A BUNBURY family was shocked to discover their home had been offered up to desperate music-lovers looking for accommodation for the sold-out Groovin the Moo festival last weekend.
Police alerted the Gelmi family to the fact their home had been falsely advertised on Gumtree and two Perth groups had paid out hundreds of dollars to lock it down.
Once the money had been paid the seller cut off all contact and disappeared.
The Gelmi family is still trying to work out why their home was targeted.
Bunbury Police officer-in-charge Senior Seregant Pete Jenal said scammers often took advantage of situations when a commodity was in hot demand.
“When these big events come around and accommodation and tickets are sold out, people are susceptible to being scammed because they are desperate,” Senior Sergeant Jenal said.
“It’s a case of buyer beware, do your homework – these people obviously wanted to lock down the accommodation quickly and didn’t think of the risk involved.”
After the last tickets to the Bunbury festival were sold, people who missed out flocked to social media to try to find a seller.
Spare tickets were posted on Facebook to be sold to the “highest bidder”, going for several hundred dollars more than its official $100 price tag.
Festival organisers warned punters about fake tickets circulating, advising them not to purchase tickets through any unofficial channels such as eBay, Gumtree or Facebook.
They urged people to keep an eye out for competitions and to get onboard with presale tickets next year.
Anyone with information on this type of scam is urged to contact police and to seek a refund from the bank if paying by credit card.
Have you had a similar experience? Contact the Bunbury Mail at editor.bunburymail@fairfaxmedia.com.au
