HOTEL reservations website Booking.com is still duping its customers using pressure selling tactics according to Which? Travel.
The consumer champion said that the travel firm is continuing to mislead consumers despite a crackdown by regulators.
Earlier this year, the government's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) took enforcement action against six hotel booking sites over concerns of pressure selling, misleading discount claims, the impact of commissions on search results and hidden charges.
The regulator concluded that practices such as giving a false impression of a room's popularity or not displaying the full cost upfront could potentially break consumer protection law.
It gave the websites – Expedia, Booking.com, Agoda, Hotels.com, ebookers and Trivago – until September 1 to comply.
However, Which? found five out of ten claims of "only one room left" on Booking.com failed to give an accurate picture of availability.
In one example, search results for the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge warned that just one "secret deal" room was available – a superior double room with disability access priced at £232.
However, after clicking through to the booking page, Which? found another ten superior doubles with internal view available for a cheaper rate of £226.
In total, 34 empty rooms were still available at the same hotel on the same night.
In another example, The Banjo B&B in Liverpool showed "1 room left" – on a budget double room.
When Which? clicked through, there were four identical "budget double rooms" for the same price of £49.
Source: Read Full Article