Couple pays $1,180 for 3-day food and music festival, organizer cancels it 36 hours before opening refuses refunds and says “All purchases are final”: 'They’re claiming that giving us future admission is enough.'

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    Woman covered in glitter, wearing festival clothes and smiling.
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    Event canceled 36 hours before it started, organizer refuses refunds because of a clause buried in the terms
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    My girlfriend and I paid $1,180 total for two tickets to a three-day outdoor food and music event that was supposed to happen this weekend.
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    People sitting on green grass during blue hour, surrounded by tents.
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    We also booked a hotel near the venue, but the hotel issue is separate, and I'm not asking about that.
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    On Thursday evening, about 36 hours before the gates were supposed to open, the organizer emailed everyone saying the entire event was canceled because several vendors and performers had withdrawn.
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    The email said tickets would automatically be transferred to the next event, which is apparently planned for sometime next year, but no date or location has been announced.
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    There was no option in the email to request a refund. I contacted the organizer and explained that we could not accept tickets for an unknown event next year and wanted our payment returned.
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    A group of white tents placed outside on green grass at night.
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    They replied with a screenshot from their terms stating that "all purchases are final and non-refundable in the event of postponement, relocation, lineup changes, operational interruptions, or
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    circumstances affecting the event experience." They're claiming the cancellation counts as an "operational interruption" and that giving us future admission is enough.
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    Couple looking at a silver laptop at night.
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    The strange part is that the event wasn't postponed or relocated. It was fully canceled, and the organizer's own email uses the word "canceled" several times.
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    Another section of the terms says they may modify or discontinue any portion of the event without liability.
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    I'm not sure whether that can legally mean they can take the full ticket price and provide nothing at the agreed time or place.
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    The refund policy was linked in small text during checkout, and I clicked the box accepting the terms, so I understand that I technically agreed to it.
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    I just didn't think "no refunds for lineup changes" meant "we can cancel the entire thing and keep $1,180."
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    Young couple sitting down looking at a silver computer at night in their living room.
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    I paid with a credit card and contacted the card company. They said I can dispute the charge for services not provided, but the organizer may challenge it using the terms | accepted.
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    The organizer also warned in their reply that disputing the payment could result in us being banned from future events and sent to collections if the bank temporarily reverses the charge.
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    That sounds like an intimidation tactic, but I don't know. Is a clause like this generally enforceable when the organizer cancels the entire event for business reasons?
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    Would this be appropriate for a chargeback, a complaint to the Arizona Attorney General, or small claims court?
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    I'm not trying to get extra damages or compensation. I just want the money back for an event that did not happen.

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