Holiday deposit by bank transfer
Discussion
Hey guys,
We've booked a weekend away to a big holiday home in Wales for about 10 of us through a website (I'll get the address off the gf when she can get me it). The website states they take payment via credit card etc.
We've placed the booking and have had an email from the people who own the property asking for the deposit via bank transfer. We asked if they could take credit card and they said no, and we've now offered payment via Paypal instead, and are waiting for a response.
As I understand it, once we've made a payment via bank transfer, there is no way of getting it back is there? Is there anything I could do if they don't take Paypal/Credit card, or is it best to forget and move onto another one?
We've booked a weekend away to a big holiday home in Wales for about 10 of us through a website (I'll get the address off the gf when she can get me it). The website states they take payment via credit card etc.
We've placed the booking and have had an email from the people who own the property asking for the deposit via bank transfer. We asked if they could take credit card and they said no, and we've now offered payment via Paypal instead, and are waiting for a response.
As I understand it, once we've made a payment via bank transfer, there is no way of getting it back is there? Is there anything I could do if they don't take Paypal/Credit card, or is it best to forget and move onto another one?
I should have made it a bit more clear.
The website is a booking agent, who puts you in contact with people who privately own properties, they don't actually take the booking themselves.
My problem is, I don't want to submit my deposit via bank transfer, because if we come to pay the rest of it, how do I know these people aren't just going to run off with all my money? If I've transferred it via bank transfer, I'm never getting it back.
I can't specifically look up these people as they don't have a company name, but will try looking up the property/website name to see if anything pops up for those.
The website is a booking agent, who puts you in contact with people who privately own properties, they don't actually take the booking themselves.
My problem is, I don't want to submit my deposit via bank transfer, because if we come to pay the rest of it, how do I know these people aren't just going to run off with all my money? If I've transferred it via bank transfer, I'm never getting it back.
I can't specifically look up these people as they don't have a company name, but will try looking up the property/website name to see if anything pops up for those.
This is how loads of people were stung on holiday lets abroad recently, the booking sites were bogus and the punters didn't find out until they arrived and there was no booking.
No credit card? Bye-bye deposit.
If you can't contact the landlord directly to confirm then you need to pay by credit card.
No credit card? Bye-bye deposit.
If you can't contact the landlord directly to confirm then you need to pay by credit card.
How many red flags do you need. Advertise credit card payment but request direct funds then refuse to offer advertised payment method.
We have used owner direct rentals (VRBO) in the US, but not accepting a CC is a red line we wont cross. Whilst I'm sure we have missed out on some great properties and if we ever turn up to no accommodation it will still be a total nightmare but CC use at least gives a small degree of legitimacy and gets a big cooperation on your side and on the hook for providing the service/refund.
Also if they are giving you trouble at this stage it doesn't bode well for the rental going smoothly and getting your security deposit back etc. just another red flag!
It also sounds like you are handling other peoples money too (10 of you) so protect yourself as much as possible.
We have used owner direct rentals (VRBO) in the US, but not accepting a CC is a red line we wont cross. Whilst I'm sure we have missed out on some great properties and if we ever turn up to no accommodation it will still be a total nightmare but CC use at least gives a small degree of legitimacy and gets a big cooperation on your side and on the hook for providing the service/refund.
Also if they are giving you trouble at this stage it doesn't bode well for the rental going smoothly and getting your security deposit back etc. just another red flag!
It also sounds like you are handling other peoples money too (10 of you) so protect yourself as much as possible.
NormalWisdom said:
I paye a deposit by Bank Tfr last year, no problem. Owners Direct was the Website thought the owners were dealt with directly. Did enough googling to satisfy myself all was on the up!
Owners Direct is the website in question, and we are in direct contact with the Landlord(s).They've asked for £250 up front to secure the booking, and have asked the rest be paid no later than 5 weeks before. Are the majority of the people on there trustworthy, do Owners Direct have any kind of policy regarding poor history for owners?
The property in question has had 12 reviews, with an average rating of 4/5, and has been on there since April 2013.
I feel better knowing that someone else has used the site before.
When I said they take credit card, I was going on information that other people gave me, I can't find anywhere on the website that says they take credit card payments.
"owners direct hacked" in Google returns these tales of woe : http://www.google.com/search?q=owners+direct+hacke...
marshalla said:
"owners direct hacked" in Google returns these tales of woe : http://www.google.com/search?q=owners+direct+hacke...
Yeah.The payment method they gave me was through another site called Holiday Lettings, run by trip advisor. The payment was made through there via Paypal.
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