UK music fans are pushing back against a confusing wave of additional charges added to concert tickets, with one Gorillaz supporter discovering a puzzling £1 'restoration fee' for a show at the modern Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The Fee That Raised Eyebrows
The fan contacted the Guardian after noticing the £1 'restoration fee' on tickets for Gorillaz's June 2025 concert at the £850m Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which only opened in 2019. The same fee was listed for events at Manchester's newly built Co-op Live arena, which opened in 2024. The reader questioned how a restoration cost could apply to such new venues.
When the Guardian queried the charge with ticket seller Gigantic, the company initially directed enquiries to the promoter. It later amended its website to state the fee was a £1 Live Trust donation supporting grassroots venues via the Music Venue Trust charity.
A deeper look revealed further discrepancies. While Gigantic's site listed a 10% booking fee, the customer had actually been charged 13% – an extra £3 per ticket. Kilimanjaro Live, the tour's promoter, confirmed this was an error and said all affected buyers would receive a refund for the difference.
A Lack of Clarity for Consumers
This incident highlights a broader issue of transparency and 'drip pricing' in the live events industry. Research by Which? found extra charges can inflate ticket prices by up to 25%. Yet, the 2025 Music Fans’ Voice survey revealed only 35% of respondents were aware of all charges before checkout, and just 34% understood what each fee was for.
Alice Andrews, who bought tickets for Pitbull at BST Hyde Park in 2026, saw her £329.85 ticket total rise to £373.35 with added transaction, sustainability, and service fees. "I would like to know what my money is going to be used for if I’m going to pay a fee," she said. "It has put me off big gigs before."
Another fan, Andrew Simpson, faced £13.30 in extra fees on a £51.75 ticket for Haim at Co-op Live. The explanation for the 'facility fee' was vague, stating it "keeps the venue running." Simpson called this "a meaningless sentence."
Calls for Change and Regulatory Scrutiny
Some independent venues are leading the way in clarity. The Clapham Grand in London and Saint Luke’s in Glasgow now provide online breakdowns showing what additional levies fund, such as new flooring.
Mark Davyd, CEO of the Music Venue Trust, argues the core problem is the number of parties involved in ticket sales, each adding their own fee. He believes transparency is "irrelevant" if the total price isn't shown upfront. "That’s what fans want," he stated, calling for a "total rewiring" of the system.
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a consumer protection drive targeting 'drip pricing'. A 2023 government report found this practice in 93% of event ticket businesses examined. The CMA is currently investigating two major ticket resellers, StubHub and Viagogo, over whether their mandatory additional charges are disclosed clearly from the start.
The fan who sparked the initial query about the Gorillaz ticket has now received their overpayment back from Gigantic.
