Santander issues £194 warning to customers buying Oasis tickets on Saturday

Santander has issued a warning to Oasis fans trying to buy tickets on Saturday. Santander data reveals a 74 per cent increase in concert and music festival ticket scams in the first half of 2024 with £174,108 already lost by Santander UK customers to Taylor Swift ticket scams alone in the 12 months up to June 2024.

Santander is warning fans to be on their guard against fraudsters, as the bank’s data shows a 74% increase in concert and music festival ticket scams this year already compared to last, with nearly £200,000 lost. In the 12 months to June 2024, Santander customers lost £387,277 in concert and music festival scams, which accounted for over a quarter (28%) of all types of ticket scams, compared to 20% during the same period last year.

Customers aged 35 and older reported the biggest loses with an average loss of £194, more than 2.5 times higher than the average £77 loss for people aged 13-34. If the same year-on-year increase takes place in the 12 months up to June 2025, Santander customers are at risk of potentially losing £673,862 and £2,550,777 across the whole industry - to criminals.

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The bank continues to urge the new Labour Party government to help prevent fraudsters reaching consumers in the first place and consider the role of tech companies and telcos in fraud prevention, including reimbursing victims when the scam originated on their platform.

In 2023 across all ticket scams where the origin of the scam was known, Facebook accounted for 52 per cent of all ticket scams, with X accounting for 15 per cent. Chris Ainsley, Head of Fraud Risk Management at Santander said: “After 15 years of waiting, millions of fans are understandably desperate to get their hands on Oasis tickets, so it’s crucial that fans don’t let this be a lesson in regret.

"Unfortunately, just as we saw criminals ruthlessly exploit Swifties, we expect to see similar levels of fraud against Oasis fans. The single best defence against scammers is to only purchase tickets from the official sellers and resellers – anything else risks losing your money for a ticket that may not have even existed in the first place.

"Always remember never to transfer money to strangers for tickets, especially for alleged tickets for sale on social media. These tickets are likely scams and recovering stolen funds can be nearly impossible.”