ASA Adjudication on Travel Offers Ltd

Ad

An ad in Somerfield Magazine for a 'Privilege Hotel Pass' had the headline "STAY AT PARTICIPATING HOTELS FOR FREE". Text below four pictures of different hotels stated "FREE HOTEL ACCOMODATION - ALL YEAR ROUND. For only £20.00 you and a partner can STAY FREE as often as you like for 12 months*". Text underneath stated "HOW DOES IT WORK? For only £20.00, your Privilege Hotel Pass gives you the freedom to enjoy as many hotel breaks as you wish over 12 months. With your pass you will receive the Travel Offers Directory which provides details of our featured hotels. Stay for just 1 night or more - all you have to do is pay for your meals - dinner and breakfast - your accommodation is absolutely free! Twin or double rooms are available and meal prices range from £19 to £30 and over for award winning dining". Text in a box on the right of the ad stated "Chose from over 320 hotels: England 192, Channel Islands 6, Wales 26, Scotland 71, N. Ireland & Ireland 29". Footnoted text stated "*At many hotels this offer is not available for some Bank Hols. Some hotels require a minimum stay of two nights and some may not take bookings for certain months ... All Hotel bookings are subject to availability".

Issue

One complainant challenged whether the ad was misleading, because he had been told that his chosen hotels were unavailable or no longer in the scheme.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

Travel Offers Ltd (Travel Offers) explained that, as described in the ad, the Privilege Hotel Pass allowed two adults to enjoy free hotel accommodation in a twin or double room, in the participating hotel of their choice, subject to availability. They said thousands of customers renewed their membership of the scheme on an annual basis, which they believed demonstrated their commitment to producing a quality product.

Travel offers explained that participating hotels could choose to leave the scheme during the year, and that they did so for a variety of reasons. For example, being sold, being taken over by other hotel groups, or undergoing refurbishment. They said, if that happened, calls from members to that hotel would be diverted to their Customers Helpline, so that they could assist members directly and suggest alternative hotels nearby.

Travel offers said members were provided with 'How to Book' instructions in the front of the Directory of Free Hotel Accommodation, which they received annually while they remained members of the scheme. They said, despite that, some customers still tried to book accommodation outside of a particular hotel's acceptance period or during a bank holiday. They said it was also possible that new members of hotel staff might not be aware of the Privilege Pass scheme, and that in the past members had been informed that a hotel was not participating in the scheme when that was not the case.

Travel Offers explained that all participating hotels re-confirmed or amended their entries in the Directory on an annual basis, and that a new Directory was printed each January. They said, because they recruited new hotels throughout the year, they sometimes printed an update of the Directory mid-year. Travel offers provided details of the availability of the hotels the complainant had tried to book with through the scheme. They said, of the six hotels contacted by the complainant, two had been unavailable to their members since 2005 and had not appeared in the Directory since that year. They said a further two of the hotels were no longer available to their members in 2007. Travel Offers said that, if the complainant had called those hotels using the numbers listed in the Directory, then they would have been automatically transferred to the Customer Help Desk, where they would have been provided with the details of three other hotels that were new to the scheme, and close to the locations of the two hotels that were no longer participating in the scheme. Travel Offers explained that the two remaining hotels were still participating in the scheme, one of which was available all year, whilst the other was available to members at weekends only, all year round, with a maximum advance booking period of three months.

Assessment

Not upheld

The ASA noted that the ad stated that all hotel bookings were subject to availability and that some limitations to the offer might apply at certain hotels, such as the exclusion of some bank holidays. We also noted that details regarding the acceptance periods relevant to each hotel were printed in the Directory beside the individual hotel entry. We understood that, for a variety of reasons, hotels might choose to leave the scheme during the year, but that members would be redirected to Travel Offers' Customer Help Desk should their initial choice of hotel no longer be available. We understood that two of the hotels contacted by the complainant had not participated in the scheme since 2005 and had not appeared in the Directory since that year. We also understood that, although two of the hotels contacted by the complainant had left the scheme during 2007, Travel Offers had recruited three new hotels in the same area to replace them. We acknowledged that, in line with their usual practice, Travel Offers directed members who tried to book with those non-participating hotels to their Customer Help Desk, where they were provided with the details of the new, alternative hotels. We considered that Travel Offers took reasonable steps to provide alternative hotel accommodation for members of the Privilege Pass scheme should their original choice of hotel drop out of the scheme. We also considered that the availability periods of the other two hotels contacted by the complainant, and still participating in the scheme in 2007, allowed members of the scheme a reasonable opportunity to book accommodation with those hotels, subject to the limitations mentioned in the ad and the Directory. We therefore concluded that the ad was not misleading.

We investigated the ad under CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 16.1 (Availability of products) but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action necessary.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)