– You almost give up before you find where to order them, sighs Andersen. More expensive tickets, cumbersome booking solutions and sold-out handicap tickets. It turned out to be anything but simple when influencer and wheelchair user Simen Andersen from Stathelle had to order a ticket for both a concert and a football match. SOLD OUT: Simen Andersen wanted to see Manchester United and Leeds at the Ullevaal stadium. It did not work. Photo: Theodor Aasland Valen / news Reacts to discrimination At the 50 Cent concert in Oslo Spektrum in October, he must pay full price for the companion. In addition, tickets are more expensive for wheelchair spaces. He found that ordinary seats cost between NOK 550 and 750, while a wheelchair seat costs NOK 845. – It doesn’t quite work out. It is unfair. It is discrimination, believes Andersen, who is known from the YouTube channel “Daniel and Simen”. In a Facebook post, Andersen mentions Ticketmaster, which sells tickets for cultural and sporting events online. Because in addition to the fact that he had to pay full price to have his companion with him, they also didn’t get a seat next to each other. – The point of a companion certificate is to have the person with you without paying extra, he says to news. He adds that he can get some of the expenses covered afterwards. Earlier this year, he attended an Arif concert without paying for an escort. Simen Andersen says he did not have to pay for an escort when he was at the Arif concert at Parkbiografen in Skien in March. Photo: private Sold out: – Incredibly fast Andersen also wanted to order tickets for the private match between Manchester United and Leeds at the Ullevaal stadium on 12 July. But when he was about to order, he couldn’t do it in the usual way. He was asked to send an e-mail to the organizer, so he turned up that morning. Only in the evening did he receive a reply from Scandsports. But then they were sold out for handicap tickets. – Then there will be no fight. It’s incredibly cool. Because you are in a wheelchair and do not have the opportunity to order regular tickets, you only have to send an e-mail. So it is not certain that you will get an answer before it is sold out. Andersen is also calling for more handicap tickets at events. Sorry Scandsports apologizes that it took a long time for Simen Andersen to get a reply. They say they have dealt with the inquiries in the order they came in. – The turnout was large both in the wheelchair spaces and in the general stands. There are also a lot of people who couldn’t buy ordinary places, says general manager Ketil Lindseth. He says wheelchair users must send e-mails to ensure they go to those who actually need the spaces. – If they had been out for open sale as normal grandstand seats, we would not have had control over whether it was actually wheelchair users who bought them. If there is a better system than what they have proposed, we will gladly use it, adds Lindseth. He says, unfortunately, they cannot do anything about the number of wheelchair spaces. The 47 places are regulated by the Ullevaal stadium, which they rent from. Passes the ball on to the organizer Ticketmaster passes the ball on to the organizers and the venues. At any event, it is the organizer and the venue that determine both ticket prices and rules around tickets, writes marketing director Marisanna Steen Danielsson in an email. – Questions about this must therefore be asked there and not to Ticketmaster. When it comes to the purchase process, they continuously work to make this as easy as possible for the ticket buyer, she adds. – Discriminatory The problems Andersen experiences are discriminatory, believes Tove Linnea Brandvik of the Norwegian Handikapforbund. INVITES TO SPEAK OUT: Tove Linnea Brandvik of the Norwegian Handikapforbund is happy that Andersen talks about the problems he experiences. Photo: Amalie Bernhus Årtun / news – He pays more than the reasonable seats, which he could choose if he didn’t have to sit on the handicap seat. He pays to have a companion with him. He pays more to have the same experience as everyone else. It is discriminatory. She therefore recommends Andersen to lodge a complaint with the Discrimination Board. Andersen himself says he is considering a complaint. – You can try it, he says. The association receives many incidents from frustrated wheelchair users. They often have to pay more and have less opportunity to choose seats, says Brandvik. The legislation says that companions cannot always enter events for free, even if they have a companion certificate, she says. But she thinks Ticketmaster should encourage its organizers not to charge for companions.
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Simen (21) responds that it is cumbersome to order tickets – news Vestfold and Telemark – Local news, TV and radio
