F1 organizer to refund fans 350 mil. yen
Fuji International Speedway Co. plans to refund 50,000 yen to each of about 7,000 spectators who bought tickets for the seats. The company will also reimburse the full cost of tickets, transportation, hotel and other expenses for 85 visitors who could not make it to the start of Sunday's race due to shuttle bus service delays.
The refunds due to poor visibility apply to visitors who bought tickets for reserved seats temporarily set up at the rear of the permanent stands on the first turn. These tickets were valid for admission to all three days of the event, which started Friday. They cost 61,000 yen, with the reserved seat accounting for 50,000 yen of the price.
While these were the second most expensive tickets available, following the 71,000 yen seats on the upper tier of the main stand, they were sold out as the area was said to be a good spot for viewing overtaking action.
Compared with the permanent seats in the same area, however, the temporary seats were set on a gently sloping stand that many spectators said did not give a clear view of the track over the permanent stands.
The organizer explained that the mistake occurred after they fell behind in erecting the temporary stand, leaving no time to check the view from the seats.
Hiroaki Kato, president of Fuji International Speedway Co., apologized saying: "I'm deeply sorry that our lack of experience has led to so many problems. We plan to investigate the cause of the problems to prevent them from recurring next year."
The Formula One race was being held at Fuji Speedway for the first time in 30 years, and even before the event there had been concerns about whether it would run smoothly. Source