Spain fines Reggaeton Beach Festival €320,000 for banning outside food, charging re-entry fees and withholding cashless refunds

The sanction

Spain's Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and Agenda 2030, led by Pablo Bustinduy, has fined the promoter of the Reggaeton Beach Festival €320,000 for inserting abusive clauses that limited consumer rights. The ministry classified the conduct as four serious infringements. The company admitted responsibility and must now remove the illegal clauses from its contracts immediately. The resolution closes a case file opened after a complaint by the consumer association Facua-Consumidores en Acción.

What the promoter did

Attendees were expressly forbidden from bringing food and drink purchased outside into the venue, and the organiser reserved the right to search them. Re-entry was restricted: anyone who wanted to leave and come back during the event had to pay an extra charge on top of the ticket price. The festival also imposed management fees on ticket sales that, the ministry concluded, did not correspond to any service actually provided.

Cashless system abuses

The festival operated a cashless payment system via electronic wristbands. The promoter set a very short window for requesting refunds of unspent money, applied an additional charge for processing the refund, and refused to return leftover balances below €2. The ministry considered all of these practices abusive.

“The sanction implies that this company is obliged to rectify and eliminate the clauses considered abusive.”

Festival cancelled

On 18 June, Reggaeton Beach Festival announced it was cancelling all its concerts scheduled for this summer. The event had dates in Tenerife, Barcelona, Alicante, Santander, Mallorca, Madrid and Nigrán (Pontevedra). The company said it suspended the tour after analysing the project's global situation and concluding that its operational and financial structure no longer allowed it to organise a tour of that scale with the necessary guarantees. Artists confirmed for this year included Anuel AA, Mike Towers, Omar Courtz and Clarent.

Consumer advice

Alongside the sanction, the ministry issued recommendations for buying festival tickets. It stressed that the advertised price must be final and complete from the outset, including all charges, and that management fees should only be levied for a real service. It also reminded organisers that festivals must guarantee access to tap water during the event.