{"id":804,"date":"2018-04-06T11:30:11","date_gmt":"2018-04-06T10:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.competitionlawyers.co.uk\/blog\/?p=804"},"modified":"2018-04-06T11:30:11","modified_gmt":"2018-04-06T10:30:11","slug":"customers-being-duped-buying-bogus-holiday-discounts-deals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.competitionlawyers.co.uk\/blog\/customers-being-duped-buying-bogus-holiday-discounts-deals","title":{"rendered":"Customers being duped into bogus holiday discounts and deals"},"content":{"rendered":"

According to investigations by consumer group Which?<\/em><\/strong>, who have asked Trading Standards to investigate travel firms, consumers are potentially being duped into purchasing holiday deals in bogus sales and discount schemes.<\/p>\n

Promotions were reportedly tracked, and it was found that some discounts and deals were available for the same price or less after a time-limited “sale” had ended<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Some travel firms are being accused of offering misleading discounts to dupe holidaymakers into paying hundreds of pounds more than necessary off the back of bogus deals.
\n
\nVirgin Holidays<\/strong> and Sandals<\/strong> are two big-name brands who have reportedly been offering what may be construed as potentially misleading discounts. In one example Which?<\/em> cited, an all-inclusive holiday to Jamaica that was promoted as part of a “mega sale” reportedly dropped in price the day after the sale ended. There are also “flash sales” advertised that purport to allow consumers to benefit from massive time-limited discounts with countdown clocks displayed, when prices remained the same after the sale period had ended.<\/p>\n

We all know holidays are expensive, and many of us love to shop around for the best deal possible. When we see these time-limited offers, we know it’s an easy call to action for consumers to buy a holiday there and then or face missing out on what appears to be a fantastic deal.<\/p>\n

But, if we’re being duped into buying these discounted holidays<\/strong> which are then cheaper or the same price thereafter, are consumers being misleadingly pushed into a sale when they could have had way more time to shop around and find a better alternative deal? That’s one of the big questions that will need answering if formal investigations are opened.<\/p>\n

If holiday packages are being misleadingly advertised, this may be a Trading Standards issue as well as a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) matter also. <\/p>\n

Any form of price or advertising manipulation that can be misleading needs to be looked at, and with the likes of online advertisers often in the spotlight over their selling and marketing behaviours, there may be a need for tighter controls on deals and discounts.<\/p>\n

The consumers and their interests and rights must never be abused.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to investigations by consumer group Which?, who have asked Trading Standards to investigate travel firms, consumers are potentially being duped into purchasing holiday deals in bogus sales and discount schemes. Promotions were reportedly tracked, and it was found that some discounts and deals were available for the same price or less after a time-limited … Continue reading Customers being duped into bogus holiday discounts and deals<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":808,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Trading Standards have been asked to investigate travel firms, after consumer group Which? reported they duped customers into buying holidays through bogus discounts and deals.","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10],"tags":[19],"class_list":["post-804","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investigations","tag-holiday-deals"],"yoast_head":"\nCustomers Being Duped Into Buying Bogus Holiday Discounts And Deals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Consumer group Which? 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