The way Ticketmaster sells ticket insurance to its customers is “misleading and misleading” according to the LPC law firm, which has filed an application for authorization to institute a class action.
The online ticket office does not ask its customers if they wish to “purchase” insurance. They are rather “forced” to tick “yes” or “no” to the question: “do you want to protect the purchase of your ticket”, says one in the request obtained by The Press.
“There is no mention of the price of the insurance next to the ‘yes’ box and the price is never added to the total price that the [clients] have to pay for their tickets,” adds lawyer Joey Zukran, who is leading the case. Thus, the protection seems to be offered free of charge.
Ticketmaster offers its customers insurance to obtain 100% reimbursement of their tickets in certain specific circumstances.
LPC Avocats recalls that the Consumer Protection Act forces merchants to disclose the total sums that will have to be disbursed by a customer. And that this must be done in an “obvious and intelligible way”.
However, Mathieu Trudelle, who is acting as a representative in this case, discovered that he had paid $17.44 to insure each of his Cowboys Fringants tickets after concluding the transaction, as reported by The Press last Sunday.
Consult the chronicle Before insuring his show tickets… https://www.lapresse.ca/affaires/chroniques/2023-01-15/avant-d-assure-ses-tickets-de-spectacle.php
LPC Avocats wants the Court to order the defendants to modify their platforms (website and mobile application), that the amounts invoiced to the clients be reimbursed and that the latter receive compensatory damages and punitive damages of $200.
“We think it’s a fraudulent way to sell a product when they have the technological ability to specify the price for other things like parking, for example. I think it’s intentional. They believe customers won’t notice [qu’ils ont acheté une assurance] or that they won’t bother to ask for a refund,” attorney Joey Zukran told The Press.
The insurance policy offered on Ticketmaster is underwritten by CUMIS General Insurance Company (a member of the Co-operators group of companies) and administered by Allianz Global Assistance, a registered business name of AZGA Service Canada Inc. and AZGA Insurance Agency Canada ltd. All these companies are targeted by the legal action.
Allianz Global Assistance also offers ticket insurance on the Air Canada site, reports Me Zukran, and in this case the prices are displayed correctly. This is, in his opinion, proof that this company is capable of doing things right.