Ticket resale price cap will be a champagne supernova for fraudsters
Cracking down on regulated ticket resale platforms will push touts into riskier corners of the internet, says Tony Neate
As we head into a jam-packed concert season, with a star-studded line-up including Oasis, Coldplay, Beyoncé and Lady Gaga, ticket demand is soaring. But with extraordinary demand comes extraordinary risk – and a perfect storm for fraud.
Get Safe Online has been delivering online safety awareness programmes for nearly 20 years – our priority is and will always be to minimise the risk of online fraud and to help everyone navigate the internet safely, securely and with confidence.
So, when we consider the introduction of caps for ticket prices, what sounds like a win for consumers could actually be a ticking time bomb for fraud.
The facts are clear: capping resale prices on regulated platforms won’t stop touts. It will push ticket sales into the wild, unregulated world of social media, where fraud is rampant and consumer protection non-existent. Meanwhile, touts will simply adapt, flooding riskier corners of the internet where they can operate with impunity.
Data from Lloyds Bank found that 90 per cent of scams related to Oasis tickets originated from fake posts and ads on social media; 54 per cent of scams reported to Revolut come from Meta-owned channels like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. According to Santander’s Scamtracker, £350,000 was lost to ticket scams in just the first quarter of 2025 – a number that’s rising as fans scramble for tickets to sold-out acts like Oasis and Coldplay.
This isn’t hypothetical, we’ve seen the damage firsthand. Research by Bradshaw Advisory shows that the incidence of ticket fraud in Victoria, Australia and Ireland – jurisdictions with a resale price cap – is nearly four times higher than the UK. In Australia, after price caps were introduced, over £125,000 (AUD 260,000) was lost to fake Taylor Swift Eras Tour tickets. In Ireland, where price caps have been in place since 2021, social media scams have surged – yet not one tout has been prosecuted.
Oasis panic shows fans are willing to take risks
The panic surrounding recent on-sales has shown time and again that fans are willing to take risks, turning to unregulated social media sites for tickets when they are desperate to attend a show. Our recent research with Opinium shows that 42 per cent of people have bought tickets through social media, often ‘out of desperation’ for sold-out events. Yet more than one in 10 end up getting scammed. The demand for tickets is quite simply outpacing supply – and if price caps are introduced, the problem will only escalate.
Regulated resale platforms offer transparency and consumer protection. Stripping away that safety net will drive fans to unregulated spaces where scammers thrive, accountability is minimal and recovery is nearly impossible.
Meanwhile, touts won’t stop, they’ll just shift their operations to unregulated spaces, where no one is watching. This isn’t consumer protection, it’s a fast track to fraud, with devastating consequences for fans.
If we are serious about protecting fans, we must start viewing resale as part of the solution, rather than the enemy. Price caps may sound like an easy win. But the reality is they’re a shortcut to a surge in fraud – and fans will be the ones footing the bill.
Tony Neate is CEO of Get Safe Online