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Save tears and money with player no-show ticket insurance

Fansure, a California-based start-up, is promising ticket-buyers full refunds if they don’t get their full money’s worth by seeing their favourite basketball player in action.

By paying five to 15 per cent on top of the normal ticket price, fans can insure their experience and be fully reimbursed if Steph Curry doesn’t step foot on the court.

Fansure requests payments at least 48 hours before the game. The amount reflects what the firm thinks is the likelihood of a selected player appearing or not.

The company’s marketing manager, Tara Fan, said, according to the BBC: “Some tickets are $300-$400 to go to a (NBA) game. Typically, you’re paying that to see someone like LeBron James, or Kevin Durant, or someone like that.

“It would only be, I would say, eight per cent of your ticket price. It’s like… $30 (£23/€27) to cover a $400 ticket. And so that’s where the benefit rolls out.”

If LeBron gets a game, fans lose that $30, which Fansure pockets. If he suffers a last-minute injury or something of the like, Fansure will refund the entire amount of the ticket, but keep the insurance money.

The firm has so far insured less than 50 tickets, but is yet to make a refund payout. The process of calculating the likelihood of players getting a game is currently done manually with staff deducing probabilities based on NBA statistics.

However, the firm is looking to launch Fansure Index, a more automated system that uses an algorithm, in the “next month or so.” 

Fansure plans to open its services up to to American football and baseball games soon, with football and other sports to come later.

“What we’re doing is providing protection for your experience,” Fan said.

Image: Keith Allison