Season Ticket Renewal Debacle

[Lord Northski]

It appears that there’s a major glitch in the season ticket renewal software, which dates back to the block transfer of groups of season tickets for those who wished to sit together when the ground was rebuilt some years ago. Something has occurred in the system allowing a season ticket holder to inadvertently release the other seats in the block group onto general sale, meaning that season tickets have already been sold to someone else before the season ticket holder has had a chance to renew.
How the block arrangement is still live on ticketing system some 5 or so years after the move of blocks of fans from the Atyeo to the South Stand is not clear, but there’s going to be a lot of unhappy fans finding out their season tickets have been sold before the renewal deadline. 

Think Richard Gould is going to be a busy chap sorting this mess out. 

[Street red]

7 minutes ago, Lord Northski said:

It appears that there’s a major glitch in the season ticket renewal software, which dates back to the block transfer of groups of season tickets for those who wished to sit together when the ground was rebuilt some years ago. Something has occurred in the system allowing a season ticket holder to inadvertently release the other seats in the block group onto general sale, meaning that season tickets have already been sold to someone else before the season ticket holder has had a chance to renew.
How the block arrangement is still live on ticketing system some 5 or so years after the move of blocks of fans from the Atyeo to the South Stand is not clear, but there’s going to be a lot of unhappy fans finding out their season tickets have been sold before the renewal deadline. 

Think Richard Gould is going to be a busy chap sorting this mess out. 

Seems we have amateurs on this side of things as well shock ******* horror! The club needs to sort itself out this summer bloody laughable.

[Redandproud]

No , decided not to renew, im getting a Membership instead, pick and choose which match to attend at home , or away, 

[weepywall]

I did read this elsewhere but what I don't understand is I didn't think they were on general sale yet only on sale to existing sc holders in existing seats, or am I being stupid ?

[View from the Dolman]

31 minutes ago, weepywall said:

I did read this elsewhere but what I don't understand is I didn't think they were on general sale yet only on sale to existing sc holders in existing seats, or am I being stupid ?

Existing season ticket holders can move to seats which are currently unoccupied or have been marked as not being renewed.

[BrizzleRed]

35 minutes ago, View from the Dolman said:

Existing season ticket holders can move to seats which are currently unoccupied or have been marked as not being renewed.

…. so how is the ‘marked as not being renewed’ relevant at the moment, as surely that won’t be known at present?  

Isn’t it the case that existing ST holders have until the beginning of May to secure their current seat, before they are then made available to new takers?

[View from the Dolman]

8 minutes ago, BrizzleRed said:

…. so how is the ‘marked as not being renewed’ relevant at the moment, as surely that won’t be known at present?  

Isn’t it the case that existing ST holders have until the beginning of May to secure their current seat, before they are then made available to new takers?

You can submit via the ticket site that you aren't renewing so I assume that frees up your seat to everyone else.

I also assume your seat becomes available if you pick an alternative seat now instead of staying where you are.

[italian dave]

Season ticket holders have until May 3 to renew. So I don’t see how any seat that’s currently a ST can be ‘released’ until then.

BUT

When I look at my account there’s a list of ‘links’ with other people - generally seems to be people I’ve bought tickets for, or have bought tickets for me, in the past - mostly away games.

On at least one of the routes into renewing a season ticket there’s an option to renew for those people too. If you don’t want to do that then you have to tick a box that says something like ‘I don’t want to renew this season ticket’. It’s always seemed a bit unclear to me - and a slight worry - what that tick is interpreted to mean. 

Clearly me ticking it means I don’t want to renew someone else’s season ticket. But does the system take it to mean that the other person doesn’t want to renew either. 

Is that the ‘glitch’?

[Wealwayseatcheese]

10 minutes ago, BrizzleRed said:

…. so how is the ‘marked as not being renewed’ relevant at the moment, as surely that won’t be known at present?  

Isn’t it the case that existing ST holders have until the beginning of May to secure their current seat, before they are then made available to new takers?

Correct Brizzlered, existing season card holders have until May 3rd to renew existing seat 

[BrizzleRed]

1 minute ago, View from the Dolman said:

You can submit via the ticket site that you aren't renewing so I assume that frees up your seat to everyone else.

I also assume your seat becomes available if you pick an alternative seat now instead of staying where you are.

Ahh right!  
I thought the only way that could be done was after deadline day, so thanks for clarifying vftd

[italian dave]

7 minutes ago, View from the Dolman said:

You can submit via the ticket site that you aren't renewing so I assume that frees up your seat to everyone else.

What I’m wondering in my post above is whether someone else can inadvertently do that on your behalf?

I also assume your seat becomes available if you pick an alternative seat now instead of staying where you are.

Good point!

See above  

[Silvio Dante]

5 minutes ago, italian dave said:

Season ticket holders have until May 3 to renew. So I don’t see how any seat that’s currently a ST can be ‘released’ until then.

BUT

When I look at my account there’s a list of ‘links’ with other people - generally seems to be people I’ve bought tickets for, or have bought tickets for me, in the past - mostly away games.

On at least one of the routes into renewing a season ticket there’s an option to renew for those people too. If you don’t want to do that then you have to tick a box that says something like ‘I don’t want to renew this season ticket’. It’s always seemed a bit unclear to me - and a slight worry - what that tick is interpreted to mean. 

Clearly me ticking it means I don’t want to renew someone else’s season ticket. But does the system take it to mean that the other person doesn’t want to renew either. 

Is that the ‘glitch’?

I think from when I renewed there were three options (also have associates who will renew but they’re sorting their own)

- Yes I’d like to renew

- No I don’t want to renew

- I’m undecided at present 

Logic says to me unless you used the drop down options and read the third option, you would normally just choose “no” as the inference is that you’re not renewing that seat in that transaction.

So, I reckon the glitch is that unless each of your associates selected “undecided” for you when renewing, your seat was released

[Lord Northski]

1 hour ago, BrizzleRed said:

…. so how is the ‘marked as not being renewed’ relevant at the moment, as surely that won’t be known at present?  

Isn’t it the case that existing ST holders have until the beginning of May to secure their current seat, before they are then made available to new takers?

[Lord Northski]

Absolutely, we all believed we had until May, however our entire block of eleven ST’s have been sold without us being made aware.
Apparently it dates back to the ground rebuild and the mass movement of supporter blocks. One of our group renewed and our entire group went into his basket approx. £6000. He then deleted all those that weren’t his seat, inadvertently and unknown to him, and us that they were then put into the tickets available for general sale, and then sold !!!

No contact was made to anyone, as to whether this was an error. Richard Gould apparently saying computer says no. 

We would urge everyone to not trust a word that the club tells you about renewal dates. Plus why on earth is a software patch put in for the ground rebuild still live on the ticketing system?  

Edited April 19, 2022 by Lord Northski

[phantom]

22 minutes ago, Lord Northski said:

Absolutely, we all believed we had until May, however our entire block of eleven ST’s have been sold without us being made aware.
Apparently it dates back to the ground rebuild and the mass movement of supporter blocks. One of our group renewed and our entire group went into his basket approx. £6000. He then deleted all those that weren’t his seat, inadvertently and unknown to him, and us that they were then put into the tickets available for general sale, and then sold !!!

No contact was made to anyone, as to whether this was an error. Richard Gould apparently saying computer says no. 

We would urge everyone to not trust a word that the club tells you about renewal dates. Plus why on earth is a software patch put in for the ground rebuild still live on the ticketing system?  

I'm guessing that you have spoken with someone on this, so assume you know more than I do, but when I log into my account I have the option to renew etc for all the people that I have ever bought tickets for in the past

This isn't anything new, it was there 100% last summer as I very nearly bought a bucketful of tickets for many friends in error

The error was down to me, but I had to go back in and select they were undecided on renewing and their seat was then held for them to renew themselves, I could have accidently released all their tickets back for resale at this point to - so am assuming one of your 11 hasn't done this in error?

Hopefully you can get a solution and everything is resolved for you all

[Lord Northski]

5 minutes ago, phantom said:

I'm guessing that you have spoken with someone on this, so assume you know more than I do, but when I log into my account I have the option to renew etc for all the people that I have ever bought tickets for in the past

This isn't anything new, it was there 100% last summer as I very nearly bought a bucketful of tickets for many friends in error

The error was down to me, but I had to go back in and select they were undecided on renewing and their seat was then held for them to renew themselves, I could have accidently released all their tickets back for resale at this point to - so am assuming one of your 11 hasn't done this in error?

Hopefully you can get a solution and everything is resolved for you all

Thankyou. It’s definitely the case that someone clicked the wrong button to reduce his season ticket cost to the amount he was expecting. The fact that he had no knowledge that it would release all the other tickets for general sale and wasn’t made aware of it is the absurdity. Additionally the fact we weren’t made aware of it, no phone call, no email is clearly an error in the system that nobody had done a risk assessment on. 
The ability for someone to inadvertently cancel all other fans season tickets is an error  that the club will be aware of,  but chose to do nothing about, presumably due to ‘couldn’t be bothered on the grounds of not my responsibility or it costs too much money to fix the issue. 
The result is 11 very angry fans who aren’t going to go quietly. 

[Mad Cyril]

System needs simplifying.

Buy a season ticket, then, on a designated day, join with all other ST buyers for a "Le Mans" style sprint start to grab a seat of your choosing. You have 5 mins to grab a seat, occupy said seat and resist eviction from someone else who may want it. Hooter goes after 5 minutes, dead and injured are removed, and the resulting seat occupiers have that seat for the season.

Come on City, get it sorted.

[phantom]

3 hours ago, Mad Cyril said:

System needs simplifying.

Buy a season ticket, then, on a designated day, join with all other ST buyers for a "Le Mans" style sprint start to grab a seat of your choosing. You have 5 mins to grab a seat, occupy said seat and resist eviction from someone else who may want it. Hooter goes after 5 minutes, dead and injured are removed, and the resulting seat occupiers have that seat for the season.

Come on City, get it sorted.

Could you imagine the scenes if you had said we all jump onto our seat when the music stopped !

Most of us would still be there now trying to work out if anything was coming out of the tannoy or not

[weepywall]

10 minutes ago, phantom said:

Could you imagine the scenes if you had said we all jump onto our seat when the music stopped !

Most of us would still be there now trying to work out if anything was coming out of the tannoy or not

Well one of us definitely

[Lord Northski]

Update on our disappearing season tickets. Appears that the club have agreed that the tickets were taken away in error, and we’re getting them back. Absolutely delighted. Thank you all for your support. 

[Rocking Red Cyril]

11 hours ago, Red-Al said:

No , decided not to renew, im getting a Membership instead, pick and choose which match to attend at home , or away, 

Yes that's what I do these days and for past couple of if seasons. Got memberships for grandkids too and pick and choose home games and treat myself to odd away game just for  grandad. My treat

6 hours ago, Mad Cyril said:

System needs simplifying.

Buy a season ticket, then, on a designated day, join with all other ST buyers for a "Le Mans" style sprint start to grab a seat of your choosing. You have 5 mins to grab a seat, occupy said seat and resist eviction from someone else who may want it. Hooter goes after 5 minutes, dead and injured are removed, and the resulting seat occupiers have that seat for the season.

Come on City, get it sorted.

Love it

[Topper 123]

I want 5 seats in south stand together , not too far back and near singing section but you cannot book these seats or see available seats on plan all 5 of us are season ticket holders but want to move near to atmosphere 

[RedM]

4 minutes ago, Magger1 said:

I want 5 seats in south stand together , not too far back and near singing section but you cannot book these seats or see available seats on plan all 5 of us are season ticket holders but want to move near to atmosphere 

I guess it's what a lot of people want. Those seats probably are being kept by those that got them already.

You might be lucky though if a group decides to move or give up coming or if you don't mind being in two or three different rows and sit behind/Infront of eachother. 

[DolmanDave]

1 hour ago, Magger1 said:

I want 5 seats in south stand together , not too far back and near singing section but you cannot book these seats or see available seats on plan all 5 of us are season ticket holders but want to move near to atmosphere 

 These are bought as they are cheap and also as you mentioned near the atmosphere so very popular And near impossible to get.

 

[Steve Watts]

On 19/04/2022 at 12:41, Lord Northski said:

Thankyou. It’s definitely the case that someone clicked the wrong button to reduce his season ticket cost to the amount he was expecting. The fact that he had no knowledge that it would release all the other tickets for general sale and wasn’t made aware of it is the absurdity. Additionally the fact we weren’t made aware of it, no phone call, no email is clearly an error in the system that nobody had done a risk assessment on. 
The ability for someone to inadvertently cancel all other fans season tickets is an error  that the club will be aware of,  but chose to do nothing about, presumably due to ‘couldn’t be bothered on the grounds of not my responsibility or it costs too much money to fix the issue. 
The result is 11 very angry fans who aren’t going to go quietly. 

Yeah, this was definitely either a failure of testing, or, more likely, it failed at the requirements gathering stage.  No-one at the club can be faulted for not phoning you as they probably weren't aware of it.  A project manager on the building of this system needs to be read the riot act for sure.

[RedM]

2 hours ago, Steve Watts said:

Yeah, this was definitely either a failure of testing, or, more likely, it failed at the requirements gathering stage.  No-one at the club can be faulted for not phoning you as they probably weren't aware of it.  A project manager on the building of this system needs to be read the riot act for sure.

If it is possible to cancel everyone's ticket you are linked with there should have been a couple of 'are you sure' 'are you really sure' type warnings.

[eardun]

13 minutes ago, RedM said:

If it is possible to cancel everyone's ticket you are linked with there should have been a couple of 'are you sure' 'are you really sure' type warnings.

Followed by a call from Nige - are you really really sure?!