Ticket buyer keeps $40 apology voucher for himself after cancelled comedy show, refunds friends for their $80 tickets, then one friend demands a cut and he refuses: 'I took the financial risk'

Author image for Celeste Mello
Celeste Mello • Writer and Editor
Sep 21, 2026 10:30 AM EDT

When making group plans, someone has to be the person who actually buys the tickets, right? That person is responsible for putting everything on their card, keeping track of who paid, handling the confirmation email, etc. 

What happens when the show is cancelled last minute? The ticket buyer receives the reimbursement for the tickets and sends every friend their $80 ticket refund. But it doesn't end there… The ticket buyer received a $40 apology voucher too and kept it for himself. The ticket buyer's Reddit user explains he wasn't planning on splitting it on the AITA subreddit. 

Nobody lost money on the tickets, and nobody had to chase him for the refund. The cancellation was handled cleanly, but the drama started because of the apology voucher. One friend demanded his share of the voucher, which is $10. The problem is, the voucher is not cash; it's a digital voucher that can't be easily split four ways. The ticket buyer explained that, as he took the financial risk, he decided to keep the refund for himself. His friend said that the voucher was for the whole group and that he was making a profit out of their tickets. But the ticket could only be used for a future purchase on the site, so how can they split it?

The friend is turning a $10 theoretical share into a bigger issue than it needs to be. If the other friends don't care and everyone got their money back, this doesn't feel like a search for justice. It feels more like being persistent over a $10 share of a voucher. The friends got their refund. The buyer handled the administrative process. The $40 credit can stay with him.

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  • One friend pushes for his $10 share after the cancelled comedy show.
    via Unsplash+ (Alex Suprun)

    One friend pushes for his $10 share after the cancelled comedy show.

    Model portrayal.

  • AITA for keeping a $40 apology voucher after our group concert got cancelled, even though I refunded my friends their tickets?

    So back in March, I bought four tickets to a comedy show for me and three friends. They were
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • $80 each. I put the whole thing on my credit card and they all Venmo'd me their $80 that same day.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • The show was supposed to be last weekend, but the comedian got sick and cancelled last minute.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • The ticket site sent out an email saying they were issuing full refunds to the original payment method.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • They also included a $40 digital voucher code for a future purchase as an apology for the inconvenience of the last- minute cancellation.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • The ticket buyer handles the refund after purchasing everyone's tickets with his card.
    via Unsplash+ (SumUp)

    The ticket buyer handles the refund after purchasing everyone's tickets with his card.

    Models for explanatory purposes only. 

  • The refund hit my card on Tuesday. I immediately sent the $80 back to each of my friends on Venmo.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • Here's the issue. One of my friends, "Dave", saw the official announcement about the cancellation on Twitter, and the post
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • mentioned the $40 apology voucher. He texted our group chat asking how we were going to split the credit.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • I told him I wasn't planning on splitting it. I said I can't really split a digital voucher anyway,
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • and since I was the one who bought the tickets, took the financial risk, and dealt with the admin of the refund, I was just going to keep the code.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • A $40 digital voucher becomes the center of a group chat argument.
    via Unsplash+ (Mariia Berezovsky)

    A $40 digital voucher becomes the center of a group chat argument.

    Licensed media provided as editorial context.

  • Dave thinks this is totally unfair. He says the voucher was for the inconvenience of the whole group, not just the buyer, and that I'm
    via Affectionate_Cap5867

  • Asking for $10 cash from the ticket buyer feels excessive.

    basically profiting off a cancelled trip. He suggested I owe everyone $10 cash for their "share" of the voucher.
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • My other two friends don't really care either way, but Dave is being super persistent about it. I
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • think he's being ridiculous over ten bucks, but he genuinely thinks I'm shortchanging the group. AITA?
    via Affectionate_Cap5867
  • Expert _Slip7543 INFO: Did they give $10 per cancelled ticket or $40 per cancelled order?
    via Expert_Slip7543
  • Droo99 What is up with young people being massive babies over tiny amounts of money nowadays anyway
    via Droo99
  • Better Pea248 Nta. Tell Dave he can give you and your other friends $10 cash each and you'll give him the voucher.
    via Better_Pea248

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Tags

comedy show apology voucher friendship drama friends ticket refund
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