Hotel will not honour internet rate confirmed

conorb101

I have booked a room with a hotel in Ireland for a low rate, I have received a confirmation e-mail and have paid the deposit. The hotel have now come back and advised that there was a technical error with their websiteand they can no longer offer me the rate that I confirmed with them. What are my rights?.

Thanks for your advice

pleasant Co.

You can get a refund, the hotel do not have to honour a technical error.

Run_to_da_hills

Are they still offering the low rate on their website?

If so I would report them to ASA.

danbohan

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Are they still offering the low rate on their website?

If so I would report them to ASA.

and name and shame!

eamon234

Online booking can be dodgy at the best of times I always check with the hotel immediately after booking. I booked a room in the Brehon last year for our wedding anniversary with Bookassist but when we got to the hotel they had no record of the booking and were fully booked out.
They were very helpful however and not only got us a room in the Gleneagle but gave us a voucher for a free night stay in the Brehon with dinner included! Now that's customer service, it wasn't even their fault.

With regard to the hotel mentioned by the OP I would have thought they'd be glad of the business. Hotels are closing down every day in this climate even the popular ones like Citywest.

dudara

danbohan wrote: »

and name and shame!

Please do not name the establishment in question. We are not into rabble rousing. If the hotel did make a genuine error, then they do not deserve to have their name bandied about.

dudara

91011

Most hotel booking engines are operated independently of the hotel - even if you book via the hotel website itself.

As with anything technical, errors can be made and I presume they cover themselves in their t&c's

danbohan

dudara wrote: »

Please do not name the establishment in question. We are not into rabble rousing. If the hotel did make a genuine error, then they do not deserve to have their name bandied about.

dudara

technical error can be just that ,or it can be another example of our tourist industry indulged in their rip off practices , somehow i am more inclined towards the latter !

Sponge Bob

danbohan wrote: »

somehow i am more inclined towards the latter !

I agree, what county is this hotel in seeing as we cannot name it outright.

I had a similar problem in Donegal last year and were it not for the fact that another couple showed up in reception with a similar 'misprice' and we all clogged up their reception desk while they 'checked' we would not have been taken care of. They had to honour the arrangement in the end. Their 'excuse' was that they no longer used that booking engine but it was still listed on the booking engine a month later again.

Hotels have tarted themselves to a vast profusion of booking engines which is their own fault, not the consumers. It is no harm to email the hotel 48 hours later to confirm that the booking is real and confirmed and if not charge back the credit card and rebook.

P. Breathnach

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Are they still offering the low rate on their website?

If so I would report them to ASA.

I did once complain to the ASA about an internet site (not a hotel, but a travel company). They were advertising a deal that they would not give to me at the advertised rate. They wanted €25 more as a "booking fee". In my view, it was clear case of intentionally misleading people.

The ASA told me that internet sites were outside their remit.

brightspark

The ASAI now include the advertisers own websites (since July 09)

http://www.asai.ie/news.asp?nid=51

"The Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI)1 has announced that it will extend its remit to cover advertising claims on advertisers’ own websites. This is in line with the strategy of the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA)2 in their Best Practice Recommendation on Digital Marketing Communications3. On the adoption by the ASAI Board of this strategy, the Chairman of the ASAI said “the extension of the ASAI’s remit was an important development as it will ensure that consumers can enjoy high standards of advertising in any medium.”"

Run_to_da_hills

brightspark wrote: »

The ASAI now include the advertisers own websites (since July 09)

http://www.asai.ie/news.asp?nid=51

As someone mentioned before many of these sites are 3rd party, the companies in question can claim ignorance of their contents.

P. Breathnach

brightspark wrote: »

The ASAI now include the advertisers own websites (since July 09)

http://www.asai.ie/news.asp?nid=51

Thank you. That is good to hear. I thought their refusing to take my complaint was poor form, a big failure in consumer protection.

dudara

danbohan wrote: »

technical error can be just that ,or it can be another example of our tourist industry indulged in their rip off practices , somehow i am more inclined towards the latter !

Possibly, but as moderator, I will promote the principle of innocent until proven guilty.

dudara

brightspark

To be honest there is very little satisfaction to be gained from complaining to the ASAI. Their "powers" are limited to telling the advertising company not to run the advert again or amend their website. This process normally takes a few months.

However it might be worthwhile talking to the NCA

http://www.consumerconnect.ie/eng/Hot_Topics/FAQs/Deposits-and-gift-vouchers/

It appears that having paid a deposit (was your card actually charged?) effectively forms a contract. You will of course need to establish whether your contract is with the hotel or a 3rd party. Also there might be a clause in the terms and conditions you probably had to accept when making the booking.