This company sold tickets to a recent "House Party/Old School Rap" concert featuring multiple artists for June 17 at 8:00pm. When we arrived at the venue (which is small, but holds at least 1000 or so people) at 8:35pm that night, there are only about 60 concert goers there! I started to have a bad feeling about this at that point, but we sat down at started to wait with everyone else...
Long story short, 3 and 1/2 hours later—only about 80-100 concert goers show up and are still waiting for the show. Finally a group of us confront an employee (Patrice) from the shows production company (BW Presents) at the ticket window and start demanding refunds since the show is obviously not going to happen. She begrudingly asks all of us to write our names and phone numbers on our ticket stubs, collects them, and gives each of us (about 80 people left) a post-it note IOU handwritten w/her name, an IOU for the amount of your tickets ($35/seat!) and nothing else.
I ask her if there is a contact number—she is curt w/me and says she will be contacting us within 10 days to ask us what form we want our refund in. That's it—she refuses to give anymore information AND she has our ticket stubs! When we purchased the tickets they would only accept debit payments (no credit), so they already have our cash and we can't cancel payments through our credit cards, etc. I personally am out more than $80 total for the night. Luckily, we did save our cash/debit receipt for the transaction and that and the post-it IOU is all the proof we have of the purchase.
We wait 11 days with no phone call from Patrice or anyone from BW Presents. We try to various directory and internet searches and cannot find any contact info. For the company. Finally, after reaching the purchase site for the tickets and the actual ticket company, they wash their hands of the situation and give us 2 phone numbers and an email address for Patrice and leave it at that. Only one of the phone numbers actually works, but is ALWAYS busy and we can never get anyone.
On day 12 we email Patrice. Wait 24 hours—no response. We email her again—same thing—no response.By day 14 we email her twice now and are more assertive in our request for information (we are never abusive, though). These phone calls and emails are all done during normal business hours and days. Still no response...
Tonight (Day 14), at 10:20 PM I get an aggressive phone call from Patrice w/BW Presents! At 10:20 at night!!! She is rude and claiming that we are harrassing her about the refund. I am totally appalled that this lady is calling me at 10:20 at night and tell her so—and attempt to ward off her verbal attack about us "harrassing" her about our refund. I never curse or are abusive about it, but am assertive in explaining our anger and frustration at the lack of professionalism and customer service by her and this company. She hangs up on me. I leave it at that and email her another letter (that I have CC'd to her boss, the ticket company, the selling venue, and our local BBB) detailing the above situation. She STILL never confirmed when or how we will get our refund.
I have given Patrice and BW Presents 5 business days to contact us with a confirmation of when and how we will receive our refund or I will pursue action with the BBB and, if necessary, small claims court.
I have NEVER experienced such a lack of professionalism and customer service before with any other company as I have with this concert production company. I believe that they knew before this show was to start that they had not sold enough seats and STILL continued to sell the few tickets they did, knowing the whole thing was probably going to be a total wash.
Additionally, the late night home phone call from Patrice is absolutely appalling and an unacceptable business practice.
I had always learned in any customer service business that when your company is at fault for a mistake, it is the companies and it employees responsibility to address the issues in a professional and timely manner. Even if it was going to be 6 months before we could get a refund, they should have contacted us and told us the plan within the 10 days stated at the show.
It is not so much about the money anymore for me as it is not letting this woman and her company get away with treating people like this. I am fed up with rude people and fraud. I still cannot believe this woman called me at 10:20 at night!!!
Just stay far, far away from any shows this production company puts together—you have to deal with nut case frauds to even try to get your money back!
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