Formula E: No refund update from organizers of nixed Vancouver race


After cancelled Vancouver race, Formula E and ticket agency ATPI both say responsibility for refunds lies with organizers OSS Group. But OSS has no updates.

Article content

A few months ago, Jason Welsh was excited to celebrate his son’s eighth birthday this summer at Vancouver’s inaugural Formula E electric car race. Now the Cloverdale dad is frustrated and wondering whether he will see the $1,000 he spent on tickets.

Advertisement 2

Article content

But organizers of the Vancouver car race, which was slated for the Canada Day long weekend before being cancelled, are still not providing answers about the prospect of refunds.

“We were so excited for this,” said Welsh, one of several upset ticket purchasers who contacted Postmedia after his emails to the organizers, the Montreal-based OSS Group, went unanswered. “It’s a significant amount of money for someone to just disappear on you… My mind is blown.”

In March of this year, OSS Group said they had sold more than 30,000 tickets for what promised to be a great event, then in April they announced the event was “postponed” and tickets would transfer to next year’s edition of the Vancouver race. When Postmedia reported in June that Formula E, the international group that runs the annual electric car-racing circuit, had cut ties with OSS Group and had no Vancouver event in the 2023 calendar, OSS leadership said the refund process for 2022 ticket purchasers would begin after July 2, the original date of the planned race.

Advertisement 3

Article content

Last week, a representative for OSS Group said that a shareholder meeting was scheduled for July 7 and more information should be available soon after. But as of July 12, the group had no updates.

In an emailed statement, OSS Group said they “will not be providing an update at this time” and “will reach out to media and other stakeholders when they have all in place.”

“In order to make sure the process is precise, timelines cannot be rushed,” OSS’s statement said.

Last month, after Formula E confirmed they had no plans for a Vancouver 2023 event, OSS Group CEO Matthew Carter said they were still in talks with the City of Vancouver in the hopes of pulling off an event next year.

But city hall says that is no longer a possibility.

Advertisement 4

Article content

Vancouver city councillor Wiebe, who bought tickets for himself and friends to attend the cancelled 2022 Formula E, said: “I think people are probably wondering where their money is, and I’m one of them.”
Vancouver city councillor Wiebe, who bought tickets for himself and friends to attend the cancelled 2022 Formula E, said: “I think people are probably wondering where their money is, and I’m one of them.” Photo by Jason Payne /PNG

A city representative said they first learned through the media last month about Formula E terminating contractual agreements with OSS. After confirming this with Formula E, the city of Vancouver “is no longer discussing the potential for a 2023 Formula E event in Vancouver with OSS Group,” the city said in an emailed statement.

Business in Vancouver reported last month that: “OSS says that the ticketing company, ATPI Sports Events, will contact ticket holders to begin the sorting-out process in July.”

But ATPI general manager Mathieu Marois said this week his company was the ticketing provider while OSS Group was the event’s promoter and operator, and, “in that capacity, we await further clarity and instructions from OSS, who has the sole responsibility with respect to the process, the timing and eventual refunds to fans and corporations, where applicable.”

Advertisement 5

Article content

In an emailed statement, Formula E said: “The responsibility to refund these tickets lies with OSS Group… Formula E has no contractual relationship with this ATPI and ATPI has not been our contracted ticket partner for any previous race.”

Formula E added they were “closely monitoring the situation” and “aware that many fans have purchased tickets from OSS Group to the Canadian E-Fest, which included the Vancouver E-Prix.”

In April 2021, Vancouver city council approved a motion, introduced by Green Coun. Michael Wiebe and ABC Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung, directing city staff to work with OSS Group to enable the Formula E event in July 2022.

Reached Tuesday, Wiebe said he had not been in contact recently with OSS Group, but was still hopeful Vancouver might eventually be able to host a Formula E event one year.

Wiebe, who bought tickets for himself and friends to attend the cancelled 2022 Formula E, said: “I think people are probably wondering where their money is, and I’m one of them.”

[email protected]

twitter.com/fumano


More news, fewer ads: Our in-depth journalism is possible thanks to the support of our subscribers. For just $3.50 per week, you can get unlimited, ad-lite access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.

    Advertisement 1

Comments

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.



Leave a comment

x
SMM Panel PDF Kitap indir