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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/money/2018/jun/27/expedia-booking-compensation-hotel
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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Expedia failed to make a booking and spoiled my £800 holiday | Expedia failed to make a booking and spoiled my £800 holiday |
| (about 2 months later) | |
| I booked and prepaid through Expedia for two rooms at the Ryad Boustane hotel in Marrakech. The confirmation clearly stated: “No need to call to reconfirm this reservation.” | I booked and prepaid through Expedia for two rooms at the Ryad Boustane hotel in Marrakech. The confirmation clearly stated: “No need to call to reconfirm this reservation.” |
| We arrived at the hotel at 9pm to discover that no booking had been received and we would have to find accommodation elsewhere. | We arrived at the hotel at 9pm to discover that no booking had been received and we would have to find accommodation elsewhere. |
| We called Expedia, which seemed oblivious to the stress for two women in a foreign country late at night with nowhere to stay. We were on the phone for two-and-a-half hours while it offered inferior hotels or a room with a shared bed. The calls kept disconnecting while we were kept on hold, and Expedia never once called back – we had to ring and go through the initial screening process each time. | We called Expedia, which seemed oblivious to the stress for two women in a foreign country late at night with nowhere to stay. We were on the phone for two-and-a-half hours while it offered inferior hotels or a room with a shared bed. The calls kept disconnecting while we were kept on hold, and Expedia never once called back – we had to ring and go through the initial screening process each time. |
| Eventually, around midnight, we were told rooms had been found at a hotel across town and we had to accept. The call disconnected while we were on hold and, after an hour, we called the alternative hotel ourselves. The manager said he had rooms spare but had received no call from Expedia, so we had to fund a taxi to get there and pay the £220 for the rooms ourselves. | Eventually, around midnight, we were told rooms had been found at a hotel across town and we had to accept. The call disconnected while we were on hold and, after an hour, we called the alternative hotel ourselves. The manager said he had rooms spare but had received no call from Expedia, so we had to fund a taxi to get there and pay the £220 for the rooms ourselves. |
| By then, it was 1am, and I was starting to feel ill with the stress. Next morning I had to spend another three hours on the hotel phone negotiating with Expedia either to find us alternative accommodation, or pay for where we were. | By then, it was 1am, and I was starting to feel ill with the stress. Next morning I had to spend another three hours on the hotel phone negotiating with Expedia either to find us alternative accommodation, or pay for where we were. |
| Yet again, I was put on hold for up to an hour at a time. It eventually agreed to pay for our stay at the new hotel and offered money towards our meals, but insisted I claim back the first night’s accommodation, phone and taxi expenses once back in the UK. | Yet again, I was put on hold for up to an hour at a time. It eventually agreed to pay for our stay at the new hotel and offered money towards our meals, but insisted I claim back the first night’s accommodation, phone and taxi expenses once back in the UK. |
| We had lost half a night and a morning of our holiday. Moreover, we’d booked and paid for a traditional Moroccan hotel in the city centre and ended up in a modern hotel with poor food in the countryside, and had to pay £44 for a taxi into town each day. | We had lost half a night and a morning of our holiday. Moreover, we’d booked and paid for a traditional Moroccan hotel in the city centre and ended up in a modern hotel with poor food in the countryside, and had to pay £44 for a taxi into town each day. |
| On my return I asked for a refund of the extra £285 I’d had to spend, but all I’ve been offered is a £75 voucher. | On my return I asked for a refund of the extra £285 I’d had to spend, but all I’ve been offered is a £75 voucher. |
| DH, Southsea, Hampshire | DH, Southsea, Hampshire |
| It’s a disgrace that more than six weeks after receiving your complaint, Expedia had done nothing to atone for your spoiled £800 holiday. Within a day of hearing from the Observer, however, it was galvanised into action. It offered to refund your expenses in what it calls a “goodwill gesture,” and added £100 compensation and £200 in vouchers should you wish to risk your leisure time with it again. In an abrupt statement it says it apologises for the stress but declines to explain how it messed up so appallingly. | It’s a disgrace that more than six weeks after receiving your complaint, Expedia had done nothing to atone for your spoiled £800 holiday. Within a day of hearing from the Observer, however, it was galvanised into action. It offered to refund your expenses in what it calls a “goodwill gesture,” and added £100 compensation and £200 in vouchers should you wish to risk your leisure time with it again. In an abrupt statement it says it apologises for the stress but declines to explain how it messed up so appallingly. |
| If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk or write to Your Problems, The Observer, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Include an address and phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions: see http://gu.com/letters-terms | If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk or write to Your Problems, The Observer, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Include an address and phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions: see http://gu.com/letters-terms |
| Money | Money |
| Your problems, with Anna Tims | |
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