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| MPs threatened with arrest after protest at Viagogo office | |
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| Two MPs were threatened with arrest on Thursday when they attempted to “doorstep” the bosses of Viagogo at the controversial ticket resale company’s “secret” offices in central London. | Two MPs were threatened with arrest on Thursday when they attempted to “doorstep” the bosses of Viagogo at the controversial ticket resale company’s “secret” offices in central London. |
| Conservative MP Nigel Adams and Labour’s Sharon Hodgson said they felt they had no choice but to turn up at Viagogo’s offices on Fenchurch Street in London as the “shifty, slippery and secretive” company continues to ignore all official correspondence after snubbing the parliamentary inquiry into ticket touting. | Conservative MP Nigel Adams and Labour’s Sharon Hodgson said they felt they had no choice but to turn up at Viagogo’s offices on Fenchurch Street in London as the “shifty, slippery and secretive” company continues to ignore all official correspondence after snubbing the parliamentary inquiry into ticket touting. |
| “Viagogo told parliament they couldn’t attend the inquiry because they are registered in Switzerland and do not have adequate representation in the UK,” Adams said. “But we have found that they have this secret office so we have come here to meet them in person.” | “Viagogo told parliament they couldn’t attend the inquiry because they are registered in Switzerland and do not have adequate representation in the UK,” Adams said. “But we have found that they have this secret office so we have come here to meet them in person.” |
| The MPs said they had sent Viagogo and its parent company, VGL, an official letter but said they did not have “huge confidence” that the firm would reply. | |
| “So we thought that if we turned up in person we might get a bit of face time,” Adams said. | |
| They did not get any. Adams and Hodgson, who were joined by a group of angry music fans who claim Viagogo has ripped them off, were told by the building’s security staff that the company’s bosses “don’t want to see you”. | They did not get any. Adams and Hodgson, who were joined by a group of angry music fans who claim Viagogo has ripped them off, were told by the building’s security staff that the company’s bosses “don’t want to see you”. |
| When Adams and Hodgson protested that they were elected members of parliament and wished to air the concerns raised by their constituents, a security guard asked the MPs to leave and said: “I don’t want to have to call the police.” | When Adams and Hodgson protested that they were elected members of parliament and wished to air the concerns raised by their constituents, a security guard asked the MPs to leave and said: “I don’t want to have to call the police.” |
| The pair said they were shocked at being threatened with arrest for trespassing in the shared office building. | |
| “In my 12 years in parliament I’ve never been turned away,” said Hodgson, the co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on ticket abuse. | |
| “We’re just trying to politely represent our constituents and parliament. Normally if you go and see someone [as an MP] you get the most senior person to sit down and talk to you, but here we’ve been told if we don’t leave they will call the police.” | |
| Adams, who sat on the digital, culture, media and sport select committee, said: “We’re both reasonable members of parliament and all we want is drop off a letter. | |
| “It’s extraordinary that we are being turned away. This is clearly a shifty, slippery and secretive company.” | |
| He said gig-goers had been ripped off to the tune of thousands of pounds by buying unofficial concert tickets through Viagogo, which had then been cancelled by the artists’ promoters. Ed Sheeran this week cancelled 10,000 tickets for his gigs next summer that were being sold at inflated prices on resale websites. | |
| Kerry West, who joined the MPs on the protest, said she had been “tricked” into spending more than £1,800 on four tickets for Sheeran’s gig. “I had Googled official Ed Sheeran tickets and thought I was buying the real tickets for £350, but then the process was very pressured and it took nearly £2,000 from my card.” | Kerry West, who joined the MPs on the protest, said she had been “tricked” into spending more than £1,800 on four tickets for Sheeran’s gig. “I had Googled official Ed Sheeran tickets and thought I was buying the real tickets for £350, but then the process was very pressured and it took nearly £2,000 from my card.” |
| West’s tickets have been cancelled by Sheeran’s promoter but Viagogo has refused to refund her any money. More than 2,000 people have joined a Facebook group, Victims of Viagogo, and claim to have been ripped off by the firm. | |
| Adams said the discovery that Viagogo has a physical office in the UK means that company should be subject to its rules and should not be able to “hide behind claims that it operates from Switzerland”. | Adams said the discovery that Viagogo has a physical office in the UK means that company should be subject to its rules and should not be able to “hide behind claims that it operates from Switzerland”. |
| “They give the impression they don’t fall under the UK jurisdiction. But we found they have an office here, and employ people here so they should be subject to our rules,” he added. “Knowing the address will also make it easier for customers to complain.” | “They give the impression they don’t fall under the UK jurisdiction. But we found they have an office here, and employ people here so they should be subject to our rules,” he added. “Knowing the address will also make it easier for customers to complain.” |
| He said some customers had had their claims for compensation rejected by the company because they had sent letters to the wrong official address. | He said some customers had had their claims for compensation rejected by the company because they had sent letters to the wrong official address. |
| Viagogo had operated out of an office on Cannon Street, another central London location, but moved out before the parliamentary inquiry. The MPs discovered that Viagogo’s parent company, VGL Services Limited, operates out of offices at 71 Fenchurch Street in London EC3. | |
| Neither the Viagogo name or VGL appears on the list of other companies that occupy the building, but security staff confirmed that Viagogo staff do work in the building. | |
| The security manager told the MPs that he understood their concerns and had himself bought tickets through Viagogo, but he was unable to help them address their concerns in person to Prabhat Shah, who is listed as director of VGL Services Ltd. | |
| Adams, Hodgson and Ed Sheeran’s promoter, Stuart Galbraith, told the security guard to prepare for a “lot more visits” from unhappy Viagogo customers. The security guard said he was “already unhappy” with the number of people who had turned up to complain on Thursday. | |
| Viagogo did not respond to requests for comment. | Viagogo did not respond to requests for comment. |