Hotel Booking issue

[AlexIT]

Hi,
I am seeking for advice for a potential issue with a booking.

Here's the full story:
Back on the 27th of May I booked through a booking site an Hotel for the RIAT in Fairford which will take place coming weekend.
I booked there for the night from Friday 11th to Saturday 12th of July at a very good rate (70£) as it is also very handy being only 4 miles away from Fairford.

On Friday I sent an Email to the hotel informing them that I would arrive around 8pm, just to avoid any surprise...

Today at 3:50 pm I got following mail from the booking site (names hidden according to PH policy):

• *******

we tried to reach you by phone but have had no luck. Please kindly be advised that the Hotel ********* has informed us that, due to an overbooking, your accommodation from 11.07.2014 to 12.07.2014  cannot be guaranteed as initially confirmed.

As a consequence, the hotel has blocked a room for you at the Hotel ********* Froxfield SN8 3JY, UK. The room rate as well as the booking conditions remain the same.

Please kindly let us know whether you agree with this alternative. Alternatively, you can of course also contact our call centre at ********** or book an alternative hotel through the ******** portal. On behalf of the hotel, we sincerely apologise for the inconvenience.

We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.

• ******

To which I replied:

Dear Sir, Madam,

I have booked this room on May 27th because I was aware that at this period the area would be very busy.
I have booked in this hotel, because it is conveniently located 4 miles away from where I have to go.
The hotel that has been proposed as an alternative is 35 miles away.

I find that informing of such change 40 days after booking and only 4 days prior to arrival is not acceptable.

Therefore I kindly ask you to inform the hotel that I require a room as booked.

Feel free to contact me on my mobile
+39***************

I did not get any reply since 16:05.

Should the hotel not accept what I requested, what could I do?

Most probably they realized they gave me the room with a far lower rate than normal and they now try to give it at full price to somebody else.

Of course I hope that things will settle, but in no way I'll go to a hotel 35 miles away from where I booked.
Should the worst happen do you think I may require compensation if I'd cancel the trip (flights, entrance tickets....)

Thanks for any advice
Alex

[tenpenceshort]

What do the terms and conditions of the booking agent say? I imagine they mention procedures allowing for change of hotel. Check there first.

[JustinP1]

AlexIT said:

Hi,

Most probably they realized they gave me the room with a far lower rate than normal and they now try to give it at full price to somebody else.

So, go book the full priced room.

Then, when it's time to check out, pull out your booking confirmation you got previously.

Clearly then *they* must have made a mistake...?

[AlexIT]

tenpenceshort said:

What do the terms and conditions of the booking agent say? I imagine they mention procedures allowing for change of hotel. Check there first.

Hi
I couldn't find anything about this in T&C.

Not sure if I can post the link, if not mods feel free to cancel it (altough the reservation site is not cause of the problem)
http://www.hrs.de/web3/showCmsPage.do?pageId=condi...

Only point mentioning cancellations i found is this (if I did not miss anything obvious):
b) As a service within the agency agreement, HRS is entitled to fulfil your requirements of the hotel itself in order to enable a speedy settlement without recognising a legal obligation in the case of breach of duty on the part of the hotel (such as unjustifiable cancellation costs or relocation costs). In this case, you automatically assign your claims in this regard against the hotel to HRS. HRS will then take care of the settlement with the hotel.

[surveyor]

have you looked to see what the hotel website says about vacancies?

[AlexIT]

surveyor said:

have you looked to see what the hotel website says about vacancies?

Looks like it is fully booked...
I have found another hotel 8 miles away at a similar rate... I wo der if I should jump on it and let the other one go

[MrPicky]

If distance from the event is the most important thing then suggest that the agent pays for a taxi to and from the newly proposed hotel to the event.

[surveyor]

AlexIT said:

surveyor said:

have you looked to see what the hotel website says about vacancies?

Looks like it is fully booked...
I have found another hotel 8 miles away at a similar rate... I wo der if I should jump on it and let the other one go

Unsure. Bring in the right legally could leave you sleeping in the car....

[AlexIT]

surveyor said:

Unsure. Bring in the right legally could leave you sleeping in the car....

At the end I'm going there to enjoy a relaxing weekend.

So I dropped an email to the booking site and cancelled the reservation and booked directly with another hotel only 3 miles further away (and £7 cheaper... should be good for a free pint upon arrival ).

Thanks to all for your help

[littleredrooster]

This, unfortunately, is one of the perils of booking via a third-party or agent. Usually the hotel's own bookings will take preference, but the timescale in this case is a bit suspect; not sure why it couldn't have been declined/sorted much sooner.

It is for very similar reasons why I will never again book a ferry through an agent - the hassle isn't worth it.