SEATTLE — For many fans, the process of getting tickets to Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour left them with more "Bad Blood" than "Happiness."
Currently, the cheapest ticket being sold on verified resale websites, like StubHub, for the singer's Seattle stop is around $1,168. That is for a seat with an obstructed view. For floor seats, some tickets are listed for over $6,500.
Ticketmaster has been under scrutiny for the handling of The Eras Tour ticket sales, in an era where it dominates the live event industry. In November, “Verified Fans” were sent a presale code, but when the sale started, the demand essentially crashed the site. Ticketmaster then canceled the general public sale altogether due to "extraordinarily high demand."
Face value tickets did not exceed $549, but many scalpers were able to get their hands on tickets before fans, which caused the high prices.
For Grace Vassar, her Ticketmaster experience initially felt like "Death by A Thousand Cuts." She was waiting in the queue to purchase on the day it crashed.
"The first round I literally was on my computer for eight hours trying to get tickets, just like everybody else," Vassar said. "So I didn't have any tickets. I was sobbing because I have gone to like, pretty much all of her tours."
Vassar's mom ended up buying her a ticket from a reseller days later. Now she can say those tickets are "Mine."
Capital One giveaway
For Swifties still trying to find tickets, Capital One is holding a giveaway at two Capital One Cafés in Seattle.
Four lucky visitors will each win a pair of tickets to one of the two Seattle shows scheduled for July 22 and 23 at Lumen Field. The giveaway is open from July 11 through July 14.
To enter, café patrons must visit the Seattle South Lake Union or Bellevue Café locations and scan a QR Code printed on café Signage or Ambassador Lanyards on their smartphones. Two winners will be selected at random for each show and notified by email. A pair of tickets will be digitally transferred to each winner.
The giveaway is open to everyone, not just Capital One customers.
Tips for getting the best resale deal
In a trend seen in almost every city Swift has taken The Eras Tour to, ticket prices drop significantly on the day of the concert, sometimes just hours before the show.
For fans near Lumen Field, it may be worth refreshing Ticketmaster for last-minute tickets.
Avoiding scams
According to the Better Business Bureau, here are some ways to avoid falling for ticket scams:
- Only buy tickets from trusted vendors. Even if you can no longer get tickets directly from the venue or Ticketmaster, look to reputable ticket brokers before doing business with a ticket scalper (an unregulated and unlicensed ticket seller) or a random stranger on social media.
- If you think you know the seller, double-check. Scammers may hack your contacts’ accounts and pretend to be a friend or acquaintance who’s selling tickets. Before sending money, contact your friend directly to make sure the deal is real.
- Watch out for too-good-to-be-true deals. If someone claims to be selling tickets to a sold-out concert just before the date or at an amazing price, think twice. Scammers love to prey on fans of any artist or sporting event by claiming to have impossible-to-get-tickets for them.
- Use good judgment with advertisements. Some ads are scams, whether after a general internet search or in your social media feed. Be careful about clicking through and offering up personal information.
- Use your credit card. Credit cards generally offer extra protection in case you find out the tickets were a sham. You may not get your money back if you pay with your debit card, a cash transfer app, or cash.
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