Warning over Reading Festival tickets scam

United Kingdom | | 20 May 2008

The official ticketing website for Reading Festival is warning fans over a scam which could see them lose hundreds of pounds.

See Tickets has revealed how fans are being targetted by an illegal operation which is offering to sell tickets to the sold-out festival over the phone.

The tricksters are thought to be tracking fans, desperate for tickets, who accidentally land on unofficial websites when searching the internet.

A number of fans have received calls from someone saying they are from See Tickets and offering to selll Reading Festival tickets, saying they have had an extra allocation of tickets and are contacting customers who didn't manage to buy on their first attempt.

The debit then appears on their statement as going to a company in Budapest but tickets never arrive.

Reading Trading Standards have been informed but, as yet, it is unclear who is behind the scam. Fans are being warned not to buy from unofficial websites, like Readingfestivaltickets.net and Leedsfestival.net.

Last year the DTI shut down a number of websites accused of ripping off fans, including Get Me Tickets, Tickettout and London Ticket Shop, which promised tickets to fans without actually having them.

It is feared the people behind these illegal sites are now trading under a different name, so be warned and only buy from official outlets. Call Reading Trading Standards on 0118 939 0230 if you are unsure.