Beware of online ticket resellers '“ warns '˜distraught' Worthing gran

Margaret Brewster, of Shelley Road in Worthing, decided to buy tickets to the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Championships for her grandson Kobe Whitford, to encourage his sporting ambitions.

The 14-year-old has won many awards for sprinting at Worthing High School and she said: “He has such talent.”

She called the official ticket line and was told tickets would cost around £135 each.

“I gulped, but because it was a one-off I thought I’d pay,” she said.

The 75-year-old was also told to buy tickets online.

As Margaret is not computer literate, a trusted friend bought them for her.

She said: “There was nothing on the website to suggest she wasn’t buying tickets directly from the IAAF.”

But Margaret then received a confirmation email from Viagogo, a ticket reselling website she had never heard of before.

When the tickets arrived, they had a different name printed on them and the price of £60 – despite the fact she had paid £566 for four tickets.

Confused, Margaret rang the ticket line again and was told that because the tickets were not in her name, they would have to be cancelled.

Watching the event on television on Friday, instead of in person, she said: “When I saw Mo Farah I felt so distraught that we weren’t there.

“There will never be another opportunity.”

Margaret feels that she has been ‘conned’ by Viagogo and is trying to arrange for a refund.

She decided to share her story to warn others of online ticket resellers and said: “I don’t want anyone else to have to go through what I’ve gone through.”

Viagogo did not respond to a request for a comment.