Metal Anarchy

Attorney Jonathan Wilkofsky has offered an update on the refund process for last year’s Blue Ridge Rock Festival in Alton, VA. According to him, the insurance company is still investigating the issue.

As previously reported, organizers claimed the 2023 edition of the festival was cancelled due to weather, but various reports suggested it was actually halted due to poor working conditions, sanitary issues, an employee strike, and more. There was even an investigation being launched by the Virginia Department of Health due to reports of illness.

Wilkofsky has now told WDBJ7 that the insurance company is currently investigating if weather was the primary factor for the cancellation or not:

“There were just a lot of moving parts to the events and the cancelation of the weather and the ticketing, and there’s just a million moving parts to it. It absolutely seems to apply under these circumstances, but [the insurance carriers] are entitled to look at every aspect of the concert to see if that’s true.”

He also added:

“There’s been a lot of rumors out there that somebody’s run away with the money and we’re stiffing the fans, and that’s absolutely untrue. There’s been no payment. There’s been no denial of the claim, we’re in the process of the investigation.”

Wilkofsky also confirmed that tickets were sold for 2024, despite organizers denying those claims:

“That money has not been lost; it’s being held, which Blue Ridge doesn’t have it. I don’t know if it’s the credit card company or the ticketing, but it’s being held by somebody [that’s] not Blue Ridge. The hope is we’ll be putting on a show and that money will be providing for tickets, but it’s not like Blue Ridge is having the money [or] spending the money.”

He also revealed that organizers are still planning to continue with the event:

“They’re committed to the brand, and they’re committed to the future, so they’ve just got to sort this out and they’re committed to doing that.”