A first-time festival-goer from Perth has had his dreams of attending T in the Park crushed after falling victim to an apparent website scam.
Eager to go with friends, Smudge Thomson paid over £300 for tickets from “EU Ticket Shop.”
The 22-year-old said, “I usually buy things through Ticketmaster, but they had none left. I found this other site after using a search engine, and when I went on it, it seemed pretty legitimate.
“They even sent me through an order confirmation, but I didn’t hear anything else from them after that.”
The musician was unaware the company was on a list of unofficial suppliers which people desperate to attend T in the Park were advised against using.
He only began to suspect that something was amiss when, two days before the festival, he had still not received his tickets through the post.
“I tried phoning the number given on the website, but the guy who answered told me that the company just has a box office in the building,” Smudge said.
“I then got put on to a customer care line which costs about £1.50 a minute and still I couldn’t get hold of anyone. It was only on Wednesday that I found out it was all a scam and that I wouldn’t be going anywhere.”
While thousands of people from across Scotland will be enjoying the festival atmosphere, Smudge told The Courier he will avoid anything to do with T in the Park.
He added, “My friend is still coming up for Glasgow so I think we’re just going to spend the weekend out in Perth.
“I will be keeping away from anything showing the festival and next year I will definitely only go through the official channels.
“I just hope that this will serve as a warning to others when they are buying things from an unknown website.
“Even if it looks legitimate, find the address and the phone number to check those contact details are real.”
The Courier tried to speak to EU Ticket Shop, using details displayed on its website, which is still offering hard-to-find tickets for high-profile events.
A message claimed that “all operators were busy” and gave an alternative premium rate line to call.
A spokesman for Perth and Kinross Council said, “The council’s trading standards service has been contacted by a number of members of the public regarding non-delivery of tickets ordered from this website.
“We believe this website to be a scam site, probably operated from outside the UK.
“We would advise anyone who has ordered tickets through EU Ticket Shop and not received them to contact the police.”