Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/03/2024

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Pirate Fest is at the David Lawrence Convention on Saturday, January 6, 2024. The event is free but the autograph sessions with past and current Pirate Players requires a $25.00 charity to Pittsburgh Pirates Charities which is a fantastic idea! The reservations were to be opened today, Wednesday, January 4, 2024. The original time was 10AM but got pushed to 12:00PM. I had called on two separate occasions to doublecheck these details, both times with courtesy from the woman on the phone. Here is the problem: the site for this event is tied to the Pittsburgh Pirates site and when I attempted numerous times to purchase these tickets for the four available sessions(the first one was for season-ticket holders) the site wouldn't process me to the "kart" to finish the application. I tried "refreshing" the site numerous times between 12:01PM and 12:35PM with no success. My tech person also tried to help me. By 12:40PM, they were sold out. I think there may have been a rush on these tickets and even acknowledging the limits of the time of the athletes involved, a better and more consumer friendly system should be in place. With the two hour delay today, did others outside of this structure have a different access to these tickets such as a scalper or agency? It "feels"predetermined "a head of time? When I reached the Pittsburgh Pirates on the phone around 1PM, the same woman less friendly now said "we think our system is fair." I think it can insult their fan base and not promote solid community relations. I had been a fan since 1970 and was going to drive after work on Friday most of the night the 500 miles to downtown Pittsburgh. I am an Accredited Business member of the Greater East Tennessee BBB in Knoxville, TN and I deal with customers and supervisors both in my field. MLB does not seem to be serving it's Major League Franchises with good common public-relations sensibility. Last Spring, the LA Dodgers encouraged a group insulting to Roman Catholics! Thank you!

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/09/2024

  From: **** *** ***********************
  Date: Tue, Jan 9, 2024 at 2:10 PM
  Subject: Re: You have a new message from the BBB serving Western Pennsylvania regarding complaint **********
  To: Better Business Bureau <[email protected]>
  
  
  I heard from the Pittsburgh Pirates. They apologized and am offering me a few autographs and some free tickets. I will consider this issue resolved.
  Thank you!
  ***** ** ** *** **** ********** ** ********** ***** ********

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/31/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  After paying $59 each for 6 tickets we were sent a promo offer that stated the same seats are available for $27 each with a loaded value of $12. After contacting customer service we were told there is nothing that the pirates are willing to do to, no refunds or exchanges. If we wanted this promo we would have to purchase new tickets and hope to sell the other ourselves.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/14/2023

  Hello,
  

  We have been in touch with the customer and offered to provide complimentary tickets for another game, which the customer accepted. Accordingly, this matter has been resolved.

  Thank You, 
  Pittsburgh Pirates

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/02/2022

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  We bought 4 platinum tickets for the recent Elton John concert. In front of the seats was a huge speaker. Elton John sat at his piano for the whole concert. The speaker blocked the view of Elton for the entire concert. The tickets should have been sold as limited/obstructed view seats. Rather they were sold as platinum tickets. The Pirates were contacted numerous. They contend that the funds were all turned over to the concert and no refunds or adjustments can be made. On my credit card, it lists the Pitsburgh Pirates as the receiver of my payment. The attached photo is an exact photo form the seats. Customer service was contacted before the concert. They said there was no place to be moved.

  Business Response

  Date: 11/11/2022

  We have been in touch with *** ***** and offered to reimburse him a portion of the ticket cost for the inconvenience. He respectfully declined the offer and is choosing to proceed with his credit card dispute.
  
   
  Please let me know if you need anything else.
  
   
  
  Thanks,
  
  Drew

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/11/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********* and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** *****

   

  The Pittsburgh Pirates made an offer that was embarrassingly low to be accepted.  I had asked for an amount equal to what the seats should have been sold for in the first place.  I have attached a picture to show a view from the actual seats.  For the entire concert, Elton could not be seen.  Again, these seats were considered by the Pittsburgh Pirates as platinum seats.  They should have been labeled obstructed or limited view.  The Pirates were unwilling to make the ticket price to what they should have originally sold for.  The Pirates were informed that a class action lawsuit will be the next step.  This not only happened to us, but everyone else sitting in those sections.  I do thank the BBB for their help.  I had contacted the Pirates countless times to try to resolve this.  I was ignored for nearly two months.  The Pirates did not make a good faith effort to resolve this.  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/12/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased two tickets for the Pirates vs Reds for the game on August 20, 2022. The tickets were for section 321, Row Y, Seats 25 and 26. I had the tickets downloaded on my Ballpark App. After I purchased the tickets, I realized I needed a third ticket. I called the box office to see if it was possible to exchange to two tickets for three tickets and an upgrade. I was told I could. I spoke with a ticket agent named Josh and was set up to exchange the original two tickets for Section 321, Row R, Seats 1, 2, 3 and pay the difference. After a few hours, I noticed the tickets had not been exchanged and my card not charged. I called to resolve the issue. There was some confusion about the exchange. An agent named Kate helped me out and told me the issue would be resolved. After a few more hours, I saw the exchange had still not happened, card still not charged. I received an email from Kate saying my CC numbers were needed. I called again to give my numbers, and there was still confusion. A few hours later, my original tickets were removed from the app, but I never got the new tickets, and the credit card still not charged. I called a few more times, and sent Kate an email for help. I was told the tickets were in my app. I logged out and back in, but still no tickets. Credit card also still not charged. I received no reply from Kate. I was later told that exchanges were only allowed for season ticket holders, which I would have accepted if told that before. So right now, I have paid for two tickets but have zero in my ballpark app. At this point, I no longer care about getting a third ticket, but I do want to get the two tickets I paid for back. I waited a week to allow them to fix the issue, but they still have not.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/15/2022

  This complaint has been resolved. The customer's payment has been processed and all three tickets appear in the customer's Ballpark App.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/01/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  My family and I attended a Pirates Game on 7/31/22. My son (5) wanted to see the perogies as they returned to the dug out area. We walked down to get a photo, as we were standing there a Foul ball came over the nets. By the time I saw the ball it was coming straight for my 5 year old son. I pulled him back and stepped in front of him. The ball hit me directly in the face, knocking me to the ground and causing me to black out for a quick moment. As I came-to I reached for my son to ensure his safety. The staff member who was first to approach me was INCREDIBLY RUDE. Immediately raising his voice to me acting like I had done something wrong. As I am shaking, crying and having a full blown panic attack from the trauma, This man continued to raise his voice and belittle me, in front of my 5 y/o who was also extremely traumatized. Fans saw him doing NOTHING to help me they crowded around to help but it was making my panic attack worse. A co worker of mine managed to clear the crowd as she could tell I was in distress. Once the crowd cleared my husband saw me and came to assist. Seeing me dazed and confused he asked what I wanted to do. we heard the worker comment on that medic normally takes 30+ min to arrive, which is why I decided to relocate. I asked my husband to help me stand slowly and walk up the stairs out of the crowd, he wrapped his arm around me to assist. The employee aggressively grabbed my right arm and yanked me to pull me up, who does this to someone who was just blacked out?! I told him to remove himself and back away as I was incredibly uncomfortable around him and his aggressiveness. He continued to yell at me the entire way up the stairs. Then he involved a Police officer who also began yelling at me as he was siding with the employee without knowing the situation. The worker would not leave me alone making things worse. My husband had to put himself in front of me to block him and he still was poking his head around him yelling. so much more....

  Business Response

  Date: 09/01/2022

  We contacted *** ****** on August 2nd to discuss her experience at PNC Park. During that call, we offered *** ****** complementary tickets to come to another game and asked if we could send a care package for her son, which she said was acceptable. We sent the care package on August 4th and have not heard from *** ****** since.
  
   
  Drew

   Thanks,

• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/05/2022

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Pittsburgh Pirates in March 2022 to inquirer about tickets being mailed. Pittsburgh Pirates advised customer that order was cancelled and credit card was refunded. PITTSBURGH PIRATES NEVER NOTIFIED CUSTOMER THAT ORDER WAS CANCELLED. Customer had NO WAY of knowing order was EVER Cancelled. Customer called CITI financial to inquire about REFUND. CITI Financial claimed a REFUND was never issued. CITI Financial will not assist further due to being outside of 60 day window to file a claim. Customer has all statements from last 12 months and no REFUND is showing. Customer sent this information to Pittsburgh Pirates 30 days ago. Pittsburgh Pirates have not responded to customers situation through email and phone number provided is discounted. Total amount in question is $444.08. Customer still had to pay amount for an event that he doesn’t have tickets for. Still to this day May 5 2022 Pittsburgh Pirates have never sent an email, letter, voicemail to customer indicating Order was cancelled. Only email ever received from Pittsburgh Pirates was initial order from July 2021.

  Business Response

  Date: 07/14/2022

   I can confirm that a second refund was successfully issued on June 25, 2022. It was processed back to the consumer’s MasterCard ending in **** (Citibank is the issuer). The reference number associated with the refund is ************************

  Drew S*****

  Pirates...

  Customer Answer

  Date: 07/14/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********* and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** *******