Objections by broker’s lawyer dismissed
By Bruce A. Mohl, Globe Staff
A state hearing officer yesterday showed little sympathy for a ticket broker’s claim that legal technicalities bar a consumer’s complaint about tickets being resold illegally at many times face value.
The complaint was filed by Dorchester consumer activist Colman Herman against Higs Cityside Tickets Inc. of Boston. Yesterday’s action appears to be the first time the state Department of Public Safety has ever held a disciplinary hearing involving one of the ticket resellers it licenses and regulates….
Herman argued that Higs Cityside violated the state’s antiscalping law last year by offering to sell him a Boston Red Sox ticket with a face value of $130 for $825 and a John Mayer concert ticket with a face value of $44 for $330.
The antiscalping law requires people in the business of reselling tickets to be licensed and bars them from charging more than $2 above face value, plus certain service charges and business expenses.
“On its face, that’s a clear violation of the state’s antiscalping law,” Herman told hearing officer Antoinette Rodney , who usually hears complaints about building code violations. Herman has urged Rodney to discipline Higs Cityside. (Full Story)
