Booking.com Scam Sends Tourists to London Pub Instead of Luxury Apartments

Scammers have been able to create fraudulent listings on Booking.com, directing holidaymakers to a London Wetherspoons pub instead of the advertised luxury apartments. One Wetherspoons establishment near Tower Bridge, The Liberty Bounds, has become the unwitting destination for tourists who believed they had booked accommodation.

Paul Dawson, 55, a tourist from Loughborough, reported falling victim to the scam after booking a one-night stay for himself, his wife, and daughter at a listing called 'The London Crown apartments.' He paid approximately £73 for the reservation. Alarm bells rang when he received an email two days later from 'The London Crown' containing a link to a fake Booking.com page that requested his bank details.

Dawson contacted Booking.com to report his concerns. He stated that he explained the address was for The Liberty Bounds pub and that turning up at a non-existent property late at night would be catastrophic, particularly as he has autistic children. However, Booking.com's response was that he would need to visit the fake apartment and wait until after 7 p.m. before they would arrange alternative accommodation.

It appears Dawson is not the first to raise issues with the 'London Crown apartments' listing. According to consumer group Which?, the listing was still visible on Booking.com on September 23 and had accumulated over 250 negative reviews during August and September. Which? suspects some positive reviews may have also been fake. Many customers have claimed in reviews that Booking.com was informed of the scam but did not act.

Staff at The Liberty Bounds pub have reported turning away approximately 20 distressed tourists daily who believed they had booked stays at the fraudulent apartments. Wetherspoons has urged Booking.com to implement more robust procedures to prevent such fraudulent listings from appearing.

The pub chain initially reported the scam to Booking.com, and the listing briefly disappeared on August 10, only to reappear later. While Booking.com reportedly blocked bookings in August, the listing remained active, and victims continued to report being scammed as late as September 24. At the time of reporting, the listing remained on the site but was not accepting new bookings. Recent reviews describe the property as 'fake' and non-existent.

Which? noted that other booking platforms like Airbnb or Expedia do not allow scammers to send clickable links demanding bank details in the manner Dawson experienced. The consumer group has called on Booking.com to address what it terms a 'glaring security gap.'

Which? also discovered that the fake apartment listing had gained significant visibility through a program designed to boost its prominence on the site. The listing featured a 'thumbs up' symbol and claimed to be part of the 'Preferred Plus Programme,' which assures excellent service and value and involves paying higher commissions for bookings.

In a separate incident uncovered by Which?, a property listed as 'Apartments near Big Ben' used the address of Portcullis House, part of the House of Commons estate. Customers arriving at this location were reportedly turned away by security guards.

A spokesperson for Booking.com stated that their investigation indicated both properties were targeted by a sophisticated phishing attack that compromised the properties' computer systems, granting cybercriminals temporary, unauthorized access to their Booking.com accounts. The company added that it takes such incidents seriously, has suspended bookings at both properties, and is providing support to affected customers.