Sacred Rose attendees say music festival charged thousands in unprompted credit card charges

The fun stopped for some Sacred Rose festivalgoers when they checked their bank accounts. After a weekend full of music including Americana, psych-rock, jam bands, soul and bluegrass, some attendees of the fest in suburban Bridgeview reported thousands of dollars in unexplained credit card charges.

Complaints about the pricey unprompted payments spread across social media Monday morning as folks who went to the music fest tried to figure out where the charges came from. The issue stemmed from a payment processor configuration error with food and beverage service at the venue, SeatGeek Stadium according to a statement from the venue. Those facing incorrect charges should see the amount credited back to their cards within the next three to five days, the venue said.

“There was no exposure and/or fraud,” a statement shared from SeatGeek Stadium to the festival’s Twitter account said. “We are very sorry (for) the mix up and offer sincerest apologies for any inconvenience.”

But the bad taste from the slip-up lingered for some attendees. David Littman had been planning to go for a third straight day Sunday when inclement weather canceled performances.

“The perfect ending to this weekend. It was just one disaster after another,” he told the Tribune.

The troubles started with the sound, the 33-year-old from Logan Square said. Music from nearby stages blended, making it difficult to concentrate on one band and hear lyrics, he said.

On Friday, Littman got only one drink because of long lines. When he read about other attendees complaining of false charges on Reddit Sunday night, he checked his bank account and saw it: $1,289 billed to his credit card.

“It’s kind of odd that they didn’t address it immediately,” Littman said of the charge Monday morning, before the festival put out a statement. “It’s just been silent.”

His aunt’s friends who attended faced another $4,000 charges. The music itself was excellent, Littman said, but production snafus will likely keep him away in the future.

“I don’t know what they could do to get me going back there next year,” he said.

Jon Zgoda of Winfield said he won’t be going back to the festival anytime soon either. His debit card provider blocked a charge of $1,586.

“It seems like this was easily the worst managed festival I’ve ever been to,” he said.

The point-of-sales glitch that led to the charges occurred only on Friday, Bridgeview village spokesperson Ray Hanania told the Tribune. The “several hundred” incorrect charges were mostly correct by Monday, he said, adding that the rest would be addressed soon.

Sacred Rose festival organizers did not respond to emailed questions about the unprompted charges and other complaints on Monday.

The same organization that runs Sacred Rose, Collectiv Presents, will be throwing the North Coast Music Festival at the SeatGeek Stadium this weekend. Site maps for the two music festivals show a similar setup, with one of the three stages moving from outside to inside the stadium for North Coast.

A representative of Collectiv Presents did not respond to calls and texts about the issues.

Tony Diperte got a new credit card after a $1,309 charge was blocked from his account.

“I’m hoping it’s just a mistake on the clerical end. The fact that it happened to a lot of people makes me think someone was being sheisty,” the Lincoln Park 25-year-old said. He had picked up some drinks from festival-sponsored beer tents and thinks the charges were related to those transactions, Diperte said.

The festivals layout led to sounds blending together, he said. The bathroom lines were long too. He was also bummed when band Animal Collective canceled their set before performing because its lead singer lost his voice.

But, the jam-band lover said he’d return to another Sacred Rose festival if the lineup was right.

Courtney Richter was unsure if she’d go back. The Milwaukee 28-year-old got incorrectly charged $2,079. She didn’t see any communication on the festival’s official pages when she checked Monday morning.

“I’ve been to many, many festivals. This is the only time something like this has happened,” she said.

She appreciated that the festival seemed to respond to complaints about inadequate sound quality and bathroom access in VIP sections, she said. And while Sunday storms led to “pure chaos,” she felt the two weather-related pauses and ultimate cancellation were understandable safety decisions. Still, festival organizers could have better broadcast information to attendees, she said.

“I was just upset that the security guards were yelling at everyone, and that was the only communication we had all day,” Richter said.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @jakesheridan_