URGENT - please advise on a case against Expedia

[andrew3223]

Long story short - I had a hotel booked in Newcastle over a Bank holiday weekend last year. It was a cheap hotel in the city centre, booked months in advance, payment to be taken two nights before.

Expedia were the agent facilitating the booking. They sent an email the day of payment to tell me there was an issue with the card. My bank didn't know what was going on and said there was no issue. I todl Expedia to take payment again. They tried and it failed again. They sent an email giving me until 9pm that night to sort the matter out.

I was in work and finished at 8, when I straight away called my bank and clarified that all was well and payment would definitely not be stopped by the bank. I then went online to facilitate a third attempt, only to see an email from Expedia telling me the booking had been cancelled half an hour previously - so 90 minutes before the deadline they advised.

I tried to call Expedia that night without answer. I had a stag-do so had to go to that and a cursory check on Expedia showed no hotels available that Saturday of the bank Holiday weekend in the city centre, and the only ones that were available were 20 miles outside and over three times the cost. Which is understandable. I also contacted the hotel I had booked with directly to ask them to hold the room, but someone on a wait list had been offered it in the meantime and accepted.

I tried calling Expedia twice the next day and the lines were on hold forever. I was also incredibly busy, but there were no hotels of any quality anywhere near the city centre, or that I could afford. Newcastle were playing at home that Saturday.

Long story short, my weekend was a write-off. I lost out using £200 of train tickets, and my ticket to the game went wasted.

On contacting Expedia to demand they compensated me, I spoke to a complete idiot/arsehole who told me I should have called them and they would have found me suitable alternative accommodation - even though there was none on their site and I did try calling, three times.

So I have taken legal action.

Their Defence states that they are an intermediary and I need to take the hotel to Court, and that their head office is in another European country so that is also who I should have sued.

The Court sent me a letter which I have only just opened. I have until tomorrow to respond, by the afternoon. The letter requests "the basis on which he contends that there is a legally enforceable contract between himself and the Defendant".

i would have thought that as the travel agent here, their system maladministration which led to the cancelled booking makes them liable for the ruined trip.

Am I missing something? Is it a simple matter of sending the Court my booking confirmation email?

I am so confuse.d Please help Legal Beagles!

[andrew3223]

I'm of the opinion that the contract between myself and the hotel was set up by Expedia. They made it an express term of the contract they were handling that payment be received by 9pm that night or they would advise the hotel to cancel said contract.

They then cancelled it 90 minutes earlier.

I did everything I reasonable could to mitigate my loss, with only 24 hours before the start of the Bank Holiday weekend, and so Expedia are liable for their actions which nullified a binding contract I had with this hotel. I would nto take the hotel to Court as they are not at fault here. The travel intermediary is. It is as if an a travel agent cancelled a flight I had with BA booked throuh them without my permission and then stated I had to take the airline to Court for their mistake.

[des8]

You will need to show the agency had a fiduciary duty to yourself, as (IMO anyway) it is doubtful that there was a legally enforceable contract between you.

Also, unless the agency knew why you required the room, you are most unlikely to obtain damages to cover the cost of your fares and entrance to the game.

[andrew3223]

Surely a hotel booking in a big UK city the night of a Bank Holiday weekend is telling enough that a person/persons are planning a holiday elsewhere than their home?

[des8]

If you were to claim breach of contract you would claim damages.
These can be broken down to direct damages or consequential damages.

Direct losses arise naturally from the breach of contract itself (direct loss);
Consequential losses may be supposed to have been in the contemplation of the parties at the time they made the contract, as a probable result of the breach
Direct loss does not require a claimant to establish special knowledge, whereas consequential loss does.

Unless you made it clear when booking, the other parties would not know what you had in mind.
You could have just been meeting a friend or family member for social reasons.
You will have difficulty proving consequential losses, as they are too "remote"

[andrew3223]

Expedia are now claiming in their Defence to this claim that their companies head office is in the USA and this is the entity I had a contract with and whom I should sue. Not Expedia.co.uk. They have stated that this company merely offers support only for their UK customers.

As I contacted Expedia in their UK call centre, on their UK number, and it was this call in which I made them aware of the consequences/costs of mucking this booking up, I believe I have the right to hold this entity responsible for the subsequent costs - so in other words, whilst the failure of their fiduciary duty occurred when this booking was cancelled earlier than contracted, I can take their UK company to Court, as this is the arm of Expedia that were notified of the consequences, told me it would be fine, then failed to ensure my booking was safe, and also whose phone lines were so jam-packed afterwards that I could not get through.

Or are they lying when they state I cannot take their UK arm to Court? I did have the contract with Expedia in the USA, yes, but that is because their website is owned by the USA company. All my subsequent contacts about the booking problems were with Expedia.co.uk and I dealt exclusively with this arm of their company after the contract was formed. It seems wrong to me that they can shrugg off a UK customer by saying I took the wrong company and in the wrong country to Court?

[andrew3223]

Anyone?

[des8]

Ordinarily you can initiate in the UK a claim against an overseas incorporated company if the contract:
contains a term to the effect that the UK court shall have jurisdiction to determine any claim in respect of the contract.
If it also states the contract is governed by English law, so much the better!

However you can also initiate the claim if the contract was made in the UK or through an agent trading or residing in the uk and was breached in the UK

Expedia.co.uk website appear to be acting as agents for Expedia .Inc and as your contract was with Expedia .Inc your claim should be against Expedia.Inc
Perhaps you should apply to change the defendant. (https://www.moneyclaimsuk.co.uk/cred...dant-name.aspx)

[andrew3223]

Okay. Thanks. Just two more questions:

1) Here are their terms on applicable laws:

"These terms and conditions and the provision of our services shall be governed by and construed in accordance with Dutch law. Notwithstanding the foregoing choice of law, a natural person using any of our services for a purpose which can be regarded as being outside their trade or profession (hereinafter also referred to as "consumer") can rely on the mandatory provisions of the law of the country where they have their habitual residence (i.e. provisions that, in accordance with the choice-of-law rules of the said country, must apply regardless of this choice-of-law clause; hereinafter: "Mandatory Provisions"). Any dispute arising out of these general terms and conditions and our services shall exclusively be submitted to the competent courts in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Notwithstanding the foregoing jurisdiction clause, a consumer may also bring proceedings in respect of enforcement of relevant applicable Mandatory Provisions in the courts of the country in which they are domiciled, and proceedings against a consumer may be brought only in the courts of the country in which they are domiciled. For consumers (in the European Economic Area): We advise you to first notify us of any complaints by contacting our Customer Service. If this does not resolve your complaint, you can upload your complaint via the European Commission's ODR platform. This platform for online dispute resolution can be found here: http://ec.europa.eu/odr."

So does this mean I can take them on in the UK?


2) And...just to ask again for clarification, can I hold their UK arm i.e. Expedia.co.uk responsible for the mess-up because it was the UK arm that did all the telephone calls with me, and messed up everything? Despite my having a contract with Expedia USA?

[andrew3223]

ADDED: I know it says Dutch, but just treat it like it said USA please lol

[andrew3223]

My read on this is that "a consumer may also bring proceedings in respect of enforcement of relevant applicable Mandatory Provisions in the courts of the country in which they are domiciled" means I can sue Expedia in the UK according to the laws in the UK they have to follow for doing business here.

So now I have to decide whether to change names, or go forward taking on Expedia.co.uk for the reasons that their negligence caused all this, and if Expedia then insist that there was no contract with Expedia.co.uk, I have to convince a Judge that as an arm of Expedia it makes little difference, or alternatively request at the hearing to change names if that argument is not successful? Which I would hope a judge would do given it saves us all time.

Sound right?

just don't want to lose on a technicality and get charged with costs.

[des8]

Your contract was with Expedia.Inc.
Expedia .co'uk appear to have been acting as agents for Expedia Inc and so you sue Expedia Inc

It does make a difference, and I doubt you'll be able to convince a judge otherwise.
You can't just change names at the hearing..(just think if you issued a claim against Mr Smith then changed to Mr Jones at the hearing, probably Mr Jones wouldn't be there!)

[des8]

ADDED: I know it says Dutch, but just treat it like it said USA please lol

and what about "Any dispute arising out of these general terms and conditions and our services shall exclusively be submitted to the competent courts in Amsterdam, the Netherlands."
and "miciled, and proceedings against a consumer may be brought only in the courts of the country in which they are domiciled. For consumers (in the European Economic Area): We advise you to first notify us of any complaints by contacting our Customer Service. If this does not resolve your complaint, you can upload your complaint via the European Commission's ODR platform. This platform for online dispute resolution can be found here: http://ec.europa.eu/odr."

[andrew3223]

Okay. was trying to be covert. I am taking Booking.com to Court.

That above quote was from their terms.

des8 ?

[des8]

So if you want to sue a European company for a small amount you use the European Small Claims Procedure - easy and relatively stress free
https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizen...-1-when-to-use

easier if peeps don't try and be clever lol!