Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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42. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to outline the current regulation and enforcement regime in place to ensure that major event ticket selling platforms operate in full compliance with Irish consumer protection law, particularly in relation to the transparency of dynamic pricing practices and the justification for service fees charged to consumers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21294/25]

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland has a strong track record when it comes to protecting consumers.

Primary online marketplaces provide a platform where event tickets can be purchased and are regulated by various pieces of legislation, some of which I will outline below. Primary tickets are allocated for sale to the platform by event partners, which includes, among others, event organisers, promoters, venues, artists/performers and agents.

Generally, traders in Ireland, including ticket sellers, are free to set and change their prices for goods and services, based on demand or other factors, once they do so independently and in line with consumer protection law. Consumer law requires traders to provide certain information to consumers prior to purchase. This includes the total price, inclusive of taxes and service fees, allowing consumers to make the informed choice in advance of the sale, whether to purchase or not.

Event partners determine the conditions around the sale, availability and release of the tickets. If they put in place a dynamic pricing model and comply with general consumer law, they are free to charge any price they wish.

Consumer law prohibits businesses from engaging in a misleading commercial practice. Under the Consumer Protection Act 2007, a commercial practice is regarded as misleading if the trader does not act in good faith and misleads the average consumer into taking an action that she/he may otherwise not undertake.

The Act also prohibits traders from making a false representation that a product is available only for a limited time, or on particular terms for a limited time, in order to elicit an immediate decision from a consumer, depriving the consumer of sufficient opportunity or time to make an informed choice in relation to the trader’s product.

In addition, the Consumer Information (Advertisements for Concert or Theatre Performances) Order, 1997, regulates advertisements for concerts and theatre performances.

Consumer rights are further protected for purchasing tickets for concerts or sporting events under the Sale of Tickets (Cultural, Entertainment, Recreational and Sporting Events) Act 2021. The Act regulates the secondary ticket market which prohibits the sale or advertising for sale of tickets or ticket packages for a price exceeding their original sale price for events taking place in designated venues or for designated events.

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) is the independent statutory body under the remit of my Department that enforces competition and consumer protection law. It continues to promote and monitor compliance with competition and consumer protection laws across all sectors of the market, and to investigate potential breaches, prohibited practices and offences.

If a consumer is of the view that a seller has acted in a manner contrary to the legislation, the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission have advised my officials that they should complain to the seller in writing. Failing a satisfactory response, and where a consumer is at a financial loss, the Small Claims process may be an option for them.

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission website provides further information on terms and conditions and on unfair terms, as provided for in the Consumer Rights Act 2022.