April 2024
The goal of TicketSwap is to provide a safe and reliable platform for buying and selling tickets. This Trust and Safety policy describes the rules for our users to be able to use our platform.
In this policy, we explain what is and is not permitted on our platform when you sell tickets, create an event, communicate with others, or use our platform in any other way. In addition, we explain how we check this and what you can do if we take action against you. This policy supplements our Platform and Ticket Agreement and is updated from time to time. The most recent revision date is at the top of this page.
1. General rules for using our platform
1.1. When using the platform, it is important that you comply with the applicable laws and regulations, provide accurate information and treat others with respect. This means, among other things, that you adhere to the following rules:
1.1.1. Creating an account
All details requested when creating an account must be entered truthfully and in full. This also means that you should not pretend to be someone else or make it look like you are connected to a particular person if you are not. Each person is only permitted to have one registered account.
1.1.2. Creating new events
If you want to sell a ticket for an event that is not yet on the platform, you must provide a description of the event and provide specific information, such as the location, title, and start time of the event. You are responsible for ensuring that this information is correct.
1.1.3. Use of scripts and bots
It is not permitted to use scripts, bots, or other (partially) automated programs or other methods to buy or sell tickets on a priority basis or to circumvent the rules of the platform.
1.1.4. Website security
Part of our website is not publicly accessible. It is not permitted to (attempt to) visit these restricted/protected areas without permission. Nor are you permitted to post or forward viruses, worms, junk mail, spam, chain letters, unsolicited offers or advertisements of any kind and for any purpose. Nor is it permitted to examine, scan or test the platform or any other connected system or network for vulnerabilities or to use such vulnerabilities. If you discover a vulnerability or issue with our security, you are required to report it to us.
1.1.5. Communication on the platform
We do not tolerate hateful, discriminatory, pornographic, abusive, threatening, intimidating, or otherwise similarly inadmissible expressions in any form, either publicly or directly against our employees.
In addition, in some circumstances, such as if your ticket has not worked or if an event has been canceled, TicketSwap may initiate a chat between a buyer and a seller. During these conversations, TicketSwap plays a support role and we expect you to behave reasonably and respectfully towards our employees and other users and try to find a fair solution with us.
1.1.6. Respecting the rights of third parties
When using our platform, it is not permitted to infringe on the rights of others, such as the right to privacy of third parties.
1.1.7. No criminal offenses on our platform.
You must refrain from committing criminal offenses on our platform.
2. General rules for buying and selling tickets
2.1. On our platform, users should be able to assume that the tickets they buy and sell are reliable. That’s why we take strict action against buyers and sellers who are in breach of the rules of the Ticket Agreement. In short, this means that it is not permitted to sell illegal, unlawful or fake tickets, use our platform solely for profit, carry out money laundering or otherwise commit fraud.
2.2. In addition, you must adhere to the following rules:
2.2.1. You are not permitted to sell tickets at too high a price
Tickets on TicketSwap may never be sold for more than 120% of the face value of the ticket. In some countries, this percentage is less than 120%. You are responsible for ensuring that the price you charge for your ticket does not exceed the maximum asking price permitted in the country where the event is held.
2.2.2. You must provide the correct information about your tickets
You are required to upload the original ticket and provide a correct description of the ticket, for example, if a ticket is intended for a specific place or seat.
2.2.3. You may only buy tickets for personal use
TicketSwap is intended for personal use, so you should not purchase more than eight tickets for the same event. Do you want to go to an event as part of a group? The intention then is for people from your group to buy a ticket themselves.
2.2.4. You are not permitted to resell a ticket just after buying it to make a profit
The platform is intended for fans who want to attend an event, not for users who are trying to make a profit on their ticket. It is therefore not permitted to use TicketSwap, purely to make a quick profit, by reselling tickets for a higher price just after buying them.
2.2.5. You may not list the ticket on multiple platforms at the same time
If you list a ticket on multiple platforms at the same time, the chances are that you’re selling the same ticket to multiple people. This may prevent people from entering the event. This is not therefore permitted.
2.2.6. You must cooperate in refunding a buyer
In some cases, as a seller, you may have to transfer (part of or more than) the purchase amount to the buyer. You are required to cooperate with this refund in accordance with the refund terms set out in the Ticket Agreement. In addition to the rules of our platform, we can also take debt recovery measures in that case. Our Trust and Safety policy does not apply to this.
2.2.7. You must report any restrictions on tickets, even if you are not permitted to sell the ticket
If there are restrictions attached to the ticket, for example, because you have to be present within a certain time slot, you must state this when selling your ticket.
2.2.8. You are not permitted to sell tickets that you have received for free
It is not permitted to sell tickets that you have received for free, for example in the case of tickets that have been won or if you are a guest at the event.
2.2.9. You must cooperate if the event is canceled
When an event is canceled, you are required to remove the ticket from the platform within 48 hours of the organizer's official notification. Suppose the ticket was not sold via SecureSwap before the cancellation. In that case, you are obliged to claim any compensation from the event organizer and then transfer it to the buyer via TicketSwap, except when an event is postponed to another time and/or moved to another location.
3. Measures when the rules are broken
3.1. Because our platform is designed for the safe and reliable purchase and sale of tickets, we do not tolerate unsafe and unreliable practices under any circumstances. Depending on the specific circumstances, such as the nature and severity of the breach, the intent of the breach and any (eventual) consequences thereof, we will block or deny you direct access to your account – without prior warning – in the following cases:
3.1.1. Fraudulent or otherwise criminal acts
This is the case, for example, when selling illegal, unlawful or fake tickets, using our platform solely to make a profit, carrying out money laundering, payment card fraud or selling tickets for which you have not paid.
3.1.2. Threatening and treating our staff unfairly
Ensuring the safety of our staff while performing their work is essential to us. That is why we do not tolerate our staff being threatened or insulted. In the event that our staff are verbally abused, we always assess each message and whether a prior warning is sensible and appropriate to allow the conversation to return to normal.
3.1.3. Use of scripts and bots
It is not permitted to use scripts, bots, or other (partially) automated programs or other methods to buy/sell tickets on a priority basis.
3.2. Furthermore, depending on the circumstances of the case, such as the seriousness and nature of the breach, the intent of the breach and the possible consequences thereof, if you are in breach of the rules of this Trust and Safety Policy, the Platform or Ticket Agreement or the law, we may take the following measures:
- issue you with a warning;
- update the details of tickets offered or events created;
- (temporarily) postpone the payment of your sold tickets;
- require you to cooperate in reimbursing an amount of money to the buyer;
- prohibit you from buying/selling tickets for (specific) events;
- block or delete the tickets you are offering;
- temporarily block your account from selling, purchasing, or both; or
- permanently deny you access to our platform.
3.3. In addition to the above measures, we may also (temporarily) postpone the payment of the tickets you have sold if we suspect that you have not adhered to our rules or if the event may be canceled. We can also postpone the payment until after the event. This allows us to check that the tickets you're selling are valid and provide the buyer with access to the event. We do this when you have sold or offered 800 euros worth of tickets.
3.4. When we impose measures, the following principles are important:
3.4.1 Multiple accounts
We check to see if one person is using multiple accounts. If we have any indications that one person is using multiple accounts, when we block or delete one account, we will impose the same measure on the other account(s) to prevent abuse of our platform.
3.4.2. Preventing recurrence
If you are in breach of our rules, we reserve the right to store the (relevant) data and information for later reference. This means that we have a legitimate reason to hold your data on record, which means that we do not have to comply with your request to delete all your data from our systems. We do this to prevent abuse in the future.
3.5. Finally, if you do not cooperate in refunding buyers or if we suspect that you are committing fraud or another criminal offense, we may also report the matter to the police. Where this is the case, we may also share your data with the buyer so that they can report it themselves.
4. How do we monitor compliance with our rules?
4.1. We monitor compliance with our rules in various ways. For instance, we have manual checks undertaken by our Platform Operations Team, our partners, and automated systems. We use these automated systems to identify for example fraudulent tickets or fake profiles. Our Platform Operations Team specializes in detecting and assessing complex and nuanced cases in which our rules are breached. Among other things, we monitor through:
4.1.1. Verification of information supplied
We manually monitor whether the information provided about the events and the tickets does not violate our platform rules.
4.1.2. Monitoring for evidence of fraud
We use certain risk indicators, both manual and automated, to assess the potential for fraud on our platform.
4.1.3. Contacting buyers/sellers
If we suspect that you may be breaking our rules, we may also contact you for more information. For example, we may ask you for purchase confirmation and proof of payment of your ticket (e.g. a screenshot of the transaction).
If a ticket is found to be invalid upon the buyer’s arrival at the event, perhaps due to prior use, TicketSwap facilitates communication between buyer and seller through an open conversation with TicketSwap being the intermediary. TicketSwap acts as an independent mediator between the seller and the buyer and will decide on any refund or other measures based on an investigation.
5. Notification and Complaints Procedure
5.1. TicketSwap would like to hear from you if you think an event or ticket fails to comply with our rules (e.g. incorrect information about the event, the ticket does not work, or the event has been canceled). TicketSwap has several ways for you to get in touch with us. For example, after the event, we’ll send an email asking if your ticket worked, in which you can indicate if it didn't and TicketSwap will initiate the process to help you. Another option is to contact us via one of our support channels; via WhatsApp, chat or by phone. You can also email us at complaints@ticketswap.com. You can also submit your report using the red button displayed on the right side of each page. If a ticket doesn't work, we'll only handle your report if you submit it within 30 days of the event.
5.2. You should not submit inaccurate reports on a regular basis. In such cases, depending on the seriousness of the breach, we may first issue you with a warning. If you do not heed this warning, we will block you from our platform for a reasonable period of time. We understand "regular" to mean when you submit incorrect reports more than twice a month. We will then block your account for an average of six months.
6. What can you do if you disagree with our decisions?
6.1. If you do not agree with the measures we are taking, such as (temporarily) blocking your account, you can submit a complaint to us within six months of us communicating our decision to you. You can do this by sending an email to complaints@ticketswap.com. We will then review our decision within a reasonable period of time. You can also use our complaints procedure if you have submitted a report to us and you disagree with our response to this report.
6.2. If you regularly submit obviously unfounded complaints, we will first issue you with a warning, depending on the severity of the breach. If you do not heed this warning, we will block you from our platform for a reasonable period of time. We understand "regular" to mean when you file an apparently unfounded complaint more than twelve times a year. We will then block your account for an average of six months.
Finally, you always have the right to submit a complaint to an out-of-court dispute resolution body. This is also possible if you do not agree with how we have handled your complaint or report.