refunding a ticket as a result of talent no-show

[filthiestfis]

I went to a meet & greet event this weekend which turned out to be a rip off as only 4 out of the 10 advertised names appeared. The promoter cited immigration issues as to the reason why they failed to be allowed in the country. Anyway, the promoter is refusing to issue a partial refund of the ticket (full ticket worth nearly £170) and now im thinking up ways of getting my money back. On the terms and conditions section of the organiser's website it states how much will be refunded in case of non attendance of individuals so going by this I would be happy.
Is there someone I can contact to help me with this legal issue? Thanks in advance

[Buenchico]

Good evening to the one who prefers to remain nameless ;-)

Step 1:
Find out exactly who, in law, is the promoter. By that I mean you need to know whether it was a private individual or a limited company. Then get a postal address to go with that name. It should appear on the website but, if it's a limited company, you can also find the registered address here:
http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/info

Step 2:
Send a formal letter (by registered post) to the promoter, demanding a refund. Your (dated) letter must clearly show your own name and address, together with that of the promoter. (If it's a limited company the letter should be addressed to 'The Company Secretary'). Your letter should also clearly state that if you do not receive your money within a designated period of time (I suggest 28 days) you will commence legal action. (Obviously you should keep a copy of the letter, together with the proof of posting).

Step 3:
If you don't get your money, commence legal action by using H M Courts Service's web-based system:
http://tinyurl.com/5kwx6

Chris

[dothawkes31]

was this one of those Sci Fi conventions where people like Spike turn up? Actually he's already in another show so he would be busy, who was meant to be there?

[boxtops]

Good luck with trying to get your money back, and I mean that! All I want to add is that I know this can happen, I heard of a local concert not long ago where a band was advertised but at the last minute couldn't get into the country because they hadn't realised that they would need work permits (even though they were only planning to do one gig).

[filthiestfis]

Thanks BC and others I would prefer to not name the company or give details into the event I went to see but they did succesfully bring in all their guests on previous occassions. Lets see. I will follow your Advice Buenchico. I suggest you all subscribe to this question to find out what happens!

[DrFilth]

was one of the people a lead guitarist

[filthiestfis]

No Dr Filth lol nothing to do with music. Its more along the lines of what Dot Hawkes said.

[filthiestfis]

Oh Buenchico the website does not provide a mailing address just a contact link where you write your name, email and space to write your enquiry. Should I request a mailing address from them this way? They probably wont reply to my request knowing that they are expecting to be bombarded with refund requests.

[filthiestfis]

Buenchico? Chris? Anyone?

[Buenchico]

Hi again.

I'm sorry I didn't reply last night but I'd headed off to bed. (Alarm set for 0615). I'm slightly concerned that the website doesn't include a mailing address. It's a legal requirement that anyone selling goods over the internet, in the UK, must provide a postal address. I'm not sure, but I would have assumed that the legislation also applies to websites selling services.

You definitely need to try to get a postal address from somewhere. It can't do any harm to see if the promoter will supply an address if you use the enquiry form. It might also be worth checking out who has registered the URL of the site. If it ends in 'uk', enter the web address (without the 'www.' bit) in the 'Whois' box here:
http://www.nominet.org.uk/other/whois/
(If it returns a result showing that the name of the registrant has been withheld, I'd get rather worried. People who register UK domain names are only permitted to hide their identity if the site is used for solely non-commercial purposes).

For other domain names, try this site:
http://www.whoisd.com/

Chris

[filthiestfis]

Hi Chris
You dont have to apologise for not answering last night. Did you do one of your daily trips to somewhere in Europe on Ryanair? ;o)
The website ends in .com but I did find some info on it using the whoisd.com link you gave me. Indeed although the domain ends in .com the server ends in .co.uk (bear with me I know little about how these things work) and yes the name of the registrant is the one of the promoter himself. I actually know who the promoter is by first name and what he looks like, but from my research he seems to be using various surnames which is a warning sign.
I guess I will have to email through the website first requesting address and if that is declined/ignored then send a written request to this guy's address.
Thank you oh fountain of all knowledge.

[filthiestfis]

Chris? Gone again?