SALT LAKE CITY — Fifty thousand fans are expected to pack Rice-Eccles Stadium Saturday for one of the first major concerts since the start of the pandemic.
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Many people are still hopping online to buy last minute tickets to the Garth Brooks concert, and Utah's consumer protection agency is sharing information on how you can avoid losing money in a ticketing scam.
"The message that we want people to have is go and enjoy these events," said Daniel O'Bannon, director of the Utah Division of Consumer Protection. "It's great that things are opening back up to where we have these events happening again, but just be aware as you do it. Take precautions to make sure that you know what you're buying."
O'Bannon said it's important to research before buying resale tickets, or tickets from secondary vendors.
"It's just fine to buy tickets from secondary sellers, but you need to realize what you're doing," he added. "You may pay more; you may have less of a refund policy that's available to you. So, just pay attention to what you're doing. Know where you are buying from."
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According to O'Bannon, there are common themes among fraudulent ticket sellers that you should look out for.
"So, when things don't seem to add up," he said. "The ticket price is too low, that could be a red flag, or you're having trouble finding reviews about your seller."
He recommends buying from well-known, and established vendors, which tend to offer buyer protections and refund programs.
"In a normal year, with all the events that happen around Utah, we're talking about a pretty small percentage of all the tickets [being fraudulent]," O'Bannon said. "So, people should feel very comfortable and very safe buying tickets and going to these events and going to these venues."
Even with the extra research scams can still happen. If you lose out on money, there are steps you can take to report the ticket vendor.
"If you don't have that experience, you go and you can't get in or the ticket is not what it was represented to be, you can contact the Utah Division of Consumer Protection and we can help you with that," he said.
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O'Bannon said keeping receipts from any ticket purchases will help authorities if the tickets end up being fake.
To help Utahns avoid these types of ticketing scams, the Utah Cultural Alliance has set up SafeTixUT.com, a website where people can learn more about spotting fraudulent tickets, and steps you can take if you've been defrauded.
