It was relatively easy for Daryl Metz to buy tickets to the ZZ Top concert, but it’s been nearly impossible to acquire a refund from provider Ticket Rocket.
Metz is $330 lighter in the pocket after he bought the tickets on Dec. 21, 2019 and is still figuring out how he can get his money, he laughed recently.
Metz’s son encouraged him to buy tickets as a nice way to celebrate their mother for Mother’s Day, which fell on the same day — May 10 — as the concert, he explained. His wife agreed to go with them, so after a meal at Veroba’s Restaurant, they visited Mosaic Place and he purchased three tickets to see the American rock band.
Those tickets, incidentally, are still sitting beside Metz’s microwave in the envelope with the receipt.
Metz spoke with a representative from Spectra Venue Management Services — the organization that manages Mosaic Place — about his predicament, but did not receive a satisfactory response. Mayor Fraser Tolmie and Coun. Heather Eby called him about his concern, but haven’t communicated with him since.
“Nobody in this city knows what’s going on,” he added.
Mosaic Place cancelled the ZZ Top concert, along with Moose Jaw Warriors’ games in March and a High Valley Concert on May 28, after the pandemic shut down everything in mid-March.
What particularly bothered Metz, however, was that city hall issued a message on its social media page in June saying concertgoers should contact the city and provide their information so Ticket Rocket could give refunds. Metz missed that opportunity since he does not use a computer or have social media.
This situation has been “totally unacceptable,” he said. Ticket Rocket reported to the City of Moose Jaw and was technically under the parks and recreation department. If the company refuses to provide refunds, then Metz thought the municipality should be liable for the refunds.
“I know quite a few of us out money,” he remarked.
Metz pointed out he bought T-shirts to help support the construction of Mosaic Place nearly a decade ago. Due to this fiasco, he is considering taking those shirts and burning them in the parking lot “as an act of defiance against the City of Moose Jaw.”
“I’ve never seen such incompetence in my entire life,” continued Metz, who criticized the city manager for his temporary management of Mosaic Place and then his decision to terminate the contract with Ticket Rocket. “I’m just going to keep on them (elected officials).”
In a news release on Aug. 26, the City of Moose Jaw said city administration is exploring all options to help ticket holders and would provide a detailed report with recommendations for city council to consider during the regular meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 8.
Metz’s only option right now is to wait for that report, he said. Yet, he thought city administration was hiding behind closed doors with this issue, which made it difficult to contact them. He would like to speak with someone at city hall, but the building is only open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and he needs an appointment first.
“That’s a way to run the city,” Metz added. “It’s time to stop hiding behind skirts and closed doors."
Ryan MacIvor, general manager of Mosaic Place (Spectra Events Management), told the Moose Jaw Independent in July that Ticket Rocket had assured him that it would provide refunds for the two cancelled concerts. However, the refund process was slow due to the different phase-in processes for businesses in Saskatchewan and British Columbia, where Ticket Rocket is based.
In mid-June the plans changed, as B.C.’s pandemic measures allowed Ticket Rocket to resume operations, but Mosaic Place was no longer working to help Ticket Rocket with the refund process, the website added. That was the last time MacIvor spoke to Ticket Rocket.
