Booking.com compensates customers hit by fraudsters

Booking.com has had to compensate customers who handed over money to criminals after being sent demands for prepayment.

The Netherlands-based online travel agent has admitted customers have been targeted by fraudsters in a phishing scam.

It confirmed it had refunded those who lost money, but refused to reveal the total amount.

A Booking.com spokesman said: "While it is something related to a phishing attack that happened in the summer we have taken our time to work with all parties involved, most importantly our customers to make sure the impact on them is as minimal as possible.

"We indeed have taken the financial burden of this though we have not and will not disclose(d) the total amount of refunding to our customers.

"We also said this was no data breach and that phishing is an industry wide phenomenon that we now have been confronted with like other e-commerce companies in the past.

"We, of course, immediately stepped up our security measures and will continue to do counter these criminal activities and to make sure booking accommodations via Booking.com is safe."

Claire Coldwell from West Yorkshire used Booking.com to book hotel rooms for her and her colleagues.

She received emails to say that due the unusually high demand for those dates, the hotel had asked for prepayment in full for the whole week, which would have meant paying £3,000 in advance.

She also got an email claiming to be from the hotel with the reservation number, guest names and accurate looking logos.

Due to her suspicions, she phoned Booking.com and was told the company never asks for payment up front.

But some of the customers targeted have paid.

Jane from Niagara Falls in Canada said:"It looked very authentic. I fell for it. We paid approximately 1,500 Canadian dollars, around £700 sterling."

Peter Kornelisse, chief security officer at Booking.com, said it estimated around 10,000 people had been affected.

He said: "We are protecting our customers, hotels and Booking.com continuously. We have a battle against organised crime. We’ve made technical improvements in several areas. "

It said its dedicated security teams were also working to contact and support accommodation partners who may have been affected by this situation.

Jackie Grech, legal and policy director at the British Hospitality Association, warned customers to be ‘extremely cautious’ after booking online.

She told the Telegraph: "We know so far that the scam seems to be limited to a few customer bookings across a number of four and five star hotels in London. We have contacted the online booking agent and alerted hotels across the capital.

"The important message is for customers of online travel agents who need to be vigilant and if they are contacted by anyone asking them to pre-pay their hotel room, they should be extremely cautious about doing so. It’s best to call the hotel directly to check."