HOLIDAYMAKERS booking last-minute getaways have been warned to watch out for the online traps that push up costs.
Experts have urged people to be alert to travel websites charging over the odds for add-ons, when passengers are already covered by consumer rules.
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It comes after the Government revealed it is investigating a range of online sales tactics that might be harmful to customers.
Here Leah Milner and Laura Purkess explain how to avoid costly extras when booking online.
FLIGHT DELAY COVER
IF your flights to or from a European destination are delayed by two hours or more, you are normally entitled to compensation from the airline.
You could get as much as £520 if you are held up for four hours or more and it’s the airline’s fault — plus a replacement flight or a refund.
But some booking websites are selling customers “compensation for flight delays” before they even depart.
When Sun Money searched for a flight to Prague in the Czech Republic on Trip.com, we found it charged £8 for this add-on, provided by AirHelp.
It covers “up to £512 for flight delays and cancellations” as well as “up to £5,125 for lost baggage or missed hotel bookings”.
But airlines are already required to compensate you if your luggage is lost.
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Consumer rights expert James Daley, of Fairer Finance, says: “If your flight is significantly delayed or cancelled, most airlines will refund this to you automatically.
“If you do have to fill in a form, it’s very easy to complete and you don’t need to pay someone to help you.
“This kind of product is overpriced and unnecessary.”
AIRLINE FAILURE ADD-ON
WHEN booking flights with travel website Budget Air, there is a tick box for cover to “avoid the risk of losing your money when the airline cannot execute your flight due to bankruptcy”.
On £200 return flights from London to Thessaloniki, Greece, the cover costs £41.
James says: “This insurance is way too expensive — it’s a fifth of the cost of the flight, which is ridiculous.
“But more importantly, almost everyone buying these flights online would be covered by either their credit card or debit card if the airline collapsed.”
He points out that most passengers could instead seek a refund from their card provider.
For credit card payments over £100, you can use a rule called “Section 75”, while for debit cards you can use another clause known as chargeback, he explains.
Andrew Hagger, founder of consumer website MoneyComms, says: “I wouldn’t advise paying for this add-on.
“Travel insurance will be a cheaper option for most people and will cover a whole lot more than just the flight operator going bust.” However, not all travel policies will cover airline failure, so it’s vital to check what’s excluded before you buy, he adds.
CUSTOMER SERVICE FEES
SOME online booking sites are even asking passengers to pay extra in order to get better customer service if they run into any issues.
Trip.com offers a “service package” which costs up to £9.
The website’s booking page says that by forking out for this extra, you get “better support” from its customer agents.
This includes text message notifications about your flight, “prioritised refunds” and a “prioritised customer service response”.
James says: “It’s outrageous that companies are trying to charge passengers extra for good customer service.
“You shouldn’t have to pay to have your complaints dealt with promptly. Companies have a duty to do this anyway.”
WHAT THE SITES SAY
AIRHELP, which provides the flight delay service for Trip.com as well as other booking sites, says: “Research shows that 85 per cent of air passengers don’t know their rights and may find it difficult or frustrating to claim compensation.
“Only half of eligible passengers will file for compensation.”
Trip.com also insists the service saves customers “time and effort”.
Sun Money tried to contact Budget Air but could find no phone number or email address on the website.
After creating an online account with the site in order to be able to fill out a contact form, we received no reply.
ONLINE HOTEL BOOKING SCAM COST ME £800
By Laura Purkess
CYBER scammers are impersonating hotels to steal holidaymakers’ cash.
Crooks swiped more than £15million from travellers through a range of rackets over the year to April, according to the crime reporting body Action Fraud.
Recently, grifters have been messaging customers who have reserved hotels via the travel website Booking.com.
The website said its own security had not been breached, but confirmed that a number of the venues it lists have had their IT systems compromised by con artists.
This can happen if a member of the hotel’s staff mistakenly clicks on a link in an email sent by criminals, who can then log into the hotel’s account on the booking site and send messages directly to customers. University student Viktoria Tkach was duped into paying nearly £800 to scammers who did just that. The 21 year-old, of Greenwich in South East London, had booked a trip to Sharm El Sheik, Egypt, with mum Natalie, 50, in February.
A week before departure, Viktoria got a message, apparently from the hotel, which said she needed to pay £791 for her stay or the reservation would be cancelled.
She said: “Because the message appeared in my Booking.com account and looked so official, I felt like I had to follow their orders.” It wasn’t until Viktoria and her mum got to the hotel that she realised she had been scammed as the receptionist told her the £791 for their 11-night break still had to be paid.
She felt she had no choice but to fork out a second time or they would have had nowhere to stay.
Viktoria fought for five months to get her money back, but Booking.com, the hotel and her bank all refused to cough up.
It was only when Sun Money stepped in that Booking.com agreed to a refund.
A spokesperson for the website said: “While there has not been a security breach on Booking.com, we are aware some of our accommodation partners were targeted by phishing messages, which compromised their internal systems. We take safety and security very seriously and were sorry to hear about the experience of Viktoria, particularly as this is not the level of service we strive to provide.”
It has now refunded Viktoria’s money with an extra goodwill payment.
Sun Money journalist Mel Hunter was targeted by a similar scam when she booked a holiday in Faro, Portugal, this month. “The fact the message appeared in my Booking.com account made it so convincing,” she revealed.
“Thankfully I smelled a rat, but the hotel told me other guests had lost money.”
Booking.com said it is supporting its hotel partners with training and guidance.
One more day can pay
A LITTLE-known booking quirk means that you can sometimes make big savings on package holidays — by staying an extra night.
Consumer group Which? urged tourists booking 10-nights to also check the cost of 11 as in some cases it can cut your costs.
Research found that where it was che- aper to book for 11 nights, savings could be huge – although it was a rare boon.
Which? looked at 400 different package deals and identified 26 examples where staying longer cost less.
Among them was a Tui break in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, for a couple sharing, which was more than £1,100 cheaper with an extra night tagged on at the same all-inclusive hotel – meaning you’d have one more day at the beach and all food and drink thrown in.
It also found examples involving various package holiday companies in the Greek islands, Turkey and other destinations where travellers could save up to £600.
There are lots of reasons why a longer stay might be cheaper – supply and demand and different flight dates can play a part, according to the consumer group.
