Ticket tout ban: what the new rules mean for your gig and match tickets

If you have ever sat in an online queue for ages, only to see tickets “sold out,” then pop up for triple the price on a resale site, this new rule change is for you.

The government has announced plans to make it illegal to resell tickets for concerts, football, theatre, comedy and other live events for more than the original price, including unavoidable fees.

Here is what it means in plain English, how it should save you money, and what to watch out for.

What has the government actually announced?

The government wants to stamp out industrial ticket touting. At the moment, bulk buyers and bots grab loads of tickets the second they go on sale, then flip them on resale sites for huge profits.

New rules will mean:

• It will be illegal to resell a ticket above “face value” (the original ticket price plus unavoidable fees, like a booking fee).
• Resale platforms will have a legal duty to enforce this price cap.
• Service fees charged by resale platforms will be capped, so they cannot sneak the price back up.
• People will be banned from reselling more tickets than they were allowed to buy in the first place.

These rules will apply to any platform reselling tickets to UK fans, including secondary ticketing sites and social media.

The plans still need to be turned into law and given a start date, but the direction of travel is clear: the government wants to wipe out for-profit ticket touting.

How much money could fans actually save?

Ticket resale has become big business.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has found that typical markups on secondary ticket sites are often more than 50%, and some tickets have been resold for up to six times their original price.

Government analysis suggests:

• Fans could save about £37 per resale ticket on average.
• Around 900,000 more tickets a year could be bought at face value directly from the main ticket seller.
• Together, fans could save around £112 million a year.

That is a lot of money staying in people’s pockets instead of going to touts and the platforms that host them.

What counts as “face value”?

This bit matters because it is the line between legal and illegal.

Face value will be defined as:

• The original ticket price
• Plus unavoidable fees, like a fixed service or booking charge

So if a ticket were £60 plus a £5 unavoidable booking fee, the top legal resale price would be £65, before any capped resale service fee.

You should not see that same ticket at £120 or £300 on a big resale site any more. If you do once the law is in force, something is wrong.

Who will actually enforce this?

Rules only work if someone has the power to enforce them.

Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, the CMA can now fine companies up to 10% of their global turnover for breaking consumer law, and it can do this directly without going through the courts first.

That is a serious threat to big ticketing platforms that try to ignore the price cap.

The CMA has already pushed Ticketmaster to improve pricing information, after complaints about confusing “dynamic pricing” and queues during huge sales like the recent Oasis tickets.

So there is already pressure on the industry to clean up its act.

What this means for your pocket

Here is how the change should help real fans:

• More chance to get tickets at face value when they first go on sale, because touts will have less reason to bulk buy.
• If you miss out and need to buy later, resale prices should be much closer to the original price, not double or triple.
• The worst “rip off” tickets at silly prices should disappear from mainstream platforms.

This does not suddenly make gigs cheap, and big-name tours will still be pricey. But it should stop the most extreme cash grabs and make it easier to plan for nights out without getting stung at the last minute.

Can I still sell a ticket if I cannot go?

Yes. The point is not to stop normal people from passing tickets on, but to stop people running a business out of it.

Once the rules are in force, you should still be able to resell a ticket if:

• You list it at face value plus the original unavoidable fees.
• You are not selling more tickets than you were allowed to buy in the first place.

Quick tips if you need to resell:

• Use the official resale option from the original ticket seller if they offer one.
• If you use a third-party resale platform, pick one based in the UK that clearly explains its fees and refund rules.
• Avoid selling on social media to total strangers if they ask you to take payment by bank transfer, as this is where scams explode.

Once the new rules kick in, reputable platforms will have to monitor listings and remove any that break the cap.

Will touts just move to the black market?

Some resale sites argue that price caps will drive sales to unregulated “black market” sites where scams and fraud are more common.

There is a risk that some touts will try to move off major platforms. That is why it is important to stay streetwise:

• Be very wary of tickets offered in Facebook groups or on X by people you do not know.
• Never pay by bank transfer to a stranger. Use a payment method with strong buyer protection, like a credit card or PayPal’s “goods and services”, where possible.
• Be suspicious of deals that seem too good to be true for sold-out shows.

The big win here is that, once the cap is law, anyone breaking it on a mainstream UK platform will be easier to spot and punish. That should make life much harder for the largest touting operations.

How to get cheaper tickets without touts

Even with a price cap, gig and match tickets can be a stretch. A few ideas:

• Join official fan clubs and mailing lists so you get early access codes when tours go on sale.
• Look for “restricted view” or upper tier seats, which can be cheaper but still give you the atmosphere.
• For football, check whether your club runs official ticket exchanges or resale schemes that allow season ticket holders to list their seats at face value.
• Be open to weeknight shows or less popular dates, which are often cheaper than Saturday nights.
• For families, look at matinee performances and family offers for theatre and comedy.

These are the routes the industry will want you to use more, now that easy tout profits are being taken away.

What happens next?

Right now, we have a clear policy announcement and a plan, but the fine detail still needs to go through Parliament and then be written into law.

In the coming months, you can expect:

• Draft laws setting out exactly how the cap will work.
• A start date for when resale above face value actually becomes illegal.
• Guidance for ticketing platforms, promoters and fans.

Until then, high resale prices may still appear, so it is worth being cautious and using official channels where you can.

Key points to take away

• The government plans to make it illegal to resell tickets at a price above the face value (original price plus unavoidable fees).
• Resale platform fees will be capped, and platforms must enforce the rules.
• The CMA can fine rule-breakers up to 10% of their global turnover, so big platforms have a lot to lose.
• Fans could collectively save over £100 million a year, with average resale tickets around £37 cheaper.
• You will still be able to resell tickets you cannot use, just not for a big profit.

This is not a magic fix for every ticket problem, but for ordinary fans who are sick of “sold out” shows reappearing at silly money, it is a big step in the right direction.