Hundreds of children are missing out on the chance to visit the Canberra Reptile Sanctuary because of a commercial dispute between the centre and an online daily deals website.
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The Gold Creek not-for-profit organisation is refusing to accept any visitor passes purchased through the group-buying website Living Social because of a disagreement over how the vouchers can be redeemed.
More than 1600 tickets were sold at the reduced price of $4 through a one-day deal offer in the lead-up to Christmas, with the two companies agreeing to split the ticket sales 50-50.
But centre director Dustin Welbourne said disagreements had arisen over how he could claim his share and he could not afford to accept the vouchers until the money was sitting in his bank.
''As a not-for-profit organisation our insurance premiums depend on the number of visitors we get through the door, so we just can't afford to keep accepting these vouchers if we're not able to guarantee we'll redeem any money from the sales,'' he said.
Mr Welbourne said the dispute had caused disappointment for eager ticket-holders, many of whom had purchased the vouchers to entertain their children over the holiday break.
''People have been pretty empathetic, they realise it's not our fault, but it is causing a lot of confusion,'' he said.
''Some are buying new tickets, others are saying they'll try and get a refund or a credit and come back later, it's a lot of running around for everyone.''
The Canberra Reptile Sanctuary is not the only company to have raised issues with businesses such as Living Social.
There are more than 70 of the group-buying websites offering subscribers daily discounts of up to 80 per cent on local products and services. But the internet phenomenon has caused a flurry of complaints, with customers accusing businesses of jacking up prices or refusing to accept vouchers and businesses accusing websites of not explaining their policy properly.
The Canberra Walk-In Aviary, also in Gold Creek, said it would never deal with any group-buying website again after running three deals with Living Social this year.
Manager Mick Logan said the first two went off without a hitch but on the third occasion the redemption policies changed and came with conditions of which he was unaware.
He has reaped many benefits from the deal, with nearly 5000 tickets sold over the three campaigns and at least 70 per cent of the sales attracting new visitors to his aviary. But the complicated process of the deals has left a sour taste in his mouth.
''The merchant agreement for each deal was different to the last one,'' he said.
''Yes, I probably should have read each contract fully before I signed but I would have thought it would be courtesy for (the sales rep) to advise me there'd been some changes to the agreement.
''I'll still accept tickets from the people who've bought them, it's not really their fault and it still acts as a bit of free advertising for me, I just think the whole process is too much of a hassle.''
A spokeswoman for Living Social said accounts managers, booking agents and a redemption guide clearly explained its payment process to all merchants.
She said the company had no record of Canberra Wildlife Sanctuary's bank details and asked Mr Welbourne for them by telephone on Thursday but he refused to provide the details.
The spokeswoman also said redemption payments were structured in separate instalments to protect customers.
This reporter is on Twitter: @breanna_tucker