HA'OD Changes Afoot

OTA = Online Travel Agency, which means those sites that sell the booking and take the payment for you.
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Mouse
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Post by Mouse »

So people are paying before the booking is accepted?

How do they get their money back if the booking is declined. And then when they try the same for another property. ...it is taken again?
This could seriously put people off.
Is this also the same with online payment?

It just hasn't been thought through. They're struggling to make sure they're paid if someone books and pays via bank transfer or cheque.

Mouse
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One martini, two martini, three martini floor!
brendan
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Post by brendan »

I agree with you, Mouse.

For me it isn´t a big problem to have book now and pay now disabled. I don´t have a huge amount of competition where I´m located.

If, however, I was somewhere like the Costa de Sol with a large amount of competing properties then it would be a different story as you´d be way down at the bottom of the search results and this despite the fact that you´re paying a hefty subscription!

It just leaves a nasty taste - this business of fleecing guests at every turn. No doubt there will be a resulting change in booking behaviour as guests come to realise that they are being screwed at every turn and they will eventually become more savvy and find us directly. In the meantime, it galls me to be part of something I view as an unsavoury business practice.
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Bassman
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Post by Bassman »

Im looking to rent a place in Florida this is what happens through OD.
9 nights total on the enquire page £418
Returned email from OD after the enquiry was sent est amount £737.43
Owners reply total cost £510

Confused i am
brendan
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Post by brendan »

Bassman...what a mess!

And this was just using the enquire button or did you try book now? Were you brave (or foolish) enough to do that?

Does anyone know what actually happens when you hit book now. I mean do they demand your cc details? If that were the case I´d be off like a scared rabbit if I were the guest!
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kevsboredagain
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Post by kevsboredagain »

brendan wrote:
Does anyone know what actually happens when you hit book now. I mean do they demand your cc details? If that were the case I´d be off like a scared rabbit if I were the guest!
If I pressed Book Now, Buy now, Pay Now, Order Now or any other button that suggested a purchase, I would expect to have to pay for something. In fact, when I press that Book Now button for a hotel, I'll be reaching for my credit card before the next page appears.

On the other hand if the button says Enquire Now or Contact Owner then I would expect to be sending a message.

If I were to press Book Now and then ask to make a bank transfer, I'd be far more scared. Hence the Book Now and paying by credit card appeals those who prefer, what would appear to them as the safer option.
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Bassman
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Post by Bassman »

Bassman wrote:Im looking to rent a place in Florida this is what happens through OD.
9 nights total on the enquire page £418
Returned email from OD after the enquiry was sent est amount £737.43
Owners reply total cost £510

Confused i am
I mentioned it to the owner and sent her a screen shot apparently the OD price was her normal weekly price not for 9 nights. Estimated amount was including deposit and for nine nights (/7x9) no explanation by OD how this broke down and the £510 was the price ex-deposit with a discount. In fact we only want a week now. Its very tiring organizing this holiday what ever happened to the travel agent! They did charge commission but at least they did the work for you

:D
Last edited by Bassman on Thu Jul 28, 2016 9:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
LaderaCottage
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Post by LaderaCottage »

All this confusion about "Request to Book" and "Enquire Now" is explained here.

https://www.facebook.com/15911483978825 ... =3&theater

It is deliberately confusing for guests with the much bigger "Request to Book", only they are taking money instantly and not as they state on their website, which is why this woman on the BBC Radio 4 You and Yours had her bank account cleared before she realised it!

The more guests that become aware of this, the more habits will change and the more will book directly.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php? ... 8397882561
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Bassman
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Post by Bassman »

I am really hacked off with OD/HA but in general the owners i have spoken to who have places Florida think they are the great.
Most of these place dont seem to have their own website if they do they are impossible to find. So if you have a holiday home and you want help with the running costs with really little hassle (& profit) why not. The difference is a lot of us in Europe its our business!
Last edited by Bassman on Thu Jul 28, 2016 9:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
Tivoli
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Post by Tivoli »

Bassman wrote:Most of these place dont seem to have their own website if they do they are impossible to find.
Interesting! Only recently did I join Facebook in the hope that it might prove to be a useful marketing tool. Frankly, I can't stand it but that's another matter entirely. With my subscription to OD I was allowed a link to my own personal website, so I linked to my Fb page. The link was accepted by OD and for a while, it was displayed on my OD listing.

Not any more!

Thieves!
ManxRed1
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Post by ManxRed1 »

Hi all,

Just joined this forum. I am another frustrated Owners Direct owner, and thought I'd share my experiences with this in case they are of help.

Since this TSF has been applied I have been tearing my hair out trying to get around this.

Last night I emailed Brian Sharples a short, curt, but non-abusive email demanding that Online Payment and Online Booking are disabled (I'l' try and deal with the 'page 600 listing' issue later). A few hours later I tried phoning support and got through to someone unhelpful in the US, who confirmed that my email had been received and would be dealt with in due course.

He also confirmed that Online Booking has never been enabled on my account and wasn't at the time I called either. This is odd, two people managed to book two weeks at my cottage over the weekend - and were charged the service fee. This appears to be breach #1.

I asked him about how OD could change the terms and conditions of the agreement I signed up to in 2015, and the clause he quoted at me bears no relation to Contract Law (a clause stating we can change any terms unilaterally without telling you - if those terms are material, which these are - is pretty worthless under normal contract law). However I cannot locate a copy of the 2015 Ts & Cs anywhere.

Does anyone have a copy they can share?

I also list my property with an agent (he takes about 33% of bookings and I take 66% via OD). My contract with that agent gives him priority over any 'double-bookings', which means that I need to block his website before accepting a booking via OD. I also need to match his pricing exactly.

These new arrangements with OD put me in breach of my contract with the agency. I have had to take my listing down for now, so I am continuing to pay £300 a year, for a slot I cannot advertise.

I won't repeat the words I would use to describe these people, but if anyone can help with the 2015 Ts & Cs, I'll see if there's a good legal angle to approach this from.

Vicious first post? I was hoping to enjoy myself on here!!
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kevsboredagain
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Post by kevsboredagain »

Tivoli wrote: With my subscription to OD I was allowed a link to my own personal website, so I linked to my Fb page. The link was accepted by OD and for a while, it was displayed on my OD listing.

Not any more!

Thieves!
Not under Facilities?

Learn more about this holiday rental at the owner's website
•Owner website
Nigel Goodwin
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Post by Nigel Goodwin »

kevsboredagain wrote:
Tivoli wrote: With my subscription to OD I was allowed a link to my own personal website, so I linked to my Fb page. The link was accepted by OD and for a while, it was displayed on my OD listing.

Not any more!

Thieves!
Not under Facilities?

Learn more about this holiday rental at the owner's website
•Owner website
You will find it under the 'web links and videos' tab, at least on my properties.
Tivoli
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Post by Tivoli »

Cheers guys! :-) Who'd a thought of looking there? Of course it's not unlike me to go shooting my mouth off before I am fully in the picture ;-)
Last edited by Tivoli on Tue Jul 26, 2016 11:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
Nigel Goodwin
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Post by Nigel Goodwin »

Sorry, I mean for the guest it is under facilities, but for the owner it is entered under the 'web links and videos' tab.

I get hundreds of enquiries every day from potential guest who link straight to my web site. :lol:

I'm actually a bit surprised it is there at all, given that I have recently moved to online booking - main problem is I am getting zero HA enquiries at all.
Oldhacker
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Post by Oldhacker »

A brief update on my HA / OD saga arising from the fact that I HA / OD advised that I would get the UK OD listing if I waited until after 11 July 2016 to renew my listing. Having waited until 12 July to renew I did so but my property did not reappear on OD. After a big row and many pathetic responses from HA / OD I threatened them with legal action (damages for lost bookings plus compensation for the time I had wasted trying to resolve) over breach of contract. They suddenly became rather apologetic, admitted that they had planned to have fully integrated OD before the 11 July changeover to the new subscription model but hadn't managed it. And cannot say when, or if, they will. If I was cynical I would say they have no intention of doing it and are planning to throw OD and their pesky UK owners who want a nice simple introduction direct to travellers off a metaphorical cliff.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, HA / OD clearly did not fancy their chances in court and so offered to set me up with a free separate OD listing for 6 months - to be reviewed if they still have not integrated it in 6 months time ....
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