StubHub UK Ordered to Refund 50,000 Customers, Pay £900,000 Fine Over Hidden Fees

Ticket reseller StubHub UK has been ordered to refund more than 50,000 customers and pay a £900,000 penalty for its failure to present the full ticket price at the initial stage of the purchasing process. Each affected customer is anticipated to receive approximately £10 per transaction.

This enforcement action stems from an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which found that between 6 April and 7 December of the previous year, StubHub UK added compulsory charges, such as delivery and service fees, at the final checkout stage. These unavoidable costs were not disclosed upfront to customers purchasing tickets for music concerts and sporting events.

Emma Cochrane, executive director of consumer protection at the CMA, stated, "Levying hidden fees on customers is unlawful. It is unacceptable to entice individuals with seemingly favourable deals, only for them to discover a higher actual price at checkout due to additional, unavoidable charges."

StubHub UK has acknowledged its breach of consumer law, resulting in a 40% reduction of its financial penalty. The company has also initiated measures to rectify its pricing practices. This move is part of a broader CMA scrutiny of online pricing, particularly addressing the now-banned practice of drip pricing, where charges are introduced incrementally during the transaction process, creating a misleadingly low initial price.