Here’s what you need to know about getting Ticketmaster concert refunds

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

People everywhere are looking at tickets for upcoming concerts and wondering if their favorite artist’s scheduled show will actually happen.

Some tours have been canceled outright. Others have postponed to a fall date.

Many music fans, looking at the hundreds of dollars they have spent on shows in limbo, would just like a refund. But getting your cash back is not as easy as it might seem.

The list of concerts pushed off grows by the week:

  • Garth Brooks’ stadium tour has been postponed to new dates in many cities.
  • Kesha’s concerts have been postponed to a TBA date in many cities.
  • Brad Paisley canceled most of his May and June concerts.
  • Taylor Swift, who had planned the biggest tour of them all to celebrate her new album “Lover,” canceled the entire thing.

Dedra Perlmutter bought $600 worth of tickets to see Cher and now would like her money back, even though promoters say the concert was simply postponed to later in the year.

“I just don’t know if it’s going to happen,” Perlmutter said. “I mean, a lot of people inside an arena, at one time, I just don’t know how that can happen now.”

She said when she called Ticketmaster, “they were not refunding anything because it was not canceled.”

But then she received some good news: After outrage from fans, a class-action lawsuit and complaints from lawmakers in Congress, Ticketmaster now says it will offer refunds for both canceled and postponed shows if the original ticket purchaser cannot attend the new date.

It appears Perlmutter will get her Cher money back after all.

Need to catch 30-day window

But from the “doesn’t that stink” file, getting refunds may still not be as easy as it first seems.

Once your show gets a new date, Ticketmaster says it will give you a 30-day window to request a refund.

But you have to wait for the show to be rescheduled, meaning many fans, their tickets, and their money are still in limbo. Many shows do not yet have a new date.

Bottom line: Refunds vary by concert, so check Ticketmaster or your venue for refund rules for your show, so you don’t waste your money.

About the Author

John Matarese

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