Six hotel booking websites agree to end 'misleading' sales tactics

Expedia is one of the firms who have agreed to alter the way they do business

Jonathan Prynn, Business Editor @JonPrynn

6 February 2019

Six of the biggest online hotel booking websites have agreed to end “dodgy tactics” such as misleading claims about discounts following a major investigation.

Expedia, Booking.com, Agoda, Hotels.com, ebookers and trivago have given assurances to regulator the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) that they will scrap the practices by the start of September.

The CMA launched its probe last year after it raised “serious concerns” that the websites were giving a false impression of how many people were competing for the same deal on a room and were not always being transparent about the full cost of the room.

The websites have now agreed to clean up four widespread practices that the CMA said could be in breach of consumer protection laws.

Under the voluntary agreement they will:

Make it clear when search result rankings of hotels have been distorted by the amount of commission a hotel pays the site.
Stop misleading “pressure selling” techniques designed to rush customers into making a booking. For example, when the site highlights that other customers are looking at the same hotel it must making it clear they may be searching for different dates.
End the promotion of misleading discount claims that include comparisons with a higher price not relevant to the search criteria. For example, some sites were comparing low weekday rates with the higher cost of a weekend room rate.
Display all compulsory charges such as taxes, booking or resort fees in the headline price.

CMA chairman, Andrew Tyrie, said: “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.

“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 CMA said that not all of the six websites engaged in all of the banned practices but said all had agreed to abide by the undertakings.

Consumer groups welcomed the crackdown. Rory Boland, travel editor of the consumer body Which?, 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 CMA 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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