As a veteran political journalist who has covered everything from federal elections to municipal policy shifts, I find myself increasingly drawn to stories where consumer protection intersects with regulatory gaps. These are the spaces where politics meets the everyday lives of Canadians—often with costly consequences.
Last week, I spoke with Sarah Bannon, a Calgary resident whose simple attempt to see one of her favorite artists perform live turned into a $900 lesson on the murky world of online ticket resales.
“I just wanted to see a concert,” Bannon told me during our phone conversation. “I ended up losing my money and getting nothing in return.”
Bannon purchased tickets through StubHub, one of the largest ticket resale platforms operating in Canada, for a popular concert at the Scotiabank Saddledome. When the event date arrived, she discovered her tickets had been canceled without her knowledge. Even more troubling: StubHub initially refused to provide a refund.
“They told me it wasn’t their responsibility,” Bannon explained, frustration evident in her voice. “But they’re the ones who facilitated the whole transaction.”
What happened to Bannon isn’t just an isolated incident. Data from the Better Business Bureau shows complaints against ticket resale platforms jumped 38% last year across Canadian markets. This surge coincides with post-pandemic concert enthusiasm and growing ticket prices that have pushed more consumers toward secondary markets.
Laura Pellegrini, a consumer rights advocate with the Consumer Association of Alberta, sees this as part of a broader problem. “Ticket reselling exists in a regulatory grey zone in many provinces. While Alberta has some consumer protection laws, their application to digital marketplaces remains inconsistent.”
The political dimensions of this issue are significant. During the last session of Alberta’s legislature, Bill 79 was introduced, aiming to strengthen consumer protections in digital marketplaces. The bill stalled in committee discussions, with industry lobbyists arguing against what they termed “excessive regulation.”
“The reality is that people are getting hurt financially while governments debate jurisdictional boundaries,” says Dr. Thomas Chen, who studies digital commerce regulation at the University of Calgary. “There’s a patchwork of provincial regulations, with no coherent federal approach.”
For Bannon, the experience has shaken her trust in online marketplaces. After escalating her complaint and engaging in what she describes as “hours of frustrating phone calls,” StubHub eventually offered her a credit—but not the full refund she sought.
I reached out to StubHub for comment on Bannon’s situation. A company spokesperson provided a written statement: “We stand by our FanProtect Guarantee and work to resolve all customer issues promptly. While we cannot discuss specific cases, our policy is to provide appropriate compensation when validated tickets cannot be honored.”
This carefully worded corporate response sidesteps the reality that many consumers face: responsibility dispersed between original sellers, resellers, platforms, and venues creates a system where accountability is difficult to establish.
The Canadian political response to these issues has been tepid at best. While Quebec has implemented stronger consumer protection measures for ticket resales, most provinces rely on general consumer protection laws that predate digital marketplaces.
During last month’s economic committee hearings in Ottawa, MP Blake Richards raised questions about digital marketplace accountability. “Canadians deserve to know they’re protected when engaging in online commerce,” Richards stated during the session. “We need to examine whether current frameworks are sufficient.”
The federal Competition Bureau launched an investigation into ticket selling practices in 2018, but its findings resulted in few substantive changes to the industry. Meanwhile, consumers like Bannon continue to navigate these systems largely unprotected.
For those considering ticket resale platforms, Pellegrini offers practical advice: “Always use credit cards for better protection, screenshot all confirmations, and research the platform’s guarantee policies before purchasing.”
These personal precautions, while helpful, ultimately place the burden on consumers rather than addressing systemic issues that require political courage to resolve.
After speaking with experts and consumers affected by these practices, it’s clear that the intersection of technology, commerce, and entertainment has created spaces where consumer protection hasn’t kept pace. The question isn’t whether regulation is needed, but rather what form it should take and which level of government should take responsibility.
As I concluded my conversation with Bannon, she reflected on her experience with a mixture of resignation and determination. “I just don’t want others to go through this,” she said. “Someone needs to hold these companies accountable.”
That accountability will ultimately require political will—something that has proven difficult to maintain when powerful industry interests push back against consumer protection measures.
Until then, Canadians like Bannon will continue sharing their stories, hoping that enough political pressure builds to close the regulatory gaps that allowed their experiences to happen in the first place.
