{"coverage_note":"Five categories were assessed for ticketek.com.au. Discrepancy_pricing: scans found a well-evidenced drip-pricing pattern confirmed by the ACCC (2014), CHOICE (2017, 2025), and ongoing consumer complaints through 2026; a finding was recorded. Discrepancy_availability: scans found public frustration with website performance during high-demand on-sales and references to marketplace complaints, but no independently verified evidence of systematic ghost inventory or bait-and-switch availability; no finding was recorded. Discrepancy_identity: scans confirmed a documented structural pattern of merchant-of-record ambiguity where Ticketek collects payment but defers refund authority to event promoters without point-of-purchase disclosure; a finding was recorded. Discrepancy_policy: no scans were available for this category, so policy terms, change fees, and stated versus applied cancellation rules could not be assessed \u2014 this is a coverage gap. Discrepancy_undisclosed_constraint: scans found corroborating evidence from SBS News (January 2025), CHOICE, and ACCC materials confirming the mandatory service fee is not shown at the event listing stage and that the in-person box-office workaround is not disclosed online; a finding was recorded.","human_handoff_required_for":[{"action":"Escalate to a human when the full checkout total \u2014 including the per-transaction Service/Delivery Fee and any Payment Processing Fee \u2014 exceeds the budget or price ceiling the user specified based on the per-ticket listing price, before confirming or completing the purchase.","evidence":[{"description":"The ACCC confirmed in 2014 that Ticketek's Service/Delivery Fee is only added to the displayed price after the user selects ticket quantity and delivery method, not at the initial search or listing stage, meaning the browsing price is not the final price.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/ticketek-to-improve-its-online-ticketing-practices"},{"description":"A January 2025 SBS News report and CHOICE characterised Ticketek's mandatory per-transaction service fee as an ongoing form of drip pricing, with the fee surfacing mid-checkout rather than at the event listing stage.","reference":"https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/ticketek-fees-hidden-costs-drip-pricing-australia/2025"}],"last_checked_date":"2026-06-29"},{"action":"Escalate to a human when a refund, cancellation, or exchange is needed for a Ticketek booking and the event promoter and Ticketek are giving contradictory or non-committal answers about who holds authority over the refund decision, leaving the consumer's funds unreturned with no clear counterparty to pursue.","evidence":[{"description":"Consumer complaint platforms, legal advice forums, and ACCC event ticketing guidance confirm a structural pattern where Ticketek holds consumer funds but defers refund eligibility decisions to the event promoter as 'at the promoter's discretion,' creating a situation where neither party takes clear responsibility.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/buying-products-and-services/event-tickets"},{"description":"Consumer complaint documentation consistently describes the scenario where Ticketek has collected the money but the promoter has the decision-making authority, leaving consumers with no clear contractual counterparty to pursue for a refund.","reference":"https://www.choice.com.au/travel-and-transport/holidays-and-accommodation/travel-tips/articles/event-ticket-refunds-australia"}],"last_checked_date":"2026-06-29"},{"action":"Escalate to a human when completing a Ticketek purchase for an event where the user has indicated that refund rights are material to their decision and the specific event promoter's refund and cancellation policy has not been independently confirmed prior to checkout, because Ticketek's checkout pages do not disclose that refund authority rests with the promoter rather than Ticketek.","evidence":[{"description":"Ticketek presents itself as the seller of record throughout the purchase flow but does not prominently disclose at point of purchase that refund and cancellation decisions are at the event promoter's discretion, not Ticketek's unilateral determination.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/buying-products-and-services/event-tickets"},{"description":"Legal adviser guidance and consumer complaint records confirm the promoter-as-decision-maker structure is not disclosed at checkout, meaning consumers only discover it when they attempt to exercise a refund right after the event is postponed or cancelled.","reference":"https://www.choice.com.au/travel-and-transport/holidays-and-accommodation/travel-tips/articles/event-ticket-refunds-australia"}],"last_checked_date":"2026-06-29"},{"action":"Escalate to a human when a user's stated per-ticket budget is close to or at the listed per-ticket price and the mandatory per-transaction service fee (which cannot be avoided for any online booking) would push the total above that budget, since the only fee-free path \u2014 in-person box office purchase \u2014 is not disclosed on the event listing page.","evidence":[{"description":"CHOICE and SBS News (January 2025) report that the mandatory per-transaction service fee is unavoidable for online bookings and only surfaces mid-checkout at the bottom of the page, with no disclosure on the event listing that an in-person box office purchase is the only way to avoid it.","reference":"https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/ticketek-fees-hidden-costs-drip-pricing-australia/2025"},{"description":"The ACCC's 2014 partial remedy did not require the fee to appear at the event listing stage, leaving a persistent undisclosed constraint on online pricing that affects any agent acting on a user's stated budget.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/ticketek-to-improve-its-online-ticketing-practices"}],"last_checked_date":"2026-06-29"}],"record_verification":{"last_checked_agentic_scan":"2026-06-30","last_checked_human_verified":null},"vendor_id":"ticketek","verified_discrepancies":[{"actuals":"Ticketek applies a per-transaction Service/Delivery Fee that is only incorporated into the displayed total after the customer has selected the number of tickets and chosen a delivery method \u2014 not at the initial search or listing stage. The ACCC confirmed in 2014 that this fee structure means the price shown at the point of browsing/search is not the final checkout price. Consumer complaints about unexpectedly high booking fees persist as recently as 2026, indicating the structural gap between advertised and checkout price has not been eliminated.","discrepancy_start_date_est":"Prior to 2014 (documented by ACCC); structure persists post-2014 remediation","evidence":[{"description":"The ACCC's 2014 press release on its drip pricing investigation confirmed that Ticketek's Service/Delivery Fee is only incorporated into the displayed price once the customer selects the number of tickets and delivery method \u2014 meaning the fee is absent from the initial listing price shown to browsing consumers.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-investigation-leads-to-clearer-ticket-pricing"},{"description":"A 2017 report via Australasian Leisure Management citing CHOICE found that booking and transaction fees on Ticketek tickets were not transparent at the point of search, and could represent up to approximately 10% of the ticket cost on top of the advertised price.","reference":"https://www.ausleisure.com.au/news/consumer-group-slams-ticketing-agencies-excessive-charges/"},{"description":"A consumer complaints guide current to March 2026 lists 'high booking fees' and undisclosed extra charges as among the most common Ticketek complaints, suggesting the pricing gap remains an active issue for consumers.","reference":"https://www.ajust.com.au/complaints/ticketek"}],"interim_guidance":"When using Ticketek to look up or quote ticket prices, do not treat the per-ticket price shown on search or event listing pages as the final price. Always proceed through to the delivery method selection step and capture the full updated total before quoting a price or confirming a purchase. Expect the actual checkout total to exceed the listed per-ticket price by a per-transaction Service/Delivery Fee and potentially a Payment Processing Fee on card purchases.","last_checked_date":"2026-06-30","status":"active","type":"pricing_discrepancy","vendor_claim":"Ticketek displays per-ticket prices on its website, implying that the listed price represents the total cost of purchasing a ticket."},{"actuals":"When consumers seek refunds (including for postponed or cancelled events), Ticketek routinely tells them that refund eligibility is 'at the promoter's discretion,' deflecting legal responsibility to the event organiser while continuing to hold the consumer's funds. Consumer complaint documentation and legal adviser guidance consistently describe this pattern: Ticketek has the money, the promoter has the decision, and the consumer is left between two parties with no clear contractual counterparty to pursue.","discrepancy_start_date_est":"Ongoing; documented in consumer complaints from at least 2021 and structurally embedded in Ticketek's agent-for-promoter operating model","evidence":[{"description":"Consumer complaint resolution guide for Ticketek explicitly advises users to 'contact the concert or event promoter if Ticketek says refunds are at the promoter's discretion,' documenting this as a standard Ticketek response to refund requests.","reference":"https://www.ajust.com.au/complaints/ticketek"},{"description":"Australian legal advice forum documents multiple consumers reporting that Ticketek held their money for extended periods (in some cases from 2021 onward) while denying refund eligibility and requiring 'authority' from an unspecified party before processing returns.","reference":"https://www.justanswer.com/australian-law/k64yn-requested-refund-ticketek-will-not.html"},{"description":"ACCC's official event ticketing consumer guide sets out that consumers' rights run against the entity they contracted with, creating direct tension with Ticketek's practice of deflecting refund decisions to promoters.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/buying-products-and-services/buying-tickets-to-events"}],"interim_guidance":"Before completing any Ticketek purchase, confirm the event's refund and cancellation policy directly with the event promoter \u2014 not just Ticketek's checkout page \u2014 because Ticketek will defer refund decisions to the promoter in a dispute. For any transaction where a refund right matters, pay by credit card so a chargeback path exists independently of Ticketek's or the promoter's cooperation, and retain all purchase confirmation emails as evidence of the contractual relationship with Ticketek specifically.","last_checked_date":"2026-06-30","status":"active","type":"identity_discrepancy","vendor_claim":"Ticketek presents itself as the seller of record to consumers \u2014 collecting full payment, issuing confirmation emails, and being the entity consumers interact with throughout the purchase flow \u2014 without prominently disclosing that for refund and cancellation decisions it acts as an agent of the event promoter rather than as a principal."},{"actuals":"Ticketek advertises tickets at a headline per-ticket price that does not include the mandatory per-transaction service fee (e.g. a $7.65 service fee on top of $5 children's tickets). The fee only surfaces mid-checkout, positioned at the bottom of the mobile booking page or as a sidebar on desktop \u2014 not in the upfront event listing price. The fee is unavoidable for any online booking regardless of how many tickets are purchased; the only path to avoiding it is to buy in person at a venue box office, which is not disclosed on the event listing. CHOICE characterised this as a form of 'drip pricing' as recently as January 2025, and the ACCC's 2014 partial remedy (which required showing the fee only after delivery method selection, not at the listing stage) has not eliminated the gap between advertised price and actual checkout price.","discrepancy_start_date_est":"At least 2014; ongoing as of January 2025","evidence":[{"description":"January 2025 SBS News article documenting a specific case where Ticketek's $7.65 service fee exceeded the $5 children's ticket price; CHOICE characterises the practice as a form of drip pricing and says the fee should be displayed upfront.","reference":"https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/ticketek-service-fee-cost-more-than-childs-ticket-to-the-cricket/ei66dfk3t"},{"description":"ACCC media release from October 2014 documenting Ticketek's drip pricing and confirming the company committed only to including the fee 'once the customer has selected the number of tickets and the delivery method' \u2014 not at the initial listing/search price stage.","reference":"https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-investigation-leads-to-clearer-ticket-pricing"}],"interim_guidance":"Do not treat the ticket price displayed on a Ticketek event listing or search result as the total payable price. Before confirming any transaction, explicitly retrieve and sum all line items shown at the checkout stage (including the service fee) and present the full total to the user for approval before completing the purchase. If the user's budget is based on the listed per-ticket price, pause and confirm they accept the additional service fee before proceeding.","last_checked_date":"2026-06-30","status":"active","type":"undisclosed_constraint_discrepancy","vendor_claim":"Ticketek states that its service fees are 'clearly outlined' throughout the transaction process, and that ticket prices are presented to consumers on its booking pages."}]}