Oasis’ reunion tour has seen scores of disgruntled fans unable to get a ticket after ‘in demand’ pricing saw the cost to see the iconic band jump by around £200

Oasis has been told to “do the right thing” and issue refunds to disgruntled fans who were stung by the exorbitant ticket prices for next year’s reunion tour. Consumer champions Which? have slammed the Gallagher brothers for not giving fair warning that fans might get caught in a price hike frenzy due to high demand.

This comes as supporters were left reeling after snapping up standard tickets for the much-anticipated reunion tour, only to find costs had surged from a reasonable £148 to a whopping £355 on Ticketmaster because of their controversial ‘dynamic pricing’ model. The outcry triggered the Government and the UK’s competition authority to vow they would scrutinise the shady practice of dynamic pricing.

Which? has amassed a stash of screenshots from devotees trying to secure their spots at gigs both before and after the ticket prices soared with not a single one showing any hint from Ticketmaster that costs could inflate mid-sale. Many Oasis fans who made it through the massive queues to even get the chance to buy a ticket had to give up on their dream, after seeing the price more than double.

What’s worse, Which? claimed to have proof that fans were baited with one ticket price but then, in a gut-wrenching twist, had it snatched away at checkout and replaced with a drastically inflated fee, leaving them blindsided, reports the Manchester Evening News.

One case reported by Which? was particularly galling, displaying an ‘in demand’ pricing stunt where standing tickets for a show at Manchester’s Heaton Park, initially pegged at £148.50, rocketed to an eye-watering £337.50 each.

To make matters clear, under the stipulations of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs), it’s a big no-no for traders to bamboozle customers with misleading price displays or to omit crucial pricing info that buyers need to make savvy decisions about their purchases.

Which? has called out the ticketing disaster, stating that many supporters were left in the dark about price hikes until they tried to snap up cheaper tickets. The consumer watchdog flagged that while ‘dynamic pricing’ was indeed buried in the terms and conditions, there was no heads-up given that this tactic would be applied to Oasis tickets.

In a move that has struck a chord with dismayed fans, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has kicked off an inquiry into Ticketmaster’s sales practices last week. The CMA’s probe will delve into the use of ‘dynamic pricing’ for Oasis concert tickets and whether Ticketmaster might have run afoul of consumer protection laws.

The Gallagher brothers have buried the hatchet, for now, but many cannot afford to see them on their long-awaited reunion tour ( 
Image:
PA Media)
Pushing back, Ticketmaster insists concert prices aren’t their call, with disclaimers on their site attributing ticket costs to the “event organiser” who slaps a price tag based on what they think the market can bear.

Oasis themselves have washed their hands of the dynamic pricing strategy, denying any role in its adoption. Meanwhile, Which? is gearing up to present its investigative results to the CMA.

Stoking the fires of excitement and perhaps controversy, over the weekend, Oasis dished out exclusive ballot invites for what’s billed as their “final” gigs at Wembley Stadium, padding their Live ’25 tour with two additional performances slated for September 27 and 28 in London.

Which? consumer law expert Lisa Webb said: “It seems extremely unfair that Oasis fans got up early and battled through the queues only to find that tickets prices had more than doubled from the originally advertised price.

“Which? believes that Ticketmaster’s ‘in demand’ pricing practices for Oasis tickets could have breached consumer law as it appears fans weren’t properly warned about the use of ‘in demand’ pricing until far too late in the purchase journey – leading to a nasty shock at the checkout.

“Oasis and Ticketmaster should do the right thing and refund fans who may have been misled into paying over the odds for tickets that would have been half the price just hours earlier.”

A Ticketmaster spokeswoman said: “Fans can resell their Oasis tickets at the full price they paid through Ticketmaster or Twickets.”