Taylor Swift Fan Scammed By Friend's Friend Selling Concert Ticket 'Second Hand'

As Taylor Swift embarks on the UK leg of her Eras Tour, several fans are falling victims to ticket scams. But one Swiftie was scammed by her. She was left heartbroken after a friend duped her out of £100 (~$127) for a ticket. The fan, Holly (name changed) told The Mirror that she missed out on tickets for Swift's first UK tour in six years when they originally went on sale. Thus, the 17-year-old turned to her friend who claimed someone was selling tickets second hand. This is when the scam occurred.

Overcharging for fake tickets

Taylor Swift started her tour on Friday, June 7 at Edinburgh's Murrayfield Stadium. She will perform in front of almost 1.2 million people at historic locations including Liverpool's Anfield Stadium.

Thus, the 17-year-old Swiftie who lives in Livingston, West Lothian hoped to get tickets for the June 8, Saturday night show. After missing out on getting the tickets at the sale, Holly reached out privately to a friend’s friend who was selling tickets in the black. She saw a post from the person who said they had four tickets to sell and wanted £175 (~$222.75). The seller had posted the original confirmation email for the purchased tickets as well.

"She seemed friendly, her messages were sent quickly and included kisses. I also went down her profile like you're told to do and it all looked real and legit. It went back years,” Holly told The Mirror.

The young fan was aware of the ongoing scams, so she asked the seller if she could pay £100 (~$127) first and then the rest £70 ($88.90) upon getting the ticket. The seller agreed and sent Holly the bank details to transfer the cash. This is when Holly noticed a red flag. The bank details shared were under a different name.

"She told me her online banking was down and she couldn't receive bank transfers. She said I could send it to her friend's account and put her name down as a reference," Holly said. Even Holly’s bank Natwest issued a scam warning before the payment was sent.

Despite her concern, Holly went through with the transaction and shared a screenshot of the payment confirmation with the seller. After the payment, Holly didn’t hear back from the girl. After sending a follow-up message, she noted that the seller’s overall demeanor had shifted as she became "blunt." After claiming that she didn’t receive the money, the seller blocked Holly.

"I couldn't believe it, I told my friend who knew her, and she was like 'Oh my god no way' I was sobbing, like I was heartbroken. I've been waiting for so long to see Taylor Swift and I was just gutted,” Holly told The Mirror.

Luckily, Holly got her £100 (~$127) back after she contacted her bank and explained what had happened. “I will never buy tickets from a friend of a friend. My friend is absolutely gutted as well, this girl always seemed nice at school and she didn't think she would do anything like this,” Holly expressed.

Taylor Swift ticket scams on the rise

There has been a sharp rise in fraud cases involving Taylor Swift fans. In April, a little after the tickets initially went for sale, Lloyds Bank had to issue an “urgent warning” after over 600 of its customers were scammed.

As disappointed fans hunted for tickets online and on social media, scammers swooped in to capitalize on the opportunity. Lloyds Bank reported that as of April, Swifties had lost a total of £1 million (~$1.27 million) in scam ticket sales. Thus, authorities have requested fans to only trust the official ticket portals and not engage in second-hand sales and purchase of tickets.