StubHub ticket resale site holding my funds and I'm not the only one
It's a foul ball, StubHub.
This summer I sold through ticket resale site StubHub some tickets for a game for our state of Maine's beloved new pro Hearts of Pine soccer team. Now it's been over 3 weeks since the game and I still haven't received our funds. What gives?
Turns out there's a bit of a pattern. There are tons of complaints across social media about StubHub from people who have trouble getting their money.
"StubHub recently screwed me out of a purchase and denied me a refund, so I had to dig around and go up the ladder. I found a few email addresses for the stuffed suits in corporate and sent out a mass email. I got an email back from an Executive Customer Care Specialist who ultimately approved my refund." - Reddit user nightowl201
"Horrible company. I sold two sets of tickets in August and it took them about 7 weeks to pay me. There was nothing wrong with the tickets they were official mlb tickets. I was doing a CS chat every day with them and would get the same ultimate answer “we apologize for the delay and we have escalated the issue” - Facebook user in a group called "Official StubHub Complaint Department."
I sold these tickets for an event that was over three weeks ago. It clearly says the tickets were delivered on my account page, but I never received payment. I just checked on the "Payments" page and the sale is not listed under "pending" or "completed," it's like it just disappeared.
I sent a message to support on Twitter two weeks ago and was told it would be "escalated for further review." I called the support line yesterday and was told the same thing. Does anyone have advice on how I can get them to pay me?" - Reddit user ultron32
When you got to customer service, you're directed to an online chatbot. If your problem is too tricky for the chatbot they put you in touch with a human agent. While the wait is very short, all that person can do is repeat policy and, eventually if you press, put your issue to an internal team. (More delays).
Why is this? Is it a business strategy? Has the company simply under-invested in the parts of the business that troubleshoot these issues? It's interesting because the company was founded by Eric Baker, a guy from McKinsey, the same company that advised Allstate to increase profits by complicating the claims process and low-balling, stalling and fighting claimants. He might be a very nice person but just saying, and wondering what StubHub gets to do with all the seller money it sits on and whether their incentives are properly aligned to drive the best experience for buyers and sellers.
I also feel a little bad for them because StubHub's stock just plunged 24% today after the company refused to give guidance in its first quarterly report after its IPO and say how many people they expect to buy tickets over the next few months. So clearly the executives have some bigger issues on their plate right now. But maybe my issue is part of a bundle of issues and speaks to a larger issue that if they resolved would improve their business?
I've talked to their chatbots and customer service reps at least 3 times and they keep telling me to wait. The last time they finally said they would escalate it to their internal team and wait 4-5 days. Enough is enough! We would really like our funds for gas and groceries.
So I broke out the trusty EECB, the "executive email carpet bomb," a technique I popularized at a famous consumer blog I used to run called Consumerist.com (RIP).
The way it works is you figure out a company email address format, combine it with a list of top execs, then, blamo, send off your crafted email to all their inboxes. Despite mainstreaming this method, I myself have only ever used it a handful of times but everyone else who has used it says it has a very high success rate. And I can say from working in a company that when you see a complaint email like this on an email chain that's cc'd to all your co-workers and management there is definitely some pressure to jump on the problem and find a solution.
Here's what I wrote:
"Hi Eric and team,
My name is Ben Popken and I'm looking for the funds from tickets I sold for an event that was over 3 weeks ago.
This summer I sold 6 tickets, in two sets of 3 for a Hearts of Pine vs Spokane soccer game on August 17th. The game was rescheduled for Oct 21. The sales were 6XXXXXXXX and 6XXXXXXXX.
The tickets for the new date also sold. Please note this line from the Stubhub email, "If you have not received new tickets or requested a refund from the venue or primary, no further action is required."
That describes me.
Now it's been 24 days and the sales say "completed, barcode received, and "payment pending." Based on the several conversations I've had with your AI chatbot and online agents, that should be well in excess of the days required from the event being over for the funds to be released and the payments to process through my bank.
I'm also a little worried because the last rep I spoke to, a helpful person by the name of Nath, said that it appears that I didn't "transfer the tickets in time." That makes no sense because with these tickets StubHub handles everything after I post them and the barcodes were received by the buyer(s).
Nath said they had escalated the issue to the internal team but I would like to escalate the escalation. We've been waiting for months for these funds and were expecting to be able to rely on them for rent and gas. Searching around online it appears my complaint isn't uncommon either, with other customers having issues getting their funds and being frustrated by the formulaic responses from the AI bots and scripted chat agents.
Please look into this issue at your earliest convenience and debug what is actually happening with our specific transactions."
I'm sending a link to this story to the executives at StubHub and look forward to their response.
Update: Part 2
(Also, a belated welcome to the Maine Headlamp. I feel the urge to write publicly again. Everything is very "raw" and "prototype" and I will iterate and improve depending on my time, interest and what kind of response I get. In other words, everything great is on purpose and everything terrible is only a temporary work-in-progress. Send your thoughts and complaints to ben@bpopken.com)