AG Healey Makes Deal With IndyCar To Refund Tickets For Cancelled Boston Race

Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey says she's reached an agreement with the IndyCar organization to refund consumers who bought tickets to a cancelled Boston race.

The deal announced Thursday will refund buyers $925,000 for tickets purchased, according to a statement from her office. Healey also filed a lawsuit against Boston Grand Prix and its CEO John Casey for the full refunds of all tickets purchased.

Nearly 4,000 people bought tickets — spending more than $2 million — for the race that had been scheduled for Labor Day weekend in September, according to the statement.

Boston Grand Prix has refunded customers about $400,000. That means even with IndyCar's refund, there are still hundreds of thousands of dollars outstanding.

After declaring bankruptcy Wednesday, Boston Grand Prix said in a statement, "a full refund will not be possible without the cooperation of third parties including IndyCar and others who have been unwilling to participate."

On Thursday, Healey thanked IndyCar for being a "productive part of this solution" and said Boston Grand Prix exhausted investor and sponsorship funds before obtaining all permits and approvals to hold the race.

"Boston Grand Prix and its CEO knew full well when they marketed and sold this event that they didn’t have the resources or permits to make it happen," Healey said in the statement. "They failed to protect consumers, and we will do all we can to hold them accountable."

Healey's complaint alleges that Boston Grand Prix "solicited and sold advance tickets despite knowing that their business venture was insolvent and that they could not cover the costs of mounting pre-event expenses without using ticket purchasers’ deposits."

When it entered into agreement with IndyCar in 2012, Boston Grand Prix paid the sanctioning body $487,000 as a down payment.

The race was cancelled in April with city officials saying the organizers were "unwilling or unable" to meet requirements and organizers saying the city was making unreasonable demands.