"Service charge" What a fucking joke these things are. Just ordered a ticket online for the Evolution festival tomorrow. £9.50 for the ticket, but £2 for a 'service charge'. What the hell is a service charge and why is it worth £2? I'm saving them having to print anything, or send anything in the post. I'm assuming their system is automatically handled with computers so there's nobody being paid to send the ticket either. They should just advertise stuff at the price they are, instead of a price that is always impossible to get. "This ticket costs £9.50, but not really." is what it should say. it's bugged me because I I have money in the bank to the exact multiple of 10, and because of this £11.50 fee I'm essentially £20 down when I go to the cash point.. :argue::upyours:
the service charge/booking fee is usually a small amount charged by the retailer of the tickets. Record shops/websites wouldn't usually make money on ticket sales without them, so it's part of a way of recouping costs and making a little money. The problem is, like with all other things, there's always someone taking the piss and charging far more than the other outlets.
Haha that was for yesterday. I need to find a printer now cos mine is out of ink. I was up till 6am playing the ufc game i just want to stay in bed now lol. Its a hard life.
Until someone comes up with a cheaper alternative, or someone literally forces these companies (through regulation) to change their ways, the service charge is an amazing means by which you can cream an absolute fortune (In relative terms) out of what is essentially providing nothing more than a brokering service. With transaction costs probably in pennies (debit/credit card charges excluded) these things are just a way of topping up profits. Its a frustrating, yet genius racket.
