UK — StubHub UK was fined £889,200 by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for infringing consumer protection law and ordered to issue refunds exceeding £590,000 to customers. The CMA identified 51,350 customers who had a hidden fee added at the end of the online ticket buying process between April 6 and December 7 last year.

The CMA found that some customers were required to pay mandatory costs, such as delivery and service fees, at the final stage of the checkout process. The authority stated that these fees were not included in the price shown at the start of the booking process, which broke consumer law. The average refund for the identified customers was about £10.33 for each transaction.

Emma Cochrane, executive director of consumer protection at the CMA, said: "Hitting customers with hidden fees is illegal. It's not fair to draw people in with what looks like a good deal, only for them to find the real price is higher when they get to the checkout due to extra charges that can't be avoided."

StubHub UK received a 40% reduction on its penalty after admitting to breaking the law and opting to settle the case. This is the second financial penalty the CMA has imposed for a breach of consumer law since it was granted new powers to decide whether to take action rather than having to go through the courts.

The CMA said it had secured more than £1.95m in refunds for customers and levied fines exceeding £5.7m under its new consumer enforcement powers. StubHub was one of eight companies investigated by the CMA over online pricing practices. Cochrane added: "Our message to businesses is simple: be transparent on costs or risk CMA action. Going to a live gig or sports game is an event many people save for – and our action today means thousands of fans will get back money taken unfairly through hidden fees."