travel lodge changed amount due after I booked it.

nuddkram

I'd be grateful of any thoughts as to how I progress a recent booking with Travelodge.
Last Wednesday I booked 2 nights for the end of October at a Travelodge in Edinburgh. The 2 nights should have been £58 per night. When I booked it the screen showed 2 nights at £58 but I noticed that the total was wrong, instead of £116 it came to a total of £157.
As these were non-refundable rooms I immediately contacted them by phone but was told the room rate had changed and that I'd have to contact customer services by email to get it sorted.
After 3 days they have finally replied stating that the room rates are subject to availability etc. and that they would only look into further if I had a screenshot showing the 2 nights at £58. ( I've pasted their response below) Unfortunately I didn't take a screenshot and after I'd clicked on their "contact me" tab I was unable to go back to the booking screen.

I suspect that whilst I was booking my room somebody else has booked at the exact same time and the room rate changed.

I feel unfairly done by here as I'd agreed to buy 2 rooms at £58 per night but have been almost hoodwinked and charged an additional £41 which I never agreed to. Is there any point at all in replying to the customer services email or should I try and contact somebody else within the company, any help appreciated.




Thank you for your e-mail.


I am sorry to learn that you are unhappy with the rate that has been charged for the second night of your stay.


Our rates are calculated by our revenue team, and are based on a number of factors, which include the use of historical data, the hotel and geographic area's current demand and occupancy levels, as well as the time frame between booking and the arrival date.

In line with almost all operators within the hotel industry, our rates are subject to availability, and are offered on a first come, first served basis. Naturally, as the lowest rates are normally secured well in advance, the remaining prices are at a higher cost.


Unfortunately, this does mean that we are unable to honour any previous rates that may have been seen, and I am very sorry for any inconvenience caused.


However, if you have any screenshots confirming that £58.00 will be charged for each night of your reservation, and not £58.00 and £99.00, I would be more than happy to look into this further for you.

daytona0

I suspect that this could be one of three things;


1. You've just been caught out with one badass website glitch

2. You're "trying it on" a bit

3. You didn't properly read the screen before paying (when it quotes a price) and remain ignorant (linking to point 2 as well)


I strongly suspect that they are legitimately seeing the £58.00 and £99.00 values on their computer system and as such are completely tied with any further course of action. Their computer system is only likely to record transactions which have actually taken place, and not any stored "basket" data (ie if you had 2x 58 pound nights in your basket at one point, ready to check out). Considering the payment process is the most important part of their website it is highly unlikely that this is glitching up, but it can happen like...

From the company's perspective they probably only see that you have paid X and Y amount (instead of X and X) and to be honest with you, how can they otherwise show that you aren't some chancer who has tried to get a reduction in fees?


You should check for any automated email correspondence as I would imagine that they DO NOT have access to these emails, but I imagine that you were sent one. This should quote the price you paid when you completed the order and this should act as sufficient proof (in your favour or otherwise).

Armorica

The confirmation screen would have shown the final price - the time to pause was when you saw the proposed total of 157. Items in your basket are subject to change - there is no agreement until you are at the payment screen.

You can try asking again, but I doubt you'll get anything

lucy03

Just for clarity, and excuse if I've misunderstood, but are you simply asking for a refund or for Travelodge to honour the price?

nuddkram

Thanks for your comments. I'm not looking for a refund just looking to pay what I agreed to pay. This is not a case of the rate changing whilst I was making the booking, this has happened between me agreeing to pay £116 and finding out I've been charged £157. This is totally unacceptable. I suspect somebody else booked a room at the exact same time my booking was going through and the system has charged me the new rate.
Certainly not "trying it on" It's only £41 at the end of the day which luckily I can afford, had I known the 2nd night price was £99 I'd still have booked it, but at what point is it OK to have a basket showing £116 and to be charged £157......imagine that happened at Tesco, you go to the till with £116 of goods and as you hand over your card it jumps to £157, hardly fair or honest hence the reason I'm looking to stick up for myself and not let a large PLC roll over the top of me with a lame computer excuse.

visidigi

What does your emailed confirmation of booking state?

nuddkram

The Invoice shows as £58 for the 1st night and £99 for the 2nd totalling £157

frugal_mike

This is something I've wondered about before. If the order confirmation contains a higher price to the one that was displayed when you clicked the confirm button then there is little you can do to prove that if you didn't take a screen shot. The Consumer Contracts Legislation provide protection from this for most things bought on the internet, but not for accommodation bookings (among some other things).

nuddkram

A quick update on my post. I Nudged Travelodge's customer services a couple of times but to no avail, found the email address of the CEO online and fired an email off to him and received an immediate response, I've posted it below to encourage anybody else not to give in to these large PLCs as it is possible to get your point across in the end.


Thank you for your email. Mr Gowers, our Chief Executive, has asked me to respond on his behalf so that we might resolve your issue as swiftly as possible.
Firstly, I would like to offer my sincere apologies for the issues which you encountered with our website when making your booking at Travelodge. I have arranged a refund for £41.00 which will appear in your account within 3-5 working days.
I would also like to apologise as we did not receive your further correspondence into Customer Services after D****** had asked you for screen shots of the booking. I am sorry that this has led to further disappointment for you.
Thank you again for bringing this issue to our attention and we are sorry that your booking experience has not been as easy and smooth as it should have been. I hope that this does not negatively affect your stay with us at Edinburgh Central and that you have a pleasant stay.
If you have any concerns or need help with any other aspect of your reservation, please let me know and I will be happy to help resolve it for you.
We value your comments, so if you want to let us know how we have done, Thank you again for contacting us.
Kind regards

*******S

Travelodge Customer Services
Chief Executives Office