YORK, Pa. — Editor's note: The above video is from May 18.
The Better Business Bureau issued a warning this week about scammers who target Swifties with deals on tickets for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour that sound too good to be true.
"Tickets to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour have been in high demand since they first went on sale," the BBB said. "With most tour dates sold out, fans searching for tickets have turned to ticket resellers, where even the cheapest seats sell for hundreds of dollars.
"Unfortunately, scammers have noticed the high demand and target Swifties with ticket scams. So far in 2023, BBB Scam Tracker has gotten about 30 reports involving fake Taylor Swift tickets."
Here's how this scam works, according to the BBB:
"You are searching for Taylor Swift tickets for an upcoming concert when you come across a social media post," the BBB said. "Someone in your city is re-selling their tickets! It may even appear to be someone you know.
"Eager to get the tickets before someone else spots the deal, you message the seller. They offer you a good deal and ask you to pay using a peer-to-peer platform like BBB Accredited Businesses like Zelle or Venmo. They promise that they’ll give you a full refund if anything happens with the tickets.
"However, you never hear back from the seller after you send the money. Your tickets are never delivered, electronically or otherwise, because they never existed. And worse, if you use a digital wallet app to pay, you’ll unlikely get your money back."
One Taylor Swift fan reported this scam version to BBB Scam Tracker.
“The seller told me she was a verified seller and that she was an admin in the Facebook group," the victim reported. "The transaction took place over Zelle. After the transaction occurred, the seller failed to send me the tickets and failed to send me a refund.”
Here's how you can avoid being victimized by this or other similar scams, the BBB said:
- Only buy tickets from trusted vendors. Even if you can no longer get tickets directly from the venue or Ticketmaster, look to reputable ticket brokers before doing business with a ticket scalper (an unregulated and unlicensed ticket seller) or a random stranger on social media.
- If you think you know the seller, double-check. Scammers may hack your contacts’ accounts and pretend to be a friend or acquaintance who’s selling tickets. Before sending money, contact your friend directly to make sure the deal is real.
For more information
Read up on purchasing ticket insurance and find out how to resell event tickets when you can’t use them.