Leeds fan slams ‘appalling’ response after using CCTV to disprove club’s claim he ‘lied’

A Leeds United fan has won a dispute with the club after the Whites told him he had not been in attendance at numerous Elland Road fixtures and was not yet eligible to renew his season ticket for next season

A Leeds United supporter has admitted he may pack his season ticket in after being forced to prove he attended three matches at Elland Road this season. The club accused Melvyn Flower of missing matches against Sheffield Wednesday, Plymouth Argyle and Middlesbrough and insisted he had not yet met the attendance requirement to renew his ticket.

More than 30 emails with the club’s ticket office, supporters’ liaison officer and information security manager proved little help to Melvyn as the club maintained he had not been present at the trio of games. But he was able to disprove the club’s claims using their own CCTV and has slammed the side’s ‘appalling’ response to his issues, report the Yorkshire Evening Post.

After receiving a warning that that he may not reach the 80 per cent threshold, Melvyn started to take selfies to prove his presence at Leeds’ ground. And when he attempted to renew his season ticket for next season, he was unable to.

The fan, who has been attending the stadium for 48 years, advised the club to review CCTV footage from the games. He believed he would easily be seen in his seat at half-time when most of those around him head to the concourse.

READ MORE: Leicester set embarrassing new record after eighth home defeat in a row without a goalREAD MORE: John Terry and Mark Clattenburg clash after ex-Man Utd star sent off for horror tackle

But the club informed Melvyn they were unable to identify him using footage from the camera above his seat as it is used by security to focus on potential issues. Despite spotting him come through the turnstile for one of the three games, the club suggested he had scanned his wife’s ticket and that she was not seen at the ground that day.

That forced the Leeds fan to put in a subject access request, which allows individuals the right to obtain a copy of their personal data. Melvyn was able to point out both his wife and himself within 10 minutes of meeting the club.

“I was able to prove without doubt in 10 minutes that I was at all the games they stated I didn’t attend,” he told the YEP. “The footage was so clear you could even see my phone underneath the ticket scanner. Club officials admitted verbally at the time that it has highlighted an issue with the turnstiles.”

“I’ve been in the ground when there’s been no waiting list and not that long ago, actually,” he added. “I’ve been with 13,000 in the ground when there was nobody sitting near us so part of that is a bit galling.

“I’m sending them pictures of me with the scoreboard behind me and the away team so that I can give them another £600 to renew and it’s just a bizarre situation. Why would I buy a season ticket and not go this season, of all seasons given the s*** I’ve sat through since 1978.”

Despite earning the right to renew his ticket, Melvyn is no longer sure he wants to. The 54-year-old received an apology from the club’s head of ticketing, saying sorry for the inconvenience but the experience has proven a heartbreaking one for the Whites supporter.

“The club’s position throughout this whole situation has basically been that I have lied about the three games,” he said. “The club at no point have been prepared to even consider there is an issue with the North East corner turnstiles.

“We have now proven without doubt and using the club’s own ticket data, CCTV images and turnstile recording they have a problem. I’ve had to chase this the whole time, even having to go as far as a subject access request under GDPR legislation. That’s appalling. I had to take time off work to go into the ground to view CCTV images, doing exactly what I advised the club to do all along.”

Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.