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Derbyshire residents were warned to stay vigilant when purchasing tickets – after nearly £7m was lost to fraudsters last year.

Derbyshire Police has revealed that over 7,000 people fell victim to ticket fraud across the country in 2022 – with victims losing a total £6.7m to criminals offering fake tickets.

The force has urged Derbyshire residents to follow advice from Action Fraud to avoid becoming a victim of this crime in 2023.

Fraudsters often take advantage of the huge demand for the most popular events. The tickets they’re advertising have either already sold out, or haven’t officially gone on sale yet, but their websites will claim to have tickets available. In some instances, the event they’re promoting doesn’t even exist.

Millions of pounds were lost to ticket fraud in 2022.

You should only buy tickets from a venue’s box office, the promoter, an official agent or a well-known and reputable ticket exchange site.

Should you choose to buy tickets from an individual (for example on eBay or social media), never transfer the money directly into their bank account but use a secure payment site such as PayPal.

Paying for your tickets by credit card will offer increased protection over other payments methods, such as debit card, cash, or money transfer services. Avoid making payments through bank transfer or money transfer services, as the payment may not be recoverable.

Before buying tickets from a website, check the company’s contact details. There should be a landline phone number and a full postal address. Avoid using the site if there is only a PO box address and mobile phone number, as it could be difficult to get in touch after you buy tickets. PO box addresses and mobile phone numbers are easy to change and difficult to trace.

Before entering any payment details on a website, make sure the web address starts with https (the ‘s’ stands for secure). There should be a locked padlock icon in the browser’s address bar.

Is the vendor a member of Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (STAR)? If they are, you're buying from a company that has signed up to their strict governing standards. STAR also offers a service to help customers with outstanding complaints.

If you think you are a victim of ticket fraud, the offence can reported to Action Fraud online – or by calling 0300 123 2040.

Derbyshire residents urged to protect themselves from ticket fraud after £6.7m lost to criminals in 12 months