Booking.Com - What Can I Do?

[namedchange112]

I've been an absolute idiot. I was due to take a trip this summer - to a location outside of Europe.

I have 2 booking.com accounts and had booked some refundable accommodation on one account before changing my mind and booking it all on another - old account was shared with ex-DH and new account to my new email address. When the trip was cancelled I logged into my normal account and cancelled all the bookings, forgetting that I'd made the new account.

I've now been charged nearly £2000 for accommodation I didn't (and couldn't- travel to this destination from UK is impossible for non-essential travel) use. I'm kicking myself and feel sick.

I have email Booking.com and the hotels but they aren't going to refund me are they?

1 hotel has replied and apologised (! It was my fault- any guesses where I was travelling to!?) and refunded me £500... £1500 to go

I’m confused by what you’ve done here. You’ve booked the same accommodation twice, using two different Booking.com accounts? Then cancelled one but not the other?

Yes, exactly that @SuzieCarmichael - I booked on my normal account but then realised ex-DH had access to that account so created a new account and booked the same trip. When the trip was cancelled I immediately cancelled the accommodation on account 1 but with everything going on had completely forgotten I'd created the other account.

Oh dear! What a pain. Have the dates for the trip now passed?

Yep, last booking was today- I only became aware of the charges as I got a text from my credit card company querying the last transaction (probably because they are all overseas!) it was a road trip so 6 separate hotels totalling £2k.

Claim on your travel insurance if travel to that country is not possible?

Oh dear ! As Rockchick says, is it one for your travel insurance?

Yes, I suppose that's next step although suspect travel insurance will rightly say that I could have cancelled for free up to 2 days before the bookings- annoyingly if the first booking had triggered my credit card company to text me I could have cancelled the other 5 then with no charges- it waited until the last one; Sod's law.

I'll wait to see what transpires. Since posting this 2 hotels have agreed to refund me so I have £650 of it coming back at least.

You didn't cancel the trip on account 1 before rebooking on account 2? And then only cancelled on account 1 when covid happened?