The American Hotel & Lodging Association is joining hands with the Better Business Bureau to better inform customers of perils of online booking scams.
The hotel trade group says fake websites were responsible for about 55 million hotel bookings last year.
The AH&LA and the BBB have created a best practice and tips page on the BBB website informing customers what to look out for if suspicions are raised.
They are also launching joint social media campaigns, a podcast and infographic materials to show customers how to ‘search smarter.’
"We are very excited to partner with the Better Business Bureau to provide travelers with the information and tools they need to avoid falling prey to these harmful practices," said Katherine Lugar, president and CEO of the AH&LA.
"As the ease of online booking facilitates more travel, consumers need to know how to spot rogue sites and make informed decisions to avoid bad bookings."
The AH&LA also details steps to avoid online booking scams on its own website.
"Our recent BBB Scam Risk Report found that travel scams are one of the riskiest scams for older consumers ages 55 and up, and for military consumers. Travel and vacation scam victims lose an average of $847, compared to $274 overall, so it’s a costly and concerning issue," said Beverly Baskin, president and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus.
The AH&LA estimates fake or misleading bookings amount to about $4 billion a year.
