickets may not get them into an event

  • using misleading messages about ticket availability

  • targeting UK consumers with tickets for events listed on overseas versions of their websites, which may not comply with UK law

  • failing to ensure people know exactly where they will sit in a venue

  • failing to take sufficient steps to ensure that the full addresses of business sellers are displayed

StubHub has already told the CMA that it will make changes to its website and the CMA now expects these updates to be made swiftly. If the changes do not go far enough to address its concerns, the CMA will consider taking action through the courts.

Andrea Coscelli, Chief Executive of the CMA, said:

StubHub had previously committed to make important changes to the information on its site, so anyone buying a ticket would know what they were getting before parting with their money. It’s therefore unacceptable that we have now found these concerns.

We have demanded swift action to resolve these problems and are pleased that StubHub has said it will make changes in response. We will closely monitor the firm’s efforts and, if it does not quickly implement changes that satisfy us, we will take further action – potentially through the courts.

As we continue to examine these consumer cases, it is now imperative that the CMA is given stronger powers to rule on whether a company has broken the law and impose fines if needed. We will continue to work with the Government on the most effective way to achieve this.

The CMA is also continuing to monitor resale site viagogo. As part of this, it has published an update from the latest independent review of the firm’s compliance with a court order secured to overhaul the way the site does business. This review, carried out by Deloitte, did not find concerns about the site’s compliance with the court order.

Regular monitoring of viagogo will continue, including of any new evidence or complaints, should any be received. The CMA will act if it finds evidence that the site might not be complying with consumer protection law.

A separate investigation is ongoing into viagogo’s anticipated purchase of StubHub. All the latest from that CMA investigation can be found on the dedicated webpage.