Consumers warned of online sporting event scams

BUYER beware: A consumer watchdog has warned people not to be conned by offers of cut-price tickets to Euro 2012 and the Olympics ahead of an expected surge in online demand.

The Dublin-based European Consumer Centre (ECC), which monitors online scams and customer complaints, warned that amid the growth of counterfeit goods and fake “pop up” retailers, sports fans could end up paying a heavy price by buying tickets from unofficial sources.

Caroline Curneen, PR and marketing manager with the group, said that last year staff in Dublin had to follow up a complaint from an Irish woman who travelled to South Africa the previous year, having apparently secured a ticket to the World Cup Final, only to discover the ticket did not exist.