Watchdog takes action to end ‘misleading’ online hotel booking practices
A watchdog is taking action against several hotel booking sites including Expedia and Trivago to tackle hidden charges and other “misleading” activities.
Expedia, Booking.com, Agoda, Hotels.com, Ebookers and Trivago have agreed to end “misleading” practices such as hidden charges and “pressure selling”, in what the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is calling a victory for holidaymakers.
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Those sites will now make it clear where a hotel has paid to boost its search result ranking, and will avoid pressure selling, where customers get a false impression of a room’s popularity to rush them into booking.
“The CMA has taken enforcement action to bring to an end misleading sales tactics, hidden charges and other practices in the online hotel booking market. These have been wholly unacceptable,” Andrew Tyrie, CMA chairman, said.
“Six websites have already given firm undertakings not to engage in these practices. They are some of the largest hotel booking sites. The CMA will now do whatever it can to ensure that the rest of the sector meets the same standards.”
The changes include:
Search results: Revealing when a hotel has paid to be placed higher up in a booking site’s search results.
Pressure selling: Sites will no longer seek to rush customers into booking based on partial information, like highlighting other customers also looking at the same hotel, even if they are booking different dates.
Discount claims: Only promoting discounts available at the time a person is booking for, and not comparing discounts to higher prices for rooms a customer isn’t searching for.
Hidden charges: All costs for a stay must be displayed upfront, rather than revealing extra charges like taxes and booking fees later on.
The CMA did not rule whether any of the above practices breach consumer law, but did say such sites could be breaking such rules.
Rory Boland, travel editor at consumer magazine Which, welcomed the rule changes.
He said: “We have repeatedly exposed sites like these for using dodgy tactics like pressure selling, sneaky charges, dodgy deals and discount claims so it’s absolutely right that the Competition and Markets Authority is taking strong action.
“These changes must now be swiftly implemented to stop these misleading practices, so customers can trust the deals they’re presented with are really deals and are told the total cost of their room upfront when booking a hotel online.”
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An Expedia spokesperson said it still believes its practices did not breach any consumer laws.
"That said, we are surprised and disappointed in the CMA’s description of our partnership with them in the CMA’s press announcement, which we believe mischaracterises the collaborative and good faith approach taken in establishing industry standards which are new and result in more transparency for consumers than in offline markets," they added.
"We are however pleased the CMA has been clear that it views this new standard as one applicable to all participants in the industry.
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"We hope and expect that the CMA will ensure that all platforms which offer UK consumers the ability to search and/or book any type of accommodation will adopt this industry standard to the benefit of all UK consumers."
The watchdog now plans to write to other hotel booking sites like online travel agents and hotel chains to set out its new expectations, asking them to make sufficient changes by 1 September.