There was a small victory for consumers' rights last week when one of the State's biggest concert promoters was in court over extra charges for tickets. In the first prosecution of its kind under the 1997 Consumer Information (Advertisements for Concerts or Theatre Performances) Order, MCD Management was fined £300 (€381) for failing to advertise how much the booking and credit fees were for the gig.

The legal action was taken after the mother of a teenage girl complained to the Director of Consumer Affairs following the concert which was headlined by the Verve at Slane, Co Meath, last summer.

Under the order, which was introduced in May 1997, written advertising must detail the admission price and any additional charges given as either a percentage of the ticket amount or as the cash amount.

For television and radio advertisements, concerts and theatre promoters must state the admission price and warn listeners where extra charges apply.

The Consumer Information (Advertisements for Concert or Theatre Performances) Order 1997 does not legislate against the fees themselves, it simply demands that these fees are transparent. Public outrage continues regarding ticket prices and add-on fees like service charges, handling fees and booking fees. A Family Money reader sent us a copy of a letter he sent to the promoter of the recent Sarah Brightman concert at the Point.

He says: "I booked my ticket by credit card through Ticketmaster who charged £3.50 per ticket as a credit-card charge booking fee. This raised the cost of two £40 tickets to £87!" The reader goes on to point out: "Indeed, a direct comparison may be drawn against other venues for live performances, the theatres and the NCH, where no fee of any kind is charged. . ." The Office of Consumer Affairs says it investigates all complaints it receives, but only has the power to enforce breaches of existing legislation. At present no price controls regulations are in force so in a free-market economy ticket agents can charge what they want.