It’s the day of the concert, you’ve got your ticket and You are about to head out the door for a perfect night out. the Walton Arts Center and Walmart AMP team wants to help make your performance dreams a reality. The first step is making sure you have a valid ticket!
Scalping, the sale of a ticket for an event at a price higher than the face value or the sale of a non-valid ticket, is an illegal act in Arkansas. It’s something that every venue battles. And every patron should follow some simple steps to avoid scalped tickets entirely.
Tips for Safe Ticket Purchasing:
Purchase only from the venue or their authorized ticketing system. If you don’t know what the authorized ticketing system is for a venue, visit their website first to find that out.
While you are there, do some simple research before you purchase!
Check on ticket availability from the venue first.
That way you know if the show is sold out or if tickets are still available. Sold out shows can run the risk of more scalped tickets on third-party sites because sellers know that patrons are desperate to get tickets.
Also check the price of tickets from the venue - so know what they should cost and don’t overpay.
If you still decide to purchase from a third-party or resale sites, exercise caution: When doing online searches for tickets – be aware of where those links are sending you.
Scalpers pay to be listed higher in search. Venues usually can’t – especially non profits
It’s a good practice to skip the ads listed at the top and actually go to the organic listing.
Also, be a smart consumer when purchasing tickets:
Don’t advertise how desperate you are to get tickets. That includes posts on social media or in the event listing on social media. That makes you a target for scalpers to reach out to you.
And if the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. If you can’t verify it through the venue or if they offer to take any alternative payment method (Amazon gift cards, etc) then pass on it.
Purchasing Tickets for Walmart AMP and Walton Arts Center Events
Walton Arts Center Tickets is the only authorized ticket seller for events at Walton Arts Center, Nadine Baum Studios and the Walmart AMP. In some instances, tours will offer special deals through services like Living Social and Groupon. Those tickets are purchased by the service from our box office and are valid offers. If you ever have questions about whether a ticket offer is valid, you can always call our box office at 479.443.5600.
Please be aware that event tickets for Walton Arts Center venues purchased from third party ticketing sites may be counterfeit and in such cases would not be honored for admission.
In order to avoid problems with counterfeit or invalid tickets, we encourage patrons to ONLY purchase tickets through Walton Arts Center Tickets. Tickets can be purchased online at waltonartscenter.org, in-person at Walton Arts Center’s Box Office, via phone at 479.443.560 or on the WAC Tickets app.
If you’ve purchased scalped tickets - here are a few things you can do…
Know Your Rights
According to Arkansas Code 5-63-201, updated April 2015, re-selling tickets to an entertainment event at a venue in the state of Arkansas at greater than face value plus reasonable fees for processing is illegal. These scalpers have committed a crime to which you are the victim, and you are well within your rights seek retribution.
Steps You Can Take
Contact your credit card company or your bank as soon as possible and start the process of disputing the charge.
Please note that in some circumstances it might even be prudent to cancel the card used, as the personal information the unauthorized ticket seller has obtained from you cannot be guaranteed as secure.
Contact the website where you purchased the ticket to alert them about the fraud and request a refund.
Be aware that in some circumstances, they may offer only a partial refund making the amount paid equal to the “box office sale price” plus originally charged fees. You may refuse this partial refund; it is your right to demand a full refund.
Contact the Consumer Protection Department of the Attorney General’s Office by visiting their website at www.ArkansasAG.gov or by calling (501) 682-2341 or (toll free) (800) 482-8982.
A complaint with the AR Attorney General can be easily filed against the agency or individual. The form can be found online at: http://www.arkansasag.gov/file-a-consumer-complaint/
You may also file a complaint with the Attorney General of the state in which the scalper is located.
Contact Jennifer Dobrowolski, Box Office Manager for Walton Arts Center, at (479) 571-2709 or jdobrowolski@waltonartscenter.org with the details of your transaction, so we can update our records and do everything within our power to help you get your money back and prevent future fraud activity.
Walton Arts Center Ticketing Policies
The Walton Arts Center is the only authorized ticket seller for events at Walton Arts Center, Nadine Baum Studios and the Walmart AMP. Please exercise caution in purchasing tickets. If you have a question regarding authorized sales, please contact us at (479) 443-5600.
Be aware that any event tickets purchased from a source other than the Walton Arts Center or the Walmart AMP may not be honored for admission.
Tickets held at will call for an event require a matching, valid ID to pick up.
Walton Arts Center and Walmart AMP are not responsible for third party resell tickets.
Our team at Walton Arts Center and the Walmart AMP do everything we can to prevent ticket fraud, and strongly discourage our patrons from purchasing tickets through ticket resellers or third parties.