Hotel adverts banned by watchdog over misleadingly cheap rooms

Adverts from four of Britain’s biggest hotel and travel companies have been banned for featuring misleading minimum prices for rooms.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld complaints against Hilton hotel group, Travelodge, Booking.com and Accor over eye-catching so-called “starter” prices.

The watchdog found very few rooms actually bookable at the advertised price and concluded that the advertisements exaggerated the deals.

He said this was unfair to those looking for good deals or to make informed choices about where to book.

ASA operations manager Emily Henwood said: “Advertised rates must be the same as those actually available. “If only a few rooms are offered at the price shown, or if it is only valid for a particular date, this information needs to be clearly stated to avoid misleading people.

“People should be able to trust the prices they see in advertising and these decisions show we will take action if the rules are broken.”

The ASA used artificial intelligence to identify misleading advertising as part of a wider investigation into the availability of advertised hotel prices.

The Hilton hotel group has been slammed for two adverts, one of which read “Hampton by Hilton Hamilton Park from £68” and the other adverts in Newcastle from £59.

The ASA asked Hilton if she could support her claims; The hotel provided evidence that rooms could be booked at the hotel on the relevant dates when the advertisements were displayed.

However, the ASA concluded that Hilton put potential customers at risk of being misled by exaggerating the availability of advertised rooms. It instructed the chain not to run the ads again and warned Hilton to make sure future price claims reflected current opportunities for a “significant portion of rooms.”

Two ads were banned from Travelodge; one in Nottingham Riverside offers rooms from ‘£25’ and the other in Swansea offers rooms from ‘£21’.

The ASA found that advertised prices were valid for a single night’s stay only and warned Travelodge to ensure future deals are valid on a “variety of dates”.

A Travelodge spokesman said it was aware of the need for clarity and transparency in pricing and was working with Google to ensure its advertising was clear and complied with ASA rules. It was stated that the relevant advertisement was removed before the ASA’s decision.

Similar findings were issued against Booking.com and hotel group Accor, while hospitality chain Butlins was criticized for changing the deadline for a sale it promoted via email.

Accor told the ASA it believed its advertisements were accurate as rooms were available at or below headline prices within days of publication.

Booking.com sent the watchdog a screenshot showing seven reservations had been made at the prices it advertised.

A spokesman told the BBC that Booking.com accurately displays prices and availability at the time ads appear and will work with the ASA “to answer any questions you may have”.

The ASA also found Butlin’s had breached its rules by telling customers “Big Butlin’s sale ends in four days” and “Times out”.

The deadline to take part in the sale has been extended by two weeks and the watchdog said this was unfair to those who were pressured to hold off before the original deadline.

He called on the firm to ensure future promotions are fair to consumers. Butlins said no customers were disadvantaged by the extension of the sales window.

The ASA’s findings follow those of the Competition and Markets Authority on Tuesday An investigation was launched into 8 companies due to potentially misleading online price claims.