ABA CEO Anna Bligh on footy ticket scams: transcript of interview on Sunrise with Natalie Barr and Matt Shervington

Natalie Barr (Host): Well, as we kick off into footy season, the Australian Banking Association is urging Aussies to remain vigilant with ticketing scams.

Matt Shervington (Host): People buying resale tickets to footy games on social media are being told to watch out for the warning signs as the growing number of criminals take advantage of keen fans.

Natalie Barr: For more, we’re joined by Australian Banking Association CEO Anna Bligh, good morning. This is a huge problem on social media, isn’t it, when Aussies buy resale tickets for footy games, what are the warning signs?

Anna Bligh:  Yes Nat, as footy season gets going, it’s unfortunately game on for ticket scammers. The things to look out for is be very very careful, if you’re on any of the online marketplaces, you should always be buying your tickets to big events, including big football games – big sold out events – on authorised ticket selling sites, and those sites also have their own authorised resale sites, so look out for those legitimate avenues. Unfortunately, many millions of dollars are lost to these online selling scams, and far too many of them are for big sporting events during football season.

Matt Shervington: Yeah, that’s right. So obviously it’s all season long, but not one specific code, the AFL, of course, the NRL, final State of Origin, too.

Anna Bligh: State of Origin is a real danger time, because those games are most likely to be sold out, so are semi-finals, finals, any of those big sold-out events, ticket scammers will be out there trying to take advantage of the excitement and passion of very fervent fans. So, there are resale tickets available, but get them through the authorised sites. These scammers know how much fans care about their teams, and they’re out there trying to take advantage of it. So, the big online selling platforms, the big online marketplaces, people don’t realise, but they’re not regulated by anything. So, you really take your chances on those sites, and people pay big money for some of these tickets and then get to the game and, of course, don’t get in the gate.

Natalie Barr: Yeah, it’s just criminal, isn’t it? Well, it actually is. What are the safest websites Anna?

Anna Bligh: Well, they’re all the big names that you’ve heard of, going to places like Ticketek, they have their own authorised reselling sites. So, there are legitimate people who buy a ticket and then something happens in their lives that means they can’t go to the game and they are allowed to resell them on these resale sites. So go to the legitimate sites, go to the authorised sites. Don’t let your excitement and your passion for your team drive onto those other places. Also be very careful if someone asks you to transfer money directly to their account, or, even more worryingly, to a crypto account, go through the legitimate, authorised company sites.

Matt Shervington: Yeah, watch out for the red flags. Anna, thanks for your time.

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