As indicated on Bermuda Music Festival tickets, the Department of Tourism is maintaining its ?no refund? policy for the Friday night show, despite vocal objections from locals.

?We feel a particular affinity for all those who purchased tickets for this event and were unable to completely enjoy it,? the Ministry stated yesterday. ?We, too, were disappointed.

?However, as with all such events that take place in the entertainment industry, there are policies that govern the non-completion of an event due to an ?act of God?.

?In this regard and as indicated on ... tickets, there was in place a ?no refund? policy. Unlike Saturday night when there was no performance whatsoever, on Friday, the show began and three acts completed their performance before the rain came.

?The sequence of these events precipitated the Ministry?s decision to issue a refund for the non-existent Saturday concert only.?

A Government spokesperson added it was ?safe to say? that the Department of Tourism incurred a loss on the Music Festival. The Festival did have general insurance, she said, but ?even that wouldn?t cover all the costs?.

No rain date for cancelled events is planned.

Two Letters to the Editor received by voiced strong disappointment in the organisation of the Festival overall, as well as the lack of refunds for Friday night?s show.

?I felt it was obvious to the sponsors of this event that it was going to rain, as it was obvious to many of the patrons who had the foresight to bring umbrellas and raincoats,? one person wrote.

However, the letter continued, ?there was no shelter available for people to go to when the rain started ... (and) no one had the decency to inform the people waiting in the rain that the show was cancelled.

?Patrons realised the show would not go on when staff appeared on stage and began packing up the equipment.

?The public did not get what they paid for ... While I agree that rain is indeed an act of God, lack of preparation and stupidity is entirely human. This was a foreseeable occurrence and other arrangements could have been made.?

The fact that refunds were offered for Saturday?s show just added ?insult to injury? for Friday concert-goers, the writer said. ?I will never patronise any Government-sponsored event on this Island as I cannot be guaranteed to get what I pay for and be told that?s just tough.?

A second writer voiced complaints above and beyond the refund, complaining of long lines and badly-prepared organisers who failed to let their party into Dockyard in time to make a dinner reservation.

The writer also complained of a surveyor at the Festival who informed them she was only surveying tourists as ?you locals aren?t important, in fact you?re a pain in the a**?, and offered several suggestions as to how to improve the Festival.

As for the refunds, the writer stated: ?What you should have done was get on the radio and say to the general public we are not refunding your money, and we ripped you the hell off ? end of story!

?Now, no-one I know has any control over the weather or the elements,? the writer agreed. ?But there needs to be some better planning for the next Festival so we can avoid all this mess.?

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