Fraudulent hotel bookings hit $5.2 billion in 2017

The American Hotel & Lodging Association says consumers paid $5.2 billion in fraudulent and misleading hotel booking transactions with third-party travel companies in 2017.

In an online survey conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of AHLA, nearly one-quarter (23%) of consumers report being misled by travel resellers on the phone or online.

Of those who report being misled, 46% say they were charged extra fees on their credit card, 34% had to pay for a second room because their original, paid reservation was lost, and 44% made a room request that was not relayed to the hotel. 

“It’s easy and convenient to make travel arrangements online. Unfortunately, as online bookings have surged, so too have scams and deceptive behaviors,” says Katherine Lugar, president and CEO of AHLA.

“That’s why we encourage consumers to look before you book, slow down, and search smarter.”

AHLA is launching a consumer education and awareness campaign titled “Search Smarter” to combat this fraud.

The association is urging consumers to book directly with the hotel or a trusted travel agent, to check the fine print before sharing their credit card information, and to sign up for hotel loyalty programs.

AHLA says 500 online bookings are made every minute, accounting for 15% of all U.S. e-commerce. More than a third (39%) of survey respondents indicated they most often book their hotel rooms through a third-party website, but AHLA says some of these resellers use “a variety of marketing tactics to mimic hotel websites and call centers, but are not, in fact affiliated with the hotel.”

The survey found that fraudulent bookings translated to 28.5 million hotel stays in 2017.