Although California is easing some public restrictions on its way into Phase 2 of its reopening plan, it’s going to take time before the public can go to concerts.
Most gatherings of any kind have been canceled, postponed or rescheduled in the wake of the pandemic, but that isn't the case for the Alanis Morissette concert scheduled at the Hollywood Bowl in June.
Aaron Korber paid $350 for two tickets and even purchased ticket insurance, but that was before the pandemic and before he lost his job. Now he says a refund from Ticketmaster is "All I Really Want."
“Back in the 90s she was one of my favorite artists. Everybody had 'Jagged Little Pill,'” he said.
The concert has not been officially canceled or postponed, Korber said. He learned after the fact that his ticket insurance doesn't cover global pandemics.
Out of a job due to COVID-19 and doubtful the show will go on, Korber is still waiting for a refund from Ticketmaster.
“Obviously there is no way this show can go on next month. It’s just not gonna happen,” said Korber.
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Under Ticketmaster's policy, customers receive a refund when an event is canceled, or only after the event organizer postpones or reschedules a show.
“On their end, they haven’t heard anything about cancellation or postponement," said Korber. “I could really use that money. $350 is a lot of money.”
With no word from Alanis Morrisette's camp, no job and no music, Korber can’t seem to get anywhere. He told NBC 7 he hopes Ticketmaster will do the obvious.
“Refund all these tickets. I understand their point of view saying it’s up to the artist. But if they know obviously the shows aren’t gonna proceed as scheduled, they should do the right thing, and refund all the tickets,” said Korber.
A spokesperson for Ticketmaster told NBC 7 they are working with their clients to get updates on their postponed/rescheduled shows as quickly as possible.
In a message posted on the company’s blog, Ticketmaster president Jared Smith addressed the issue. In part he said :
“For the 30,000 events that have already been postponed or canceled as a result of COVID-19, we have already sent more than $2 billion to event organizers, making it impossible to issue refunds to fans before recouping sales receipts from the organizers, as we’ve done in the past. To be clear, Ticketmaster intends to refund as many tickets as possible in as timely a fashion as is feasible. We are working every day towards that goal.”
