Booked sub-standard accommodation online

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Yachtie

Registered User
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However, I recently booked a B&B online, using a reputable website (www.laterooms.com) to book a room in Bracknell, UK. Upon arrival to the B&B I was a bit surprised that there was no signage and the house was not even finished. The "gentleman" who answered the door and confirmed that this in fact is a B&B, asked me to take my shoes off. The smell coming out of a house was unbearable and I decided to leave.

I have contacted my Visa provider straight away and requested that the online transaction is not paid for as I did not avail of sub-standard service on offer. I was told that this was not possible as the transaction was still pending on my account and I had to wait until the money is paid out to the B&B owner.

Subsequently, I have contacted www.laterooms.com who informed me that the transaction was between the B&B owner and me, even though I entered my Visa details on their website.

I have offered my Visa card as a valid method of payment in good faith, expecting to be paying for accommodation of a decent enough standard. In my mind, giving my Visa details to a vendor does not automatically mean that I am accepting any shoddy service or treatment.

My bank has been verbally advised that I do not wish to pay for this transaction and would be most obliged if anyone could advise me what are my rights as a Visa customer.
 
None of the intermediaries involved will give you any satisfaction here. You are probably faced with suing the B&B owner for recovery of funds.

Credit cards protect sellers; it is a fallacy that as a credit-card consumer you have any protection in this kind of situation (marketing hype).
 
Perhaps the B&B owner will not process the charge. So wait and see what happens. If he does, you can dispute the charge.
 
extopia said:
Perhaps the B&B owner will not process the charge. So wait and see what happens. If he does, you can dispute the charge.
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He charged me for two nights stay (as I originally requested). I have spoken to AIB Visa department again and they are being quite unhelpful in the sense that I can dispute the transaction in writing when I get back home but there is very little they can do when it comes to service being sub-standard.

I had do find alternative accommodation for the same two nights and will be furnishing them with a copy receipt for another hotel to prove that I did not avail of the service and my colleague's written statement to confirm my claim that the original accommodation was not suitable.

I feel totally unprotected as a consumer and am absolutely furious that vendors can get away with this. Again, if you make a purchase online or over the phone, you do it in a good faith and if things go wrong, you should be able to get your money back. I thought that there was something about the customer satisfaction on 'card not present' transactions in MasterCard and Visa T&Cs but the carry on by AIB Visa department makes me think that it was either removed or is being ignored.
 
Yachtie said:
He charged me for two nights stay (as I originally requested). I have spoken to AIB Visa department again and they are being quite unhelpful in the sense that I can dispute the transaction in writing when I get back home but there is very little they can do when it comes to service being sub-standard.

I had do find alternative accommodation for the same two nights and will be furnishing them with a copy receipt for another hotel to prove that I did not avail of the service and my colleague's written statement to confirm my claim that the original accommodation was not suitable.

I feel totally unprotected as a consumer and am absolutely furious that vendors can get away with this. Again, if you make a purchase online or over the phone, you do it in a good faith and if things go wrong, you should be able to get your money back. I thought that there was something about the customer satisfaction on 'card not present' transactions in MasterCard and Visa T&Cs but the carry on by AIB Visa department makes me think that it was either removed or is being ignored.
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Have you contacted consumer affairs or maybe the small claims court?
 
foxylady said:
Have you contacted consumer affairs or maybe the small claims court?
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I have sent an email to the consumer affairs but I doubt they can do anything about a British vendor. However, they may be able to do something about Visa dept. I guess Small Claims Court would have no jurisdiction over this, which is why I feel like Visa people are the only ones I can rely on and they are not helping.

I have also sent an email to laterooms.com telling them that unless I am refunded my money, I am leaving negative feedback on every travel website known to man about this place and am advising my company's person in charge of travel about this as they use the same website to book accommodation for 40+ consultants and 20+ sales people all the time.

Surely it's obvious that I have a steam coming out of my ears overt his. The cheek of him!
 
If your company is using laterooms or any other single site to make all its corporate travel bookings, then you need to review your purchasing policies immediately. By confining yourself to a single site, you are undoubtedly losing out on the savings that you would make from shopping around from site to site.

Its common knowledge that B&Bs in the UK are very lightly regulated compared to Bord Failte standards in Ireland, and that B&B standards in the UK can vary significantly as a result. A single booking/search site can hardly be blamed for this?

I don't see how you can demand that Visa pay you your money back simply because you're dissatisfied with the product/service you paid for.
 
ubiquitous said:
I don't see how you can demand that Visa pay you your money back simply because you're dissatisfied with the product/service you paid for.
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The way I see it is I have given my Visa details as a guarantee to pay for a service. Since the service on offer was sub-standard and I did not avail of it, I do not wish to pay. It would be a different story if my travel plans changed and I forgot to cancel or if I was being cheeky and simply did not wish to pay for a service I have received.
 
I see where you're coming from but Visa would go out of business if they were to act as a customer satisfaction guarantor rather than a payment processor.
 
Did you ask laterooms whether they vet the B&Bs they advertise? You would assume a certain minimum standard would be required in order for a place to be listed on the website.
 
Seagull said:
Did you ask laterooms whether they vet the B&Bs they advertise? You would assume a certain minimum standard would be required in order for a place to be listed on the website.
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I did. They said that this particular B&B is listed as 'Budget Accommodation' and that it is favoured by back-packers, etc. I went back on the website and had a look and even though there was no star rating, it did not state any of the above. Plus, it's £49 per night which I wouldn't consider to be 'budget accommodation'.
 
ubiquitous said:
I see where you're coming from but Visa would go out of business if they were to act as a customer satisfaction guarantor rather than a payment processor.
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I see what you mean and I agree, but as a Visa customer you have to have some sort of fall back. Otherwise, anyone you ever legitimately paid with your credit card could use your details whenever they wish and you'd still have to pay for it.

I agree that Visa should not refund people for holidays they went on and the weather was bad or for unsatisfactory meal they paid in a restaurant. But, if you booked a hotel (through a reputable website) and it burned down the day before your arrival or a car with a company which had only a bike to offer, you should be able to get your money back. Otherwise Visa (or any other payment processor) are encouraging distribution of sub-standard goods and services and are not looking after their customers.
 
Yachtie said:
But, if you booked a hotel (through a reputable website) and it burned down the day before your arrival or a car with a company which had only a bike to offer, you should be able to get your money back.
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Yes, but this was not the case here. The accommodation you booked was made available to you, in other words you paid for a product (a room in a B&B) and it was provided to you. The fact that you chose not to stay there is irrelevant. As I said earlier, Visa are a payment processor not a guarantor of customer satisfaction.
 
I had a similar experience with a booking for a hotel in the UK with Laterooms. I sent them numerous e-mails and each and every one was deleted without being read. (Tracking facility on Outlook)

The best advice I can offer, from personal experience, is to express your views on as many travel websites as possible e.g. tripadvisor, holidaywatchdog etc and notify the hotel or B&B of same. I did this and remarkably I received a full refund direct from the hotel. Despite for example, Ryanair's claim that all publicity is good publicity, bad publicity for a hotel or B&B can only hit them where it hurts, in their pockets.
 
divadsnilloc said:
I had a similar experience with a booking for a hotel in the UK with Laterooms. I sent them numerous e-mails and each and every one was deleted without being read. (Tracking facility on Outlook)

The best advice I can offer, from personal experience, is to express your views on as many travel websites as possible e.g. tripadvisor, holidaywatchdog etc and notify the hotel or B&B of same. I did this and remarkably I received a full refund direct from the hotel. Despite for example, Ryanair's claim that all publicity is good publicity, bad publicity for a hotel or B&B can only hit them where it hurts, in their pockets.
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Thanks for that tip, I have already sent an email to laterooms.com threatening same. I will never, ever use them again!
 
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