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After Robert Smith convinces Ticketmaster to issue partial refunds for overpriced tickets, the singer forces the ticketing giant to refund and cancel scalped tickets while donating the fees to charity.
Although the respected frontman of The Cure, Robert Smith, had already secured concertgoers a partial refund from Ticketmaster, he’s gone a step further by getting thousands of scalped tickets canceled for their upcoming tour, with proceeds going to charity.
When The Cure announced their first tour since 2016 earlier this month, the band assured their fans that they were circumventing Ticketmaster’s “dynamic pricing” and “platinum ticketing” options with safety checks like non-transferable tickets and the “Verified Plan” tool to keep the cost down and to discourage scalping.
The band was horrified to discover that Ticketmaster’s fees ended up even higher than the face value of the tickets at some venues. Immediately, Smith convinced Ticketmaster to issue partial refunds for the expenses.
“After further conversation, Ticketmaster (has) agreed with us that many of the fees being charged are unduly high, and as a gesture of goodwill, have offered a $10 per ticket refund to all verified fan accounts for lowest ticket price (‘LTP’) transactions,” Smith tweeted.
“And a $5 per ticket refund to all verified fan accounts for all other ticket price transactions for all Cure shows at all venues. If you already bought a ticket, you will get an automatic refund; all tickets on sale tomorrow will incur lower fees.”
While the singer urged fans to stay away from third-party vendors, regardless, tickets have managed to find their way into the hands of scalpers.
“Beware another scalper scam: Offering to sell/send account login details to get around Ticketmaster transfer limitations. Any/all tickets obtained in this way will be canceled, and original fees paid on those tickets will not be refunded,” tweeted Smith. “Original fees paid on those tickets will be donated to Amnesty International, and the tickets themselves will be resold to fans.”
Approximately 7,000 tickets across 2,200 ticket orders have been canceled thus far. The Cure’s tour begins on May 10 in New Orleans.