What to do if your ticket has turned black, the official ACO response

The ACO has today issued a press-release to all ticket holders for the Le Mans 24 Hours:

NOTE FROM THE AUTOMOBILE CLUB DE L’OUEST
Tickets damaged by light and heat

The Automobile Club de l’Ouest has found a quality problem on the thermal paper used for all the access tickets to the Le Mans 24-Hours test day.

The tickets become black when exposed to the heat or the sun for extended periods, so they cannot be checked (visual or scan).

This problem has arisen because our supplier has used defective paper.

All the tickets - pedestrians, car parks camp sites and traffic are concerned.

To be able to continue to use your tickets please respect the following instructions:
- Do not expose your tickets to the light or heat.
- Do not use the plastic pouch that enables you to show the car park, welcome area or traffic circulation pass behind your windscreen.
- Only take out the ticket for checks.
- Do not leave them in your vehicle.

However, the print from the thermal printers is stronger so it is possible read the bar code numbers as well as the transaction numbers to find these tickets in the ticket computer programme and to reprint them if necessary.

Additional personnel will be entrusted with the job of replacing the tickets by E-tickets printed on ordinary paper.

Seven places for reprinting the defective tickets will be available from Monday 11th June 2012 open from 08h00 to 18h00. They will stay open all week until Sunday 17th June at 14h00.

- The General Welcome (ticket office) at the Rotonde, in the Parc des Expositions,
- North entrance,
- South entrance,
- East entrance
- Annex entrance
- Beauséjour entrance
- The sporting module (main building in front of the pits)

Outside these times, a single withdrawal point will be available at the ‘Plis en attente’ in the Rotonde in the Le Mans Parc des Expositions.

The Automobile Club de l’Ouest would like to present its excuses to the spectators, partners, team members, suppliers and media representatives for this inconvenience that is outside its responsibility and caused by the use of unsuitable paper by one of its suppliers.

We remain at your disposal for further information on 33 (0) 2 43 40 2012 (between 09h00 and 18h00).