Laterooms Error, I think?

whowants2brich · 2 June 2008 at 3:15PM

Hello,

I've just seen that there's a price for a night's hotel on the Laterooms website (linked through from Quidco), of £11 per night, for two people, including breakfast, at a well-known hotel chain.

My question here is who is possibly at fault? If I book the price, are Laterooms and the hotel legally obliged to honour the price that I have booked, or can they say that it was wrong and ask me to pay the full price?

I can cancel up to 24 hours before 2pm on the day of arrival, without charge, so I still have some time to cancel. I was thinking of contacting the hotel, to say that I've booked it at this price and so expect them to charge me that price... if they don't, then I'll cancel and go elsewhere. Or should I go on the day, say I've contracted for that price therefore that's what I should pay...

Laterooms policy is that the accuracy is not their fault, but that they get all the information from the hotel(s).

Your help here would be much appreciated, I'm torn between what I want to do (fight for the legality of the price that I have contracted) and what I ought to do (say that the price is wrong, cancel and go elsewhere)...

Thanks in advance for the advice which I'm sure to get... (both good and bad, I'm sure

)

PS I know that honest errors are honest errors, but I also know that companies often make loads of money out of consumers, so the odd occasions when they mess up, it's only fair that we consumers take advantage... right?

whowants2brich

heatherw_01 · 2 June 2008 at 3:21PM

I once booked a very cheap (obvious misprice) room through them, and the hotel company contacted me saying it was a mistake. They didn't honor it.

dmg24 · 2 June 2008 at 3:22PM

Are you going to share the find with us?

whowants2brich · 2 June 2008 at 3:24PM

I won't share the find just yet until I'm sure which way this will go... As soon as I know more, I'll let you know. I'm expecting them to say it's incorrect pricing and that they won't want to offer it, but technically, contracts are contracts... Will be interesting to see if I speak to them over the next few days, as to what they say...

Voyager2002 · 2 June 2008 at 3:29PM

If it's an obvious error then they are NOT legally obliged to honour it. However, you may get lucky and find that they do so anyway.

You might like to contact them, apparently about something else, and let them know about the price. Try to be nice, and suggest that you have made all sorts of transport arrangements around that hotel booking. In that situation it is possible that the person dealing with you might exercise discretion and allow you to pay only that price. Otherwise, if you just turn up you risk getting stuck with nowhere else to stay, and facing a high charge for your room.

dmg24 · 2 June 2008 at 6:36PM

I agree with Voyager2002 ... and technically, contracts are not always contracts!

Engadine · 3 June 2008 at 12:21AM

If it is an obvious error then unlikely the hotel chain will honour it. I work for another hotel booking company and have seen hotels refuse to honour prices when it is obviously an error

odowdchr · 3 June 2008 at 6:28AM

I had one refused for a pretencious Abergavenny hotel booked through Laterooms....not an obvious error either.
They honoured the room price at check-out, but said that the offer of the free meal and bottle of wine to the value of £100 was an outdated offer that Laterooms should have removed.
Laterooms said "we're just an agency, it's up to the hotel to check it's own adverts".
So nobody took responsibility, but I blame the hotel because they were obviously updating the late vacancies on the website and left the offer on there.
Laterooms isn't like Priceline where you pay up front and the price is fixed....you always need to check with the hotel after booking.

stoneman · 3 June 2008 at 7:36AM

I would phone the hotel and find out the policy on when you pay for the room is, if it's at check-out, I would go and enjoy your cheap room, because there is not a lot they can do if you have enjoyed the facilities and then say you have only enough cash to pay the reduced price

whowants2brich · 3 June 2008 at 12:41PM

For what it's worth, the hotel emailed me before I got a chance to contact them, they say the price should be £111 per night, but that they'd be happy to go down to £100 because of the error. They won't honour the £11 rate.

I guess that unless I can be bothered to fight, they'll see my cancellation email on its way, which is a shame but hey, never mind... or should I push for them to honour it and see how far I go? or is it not worth it?

Voyager2002 · 3 June 2008 at 12:59PM

whowants2brich wrote: »

For what it's worth, the hotel emailed me before I got a chance to contact them, they say the price should be £111 per night, but that they'd be happy to go down to £100 because of the error. They won't honour the £11 rate.

I guess that unless I can be bothered to fight, they'll see my cancellation email on its way, which is a shame but hey, never mind... or should I push for them to honour it and see how far I go? or is it not worth it?

Decide what you are willing to pay for the room, and offer them that. If they agree then you have got yourself a cheap break, otherwise cancel. And no sense in fighting it, because you don't have any legal rights in this situation so you can only benefit from them using their discretion.

Laterooms Error, I think?

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