NSW Fair Trading Commissioner Rod Stowe is urging consumers to be aware of the terms and conditions of tickets to summer festivals.

“With hot weather now with us, outdoor festivals are a popular activity and it is good to know what to look out for when you are buying tickets to these types of events,” Mr Stowe said.

“Buy from the event organiser or an authorised seller and only use secure payment methods to purchase your tickets.

“Keep any records from your transactions in case there is a problem later.”

Mr Stowe said if there was a problem such as event cancellation consumers should first contact the ticket seller to attempt to resolve any dispute.

“Fair Trading can help negotiate an outcome if talking to the trader fails,” he said. “If you are attending a live event there is also a code of practice ticketing agencies may be subject to.”

The Code of Practice for Ticketing of Live Entertainment Events in Australia can be found at http://www.liveperformance.com.au/ticketing_code_practice.

This Code sets out standards that relate to:

• advertising and event information
• the terms and conditions of sale and entry including the right to refuse entry and the right to evict a consumer
• lost, stolen or invalid tickets
• pricing on tickets
• cancelled or re-scheduled events
• complaints, refunds and exchanges
• money received from consumers in advance of an event.

If you paid for the ticket using PayPal and the event did not proceed you can contact the PayPal Resolution Centre and may be protected through the PayPal Buyer Protection program.

If you paid using a credit card you may be able to obtain a charge back from your card provider.

For more information visit www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au.