Vividseats.com Vivid Seats Bait and Switch Chicago Internet

Complaint: In the afternoon of July 19, my son purchased 2 tickets from vividseats.com for the International Champions Cup to be played at FedExField on Jul 28, 2015. The seats he was promised via two separate emails were Section: 317 Row: 4.  At 8:30 p.m. July 19 he received an email to download his printable tickets. Those tickets showed the two seats as Section: 317 Row: 4. His order # was 4526823.

In the afternoon of 7/28 -- several hours before the game -- he received an email notifying him of a problem with his tickets and advising him to call. Upon calling, he was informed that his tickets were "no longer valid". He was offered two spots in the standing "party deck" -- much worse seats (actually no seats; and he has a sprained ankle)  --or a full refund.

A quick search of the stadium’s site revealed that the tickets he'd purchased for less than $100 on 7/19 were now going for over $300. Clearly, Vividseats (or whoever "owned" those tickets) stood to gain by kicking him out of the seats and selling them the day of the event.

I spoke with two managers and was told that the seats he purchased were not "owned by Vividseats" and that they had no way of getting those back for him. They spoke as if the seats had vanished.

It is “bait and switch” to sell them, with a 100% guarantee (as stated on their website), on 7/19 but suddenly not to own them the day of the game. My son chose to go to the game rather than get his money refunded. The company agreed to refund their $10/ticket service charge.

However, I believe they are engaging in fraudulent practices. Had he not checked his email that day, he would not have discovered he had no seats until arriving at the game, at which point he and his friend would have no way back home until a parent came all the way back to DC to pick them up that night.

Imagine you purchased two tickets to a Broadway show, flew to NY, got a hotel room, but did not check your email that day. You would go to the theater with your printed VividSeats tickets, only to be told your tickets are no longer valid.