Transcript of our attempts to get answers from Dejphon Chansiri on YOUR Sheffield Wednesday season ticket refunds

The Owls have run into trouble repaying over 8,000 applications for refunds for matches missed at the end of last season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Having originally said refunds would be complete by the end of October, a switch in software has meant club staff are having to refund supporters individually, over the phone. Speaking earlier in the press conference, Chansiri reiterated some of the issues the club has run into.

“It has to be done manually,” he said. “But I can guarantee that they will get their money. I always keep my word.

“Our regulations say no refunds, but I made the decision to refund - even in a difficult situation.

“We need to move a lot of data, and it takes a long time. We didn’t think 50% or 60% of fans would want a refund, so it’s taking longer, but I’m asking for patience. I guarantee they will get their money.”

Below is a transcript of the conversation between The Star and Chansiri over the refunds issue.

Is there a timescale on the payment of refunds and how far through the process are you?

DC: I am not sure at the moment. We try to get it finished as soon as possible. Actually when I decided to give the refund, I wanted to make it happen as soon as possible, but I found out afterwards we changed the data and everything we could not use it. We had to move everything. It made it slow.

I have already mentioned that we did not expect that it would take this long.

If we can make it finish as soon as we can then fine, but my people tell me we have to do it manually. We have to do a double job. So it is more difficult.

I understand the fan’s passion and understand that when we don’t get results, the fan’s get more mad to ask for refunds.

If you think you are a fan or a supporter, you need to understood in the end you will get that back.

Instead you have to be a customer and you have to push and get it back, then call yourself customer, don’t call yourself a supporter.

Clearly some of these supporters require that money, some are in difficult financial situations.

DC: I want to ask you. At the beginning, when they bought a season ticket, they knew they would not get that money back anyway.

If they really require, then they should not have bought a season ticket at the beginning. If we did not have a Covid situation, I would not be refunding. Because of Covid situation I make a decision to refund.

Some clubs do not choose to refund, they just gave the credit or something. We chose to give the refund. This means I am loyal to the fans and I understand the fans are not in a good situation, which is why I made the decision to refund you.

I have good faith to do that, but some issues have made this more difficult to do. In the end we will get there.

I have to understand as well, the passion, if I had done the same as other clubs and just given credits, then I wouldn’t have to talk about refunds. But I am the one who was sure to give cash back.

They need to understand us also. We are already in a difficult Covid situation. I expect to understand more. Please do not try to make it more difficult, we are already in not a good situation.

The fans say this is their club and I am a custodian, but why does the custodian have to everything to make the club survive. Why not the ones who say they own the club?

Some things they try to be negative. Sometimes I think they want to damage this club.

If I had not tried to come in and try to go up and keep pushing and losing a few million every year, the fans don’t want that. When we do not achieve, some fans have a short memory. When I spent money, fans were happy I tried to do that.

I said from the first day I was there that if we pushed we would break FFP. Perhaps you have a short memory. I said that all the time. It’s realistic that if you push and keep spending money, you will break [FFP] one day.

You see some big clubs, they are relegated and then they are in League One. If I had not spent maybe we would already be in League One?

When things are good, fans blame me. When results are good, the fans say it is because of them. So maybe it’s better to be a fan than the owner.

It would be beneficial to a lot of the supporters that need that money to get some clarity on this. What stage are you at? The club made a point of saying that there were 8,000 refunds to get through. Have you got through 2,000? 5,000?

DC: I don’t know. The team do it. I should not know details like this, right?

Otherwise it can be said that I am micro-managing.

If we were to get in touch with the club and ask for clarity on that, would that be information that would be made available to me?

DC: It’s not worth to do that anyway. We say we are trying our best to make it finish.

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