StubHub UK fined over hidden ticket fees and ordered to refund customers

The UK Competition and Markets Authority has fined StubHub UK £889,200 and ordered it to refund more than £590,000 to 51,350 customers after finding that mandatory fees were not shown upfront when tickets were advertised.

The regulator said the fees were added later in the checkout process, a practice commonly called drip pricing. It said the action covers ticket purchases for gigs and sports events made between April 6 and December 7, 2025.

According to the CMA, the average refund works out at about £10.33 per customer. The regulator said the case was settled and that StubHub admitted breaking the law, which reduced the fine by 40%.

What the regulator said

The CMA said consumers were shown a lower headline price before mandatory fees were added later, meaning the full cost was not visible when they first selected a ticket.

Emma Cochrane, the CMA's executive director of consumer protection, said the regulator is continuing to investigate similar pricing practices at other companies. The case forms part of a wider push against online sales practices that obscure the true price until late in the purchase process.

The enforcement action was announced on June 23, 2026. Financial Times reporting on the same morning first detailed the penalty, and The Guardian later corroborated the fine, the refund order and the settlement terms.

StubHub's response

StubHub International said the problem was an isolated platform error rather than part of its business model. The company said it had already corrected the issue.

The CMA said affected customers should receive refunds. It did not say in the announcement exactly when the payments would be sent, but the order means StubHub must begin the refund process for customers covered by the case.

Why it matters

The case is likely to draw attention because ticket buyers often face already high prices, with extra service or delivery charges adding to the final bill. The CMA has been targeting these so-called drip pricing practices because they can make it hard for consumers to compare offers on a like-for-like basis.

The action also shows the regulator's newer consumer enforcement powers in use. Those powers allow the CMA to act without going through the courts in the same way as before, making it faster to impose penalties and secure refunds when it finds breaches.

For StubHub, the case brings reputational pressure in a market where price transparency is closely watched. For consumers, it is a reminder to check whether mandatory fees are included in the price shown at the start of checkout.

What comes next

The CMA said it is still pursuing other investigations into similar pricing practices at other companies. That suggests the StubHub case may be part of a broader enforcement wave rather than an isolated action.

More detail may follow on how StubHub notifies customers and how quickly refunds are processed. The regulator has not indicated any change to the scope of the affected sales period, which it said ran from April 6 to December 7, 2025.