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Author Topic: Keeping ticket stubs Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-05-2011 11:06 PM                        So I was packing up the ticket stubs from last week's shows when I started thinking: Why do we need to keep these dumb things? Our computer has kept track of every ticket we've sold, and if the studio wanted to audit us they can just look at our computer, which breaks down the sales to the minute. If they did a blind count and found out we had under-sold, the computer would verify it without stubs. In fact, if anything the computer would show MORE results than the stubs would, because occasionally the printer fouls-up and doesn't print the tickets, but they still get included in our count. So what's the point in keeping ticket stubs? Has anyone on here EVER had a studio rep want to take a look at the stubs?  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 03-05-2011 11:31 PM                        When I worked at Regency they would fly a guy out from CA once every 4 months or so and he would physically count all of the stubs with the manager and usually that would result in someone getting fired (if the culprit still worked there) for scamming. We didn't always have someone on door ripping tickets, so the person selling them would rip the tickets before handing them to the customer during the weekdays.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 03-06-2011 01:21 AM                     True, not so much the studios, but the company auditers checking the stubs for accurate tix sales. They allow so much percentage of error, but too much error can spell theft to the auditor and investigations do proceed to find the answers.  |  IP: Logged Aaron Garman Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: Toledo, OH USA Registered: Mar 2003 posted 03-06-2011 02:48 AM                     We don't keep stubs, and starting soon we will finish implementing ticket scanners. The awesome thing is when we do scanning, we can see who showed up and who didn't. Although, I've never seen a stand alone cinemas/multiplexes utilize ticket scanners. Anyone know of any? AJG  |  IP: Logged Tom Petrov Five Guys Lover Posts: 1121 From: El Paso, TX Registered: Jan 2003 posted 03-06-2011 04:13 AM                    I believe there is some sort of law in place that states that you have to keep a hard copy of financial data for an extended period of time. I think it is 7 years and the proper term is called document retention. Just imagine if that hard drive or computer program is wiped out or something happens to it. Now for individual tickets stubs that get torn at the door, I don't see any reason to keep the cinema half of it.  |  IP: Logged Frank Angel Film God Posts: 5305 From: Brooklyn NY USA Registered: Dec 1999 posted 03-06-2011 04:49 AM                        quote: Aaron Garman We don't keep stubs I don't know Aaron, you'd better check your Master Contracts. I believe you will find they require you to keep ticket stubs for a number of years -- you should check on the exact time frame. The idea is that the studio can send an auditor (also in the MCs) that has legal access to your Box Office records and to the ticket stub box for inspection. The distributor is the exhibitor's contracted partner and like any partner, they have the right to have access to "their" books. That Master Contract that the theatre signs gives the distrib the right to walk into the box offices any time the theatre is in operation and he can inspect your tally sheet, ticket beginning and ending numbers and then check the physical stubs. And they can call for the physical stubs at any time too, for as many years as you are required to retain them. I believe the MC wording is that the physical studs are the distributor's property, not the theatre's. Check it out. Then in addition to whatever the studio requires, sub retention, as Tom says, can be regulated by states on licensed businesses. You may be required under state laws and regs to retain proof of sales for a certain number of years. We seal our ticket stubs in plastic bags with the box office manager's signature as well as the ticketakers names for each engagement. I think in NYC we are required to keep them for 3 years, but I am not sure of that number, it could be longer. If you are not keeping ANY stubs, you might want to double check what your obligation is to the distrib and to your local Indiana business laws and regs.  |  IP: Logged Louis Bornwasser Film God Posts: 4441 From: prospect ky usa Registered: Mar 2005 posted 03-06-2011 06:43 AM                        I would keep them for a time. . . maybe 6 months. I would be religious about whatever you do and form an official policy. That way if audited, you "show conformity" to your standard method, If they have a problem they could request a change for the future. Surely you don't keep them "forever???" Louis  |  IP: Logged Connor Kirkwood Film Handler Posts: 25 From: Portland, OR, USA Registered: Jul 2009 posted 03-06-2011 08:15 AM                     I remember posting about this a few months ago. I got a lot of helpful responses, but I still can't grasp the logic of keeping these stubs around. If you have a computerized ticketing system, then you have a record and ample opportunity to back it up. If your system is internet-based, as ours, then your ticketing record is automatically stored in two places at once, in real time. The only reason for keeping stubs, that I can surmise, is to keep theaters, box office employees and/or ushers honest, but the only way to determine that is to audit on the current day and date. Once the patrons leave the theater, and there's no head count to check against the ticket record, the stubs mean nothing. I currently manage an arthouse that keeps it's stubs for exactly one year. A year ago, I was working the booth for a second run theater. The second run place only issued transaction receipts, which left no stub for the theater to keep. I can't really see the difference between the two, except that my current theater has a six-foot tall filing cabinet full of garbage.  |  IP: Logged Dustin Mitchell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1865 From: Mondovi, WI, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 03-06-2011 12:11 PM                     First, as far as laws go, you never know what kind of archaic laws are still on the books throughout the 50 states but since tickets are basically receipts and stubs are just the merchant copy of that receipt I don't think there is any law saying you must keep them. Stores don't keep copies of sales receipts after all, just whatever they're computer/end of day printouts say. As far as ticket stubs go, aside from whether your master contract says to keep them or not, another thing to consider is how good one's surveillance system is. If you find someone double selling being able to go back to prior days they worked to check ticket stubs against sales records is the only really reliable way beyond security camera footage to find out how much they've been stealing and for how long.  |  IP: Logged Darryl Spicer Film God Posts: 3250 From: Lexington, KY, USA Registered: Dec 2000 posted 03-06-2011 12:25 PM                    Two Weeks, that is what our company policy is. In the 26 years that I have worked in this industry I have never heard of or encountered an instance of a distributor sending someone out to count our ticket stubs. I have encountered situations of film companies sending out people to do head counts for a particular film and then match their counts to what we have sold, but that was years ago. I have assisted company auditors in the past in counting stubs if they have suspected inconsistencies for some reason. Those were hard ticket situations before computer sales.  |  IP: Logged Aaron Garman Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: Toledo, OH USA Registered: Mar 2003 posted 03-06-2011 12:42 PM                     Well we do document the stubs for every performance in the center: the house manager has to report this at the end of each and every show, including all films. Also, once we switch over to scanning tickets for all events (we're in a test phase currently), we will not have actual stubs since all we will be doing is scanning tickets. AJG  |  IP: Logged Robert D Hall Film Handler Posts: 65 From: Abingdon V.A USA Registered: Mar 2010 posted 03-06-2011 02:03 PM                        We have never in the past 14 years keep any tickets thay go right in the trash. What we do keep is a box office report from every day printed on paper. They are filed for 7 years. I couldnt see this not being the proper way. Because our owner is a stickler for proper paper work as well as being a lawyer.  |  IP: Logged Edward Havens Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 614 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2008 posted 03-06-2011 02:16 PM                     The company I currently work for makes us keep ticket stubs for the current month and the three months previous. The previous company I worked for made us keep the current month and the previous month only. The seven years paperwork Tom is talking about is tied to payroll and personnel files. Connor, you've already been given the answer of why they need to be kept around. For home office auditing purposes, to prevent scamming.  |  IP: Logged Nathan Powers Film Handler Posts: 12 From: Salem, MA Registered: Mar 2006 posted 03-08-2011 11:00 AM                     Example: Fred sells tickets at box office, fred also sells collected stubs at box office, fred makes $8.50 per ticket for the cinema, and fred makes $8.50 per ticket for himself. Computer says you have 150 people in cinema #2, actual people in cinema #2 is 250. The computer would not help you catch this the next day. Unless you count the cinemas every show, you would never know. Examples like this are why you need to keep them. You need to make sure your not getting scammed by your employees, and the film companies need to make sure your not scamming them.  |  IP: Logged Michael Brown Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1522 From: Bradford, England Registered: May 2001 posted 03-08-2011 04:39 PM                     In the UK there are at least a couple of cinemas (one large chain and a couple of independents) who don't even take stubs. On entry to the theatre the staff member makes a tear in the middle of the ticket and hands the whole lot back to the customer. (nothing is kept by the member of staff)  |  IP: Logged

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