Fred Again scalpers selling Perth tickets for huge prices ahead of sell-out gig at Langley Park

Scalpers have swooped on Perth’s sell-out Fred Again concert, demanding almost double the price for their tickets to the show.

The 35,000 tickets for the British DJ’s surprise Langley Park show sold out in just two hours on Wednesday night.

But mere hours later, those who missed out on the $129 tickets were being asked to shell out more than twice the price for tickets online.

By Thursday morning Facebook Marketplace was littered with Fred Again tickets, many being sold at a hefty mark-up.

One seller in Belmont offered a ticket for a whopping $300 while another insisted their $250 asking price for a ticket which cost about half that amount was a “good price, don’t miss out”.

While another was brazen enough to ask for $250 each for their two tickets, despite sharing their Ticketek invoice showing they paid just $129.80 each and a $6.95 handling fee.

Another wanted $230 for a single ticket for the show, indicating their loot of tickets was “Selling Fast”.

Fred Again is known for announcing gigs with just a few days’ notice but that hasn’t stopped his events being notorious for ticket scalping.

Pedestrian.TV reported a campaign to use bots to buy up tickets for Fred Again’s Sydney concert, before they were sold online for a profit, made the scalpers involved up to $1 million in profit.

Even WA Police made light of the DJ being notorious for attracting scalpers. In a Facebook post laden with Fred Again references, the force warned fans to be vigilant.

“When it comes to ticket scammers, it’s a Jungle out there,” the post read.

“If you’re offered a deal that seems too good to be Bleu make sure you Pause and Follow your gut. Remember, it’s not likely they have Ten tickets to put in your Loving Arms.

“WA, we adore u and remind you to say leavemealone to scammers.”

Ticketek rules allowed fans to buy just four tickets per person. A notice on the Perth event page warned those trying to buy more tickets in a separate transaction risked having them “cancelled without notice”.

Consumer Protection WA is urging Fred Again fans to avoid purchasing tickets online, other than with Ticketek directly or their Ticketek Marketplace resale platform.

“It is illegal for tickets to WA events to be sold for more than 10 per cent over the original ticket price when a resale restriction applies,” Principle Media Officer Frankie Pennington of Consumer Protection WA said.

“Anyone reselling a ticket must include the original ticket cost (including booking fees) and details of the section/bay, row and seat number in any advertisements.”

Fines can range from $2,000 infringement notices to $20,000 if the matter goes to court. Even higher penalties of $100,000 can apply to those using ‘bots’ to purchase bulk tickets.

“Action has already been taken by Consumer Protection against multiple offenders who sold tickets at illegally inflated prices to the Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and UFC events held in Perth during 2023,” Pennington said.

“Since the Ticket Scalping Act came into force, more than twenty $2,000 infringement notices have been issued.”