Booking.com / Swiss hotel cancellation issue

lampard

** update for anyone having same issue in future **

You need to speak to the hotel and have them contact booking.com to cancel.
Booking will then call you to confirm you do want to cancel.
Once you say yes they will email to confirm this has been done.



Hi All

I was on booking.com and reserved a room at a hotel in Basel for the football in November.

Now the booking.com site clearly showed green text saying free cancellation beside the drop down of the room.

My friend has then around 20 mins later found another hotel where 4 of us can stay so I went to cancel the other room.

I was told it would cost £159 to cancel it.

What are my rights here or who can I make a complaint with?

The hotel are refusing to budge and booking.com are referring me to the hotel and wont take any responsibility.

Checking same hotel now the green text is not there and I did not get a screenshot

This is a scandal anyway that hotels have the cheek to even do this so far in advance of the date of stay. I could understand if it was last minute and they could not sell the room again but they have 2 1/2 months to do so.

Culb_P

I have exactly the same issue here.

I was checking accommodation prices for La Rochelle for rugby in October and saw a good deal. I was certain it had the green free cancellation so I booked the accommodation while I was browsing thinking it would be easily cancelled if the trip didn't go ahead. When I then gave the overall cost to my travelling companions they weren't keen so I tried to cancel then booking. I was going to be charged the full amount. Booking.com passed it off to the hotel who didn't want to know. I contacted the hotel myself and pleaded my case and the guy I spoke to has to wait for his manager to return next week. Meanwhile they have taken the money from my account.

I understand there is terms and conditions however I realised the problem within half an hour and tried to rectify it immediately plus the booking was for 2 months time. I can't understand why the hotel won't be more flexible in these circumstances.

Any advice would be appreciated

lampard

Culb_P wrote: »

I have exactly the same issue here.

I was checking accommodation prices for La Rochelle for rugby in October and saw a good deal. I was certain it had the green free cancellation so I booked the accommodation while I was browsing thinking it would be easily cancelled if the trip didn't go ahead. When I then gave the overall cost to my travelling companions they weren't keen so I tried to cancel then booking. I was going to be charged the full amount. Booking.com passed it off to the hotel who didn't want to know. I contacted the hotel myself and pleaded my case and the guy I spoke to has to wait for his manager to return next week. Meanwhile they have taken the money from my account.

I understand there is terms and conditions however I realised the problem within half an hour and tried to rectify it immediately plus the booking was for 2 months time. I can't understand why the hotel won't be more flexible in these circumstances.

Any advice would be appreciated

Quite shocking booking.com are doing this, it must be on purpose my green cancellation was 100% there beside the room.

Impossible to get anyone from booking.com to explain this, just pushed to the hotel wiping their hands from it.

Culb_P

I just doubted myself and presumed I'd made a mistake. Now I'm £300 out of pocket

lampard

Culb_P wrote: »

I just doubted myself and presumed I'd made a mistake. Now I'm £300 out of pocket

You certainly didn't I can assure you, I will never be using booking.com ever again.

jpsartre

What does your confirmation email say? Cancellation policies for your room are in there.

PompeyPete

jpsartre wrote: »

What does your confirmation email say? Cancellation policies for your room are in there.

I was just about to post the same thing. Just booked a place this morning in Sarajevo, and my confirmation e-mail is perfectly clear about what the cancellation terms are. Ditto with 3 other bookings I made recently for the same trip at the end of next month.

Culb_P

Yes the cancellation policy is in there and it is non refundable.

For my case my point is that I realised an error immediately and tried to rectify it within an hour of making the booking, 2 months before the dates of the booking. Is there or should there not be any flexibility in such circumstances?

photome

Culb_P wrote: »

Yes the cancellation policy is in there and it is non refundable.

For my case my point is that I realised an error immediately and tried to rectify it within an hour of making the booking, 2 months before the dates of the booking. Is there or should there not be any flexibility in such circumstances?

No there shouldn't be any flexibility as Usually there would be A cheaper rate for a fully cancellable option

andygb

I would never use Booking.com again after the fiasco we endured in France in 2013.
We were given all the guff about how the gite owner accepted credit cards (had to book by credit card deposit), and were told when we arrived that the gite owner only accepted cash - like we carry £500 cash with us when we go on holiday.
Booking.com, just told us to pay cash and everything would be sorted, but it wasn't, and every day just built up the stress, wondering how we were going to pay.
On the last but one day, the gite owner said we could pay her daughter (who owned another gite opposite) by credit card.

leylandsunaddict

lampard wrote: »

Quite shocking booking.com are doing this, it must be on purpose my green cancellation was 100% there beside the room.

Impossible to get anyone from booking.com to explain this, just pushed to the hotel wiping their hands from it.

Booking.com aren't doing anything. The individual properties make the policies. All the information on booking.com is uploaded by the individual properties, and they are solely responsible for making sure it's correct and updated. Booking.com aren't responsible for inaccurate information that is uploaded by a hotel via their extranet.