Holiday accommodation scam alert

Scammers are hard at work on online sites, trying to scam unsuspecting holidaymakers by selling fake holiday accommodation.

In the latest scam to hit Ballito, a con artist lifted photos of two properties off Seeff Ballito’s website and advertised the properties on Gumtree as holiday accommodation for rent over the December period.

A client noticed the same Ballito properties listed for sale on the Seeff Ballito website and for rent on Gumtree and alerted Seeff estate agent, Andreas Wassenaar.

“What normally happens is people pay deposits or the full amount up front and only when they arrive at their holiday destination do they realise they have been scammed,” said Wassenaar.

These holidaymakers, often families with young children, besides having lost thousands to a thief, then have to try and find alternative accommodation in a flash.

Wassenaar said the owners of the advertised properties are usually unaware that their properties are being advertised and are just as surprised when strange holidaymakers arrive.

“The owner of one of our listed properties advertised on Gumtree lives in Canada and has no idea what is going on,” said Wassenaar.

Donovan Muirhead, chairman of the National Accommodation Association of South Africa (NAA-SA) cautioned people to confirm with the venue if the accommodation is legitimate before making any payment to a third party, unless booking through a well-known, credible operator.

“Check the venue’s rating and comments on Trip Advisor and make use of the resources available on the internet. Do a comparison to other similar accommodation venues; if the deal seems too good to be true, it usually is,” said Muirhead.

He said small businesses with sole proprietors sometimes used personal bank accounts so whether the account details are for a business or personal account, this was not an indication of fraudulent activity.

Muirhead gave five tips to reduce the likelihood of being scammed this holiday season:

1. Book through a legitimate travel agent such as Flight Centre, Pentravel and SAA Travel Centre. Should you be uncertain, see if the company has any industry affiliation to a professional body such as ASATA.

2. When booking through an online booking agent such as Booking.com, Travelground or Safarinow, there will be reviews on the property. If it’s a new property you can see the reviews of other properties which may indicate that the online booking agent is a legitimate source.

3. If the source is offering an unbelievable discount or reduced rate, especially over peak season, this is usually the first indicator that there is a problem. Do a comparison of the rates with other sources or websites. Legitimate establishments will be listed on more than three sources. You can also see if the property is legitimate if it is associated to an industry body such as the NAA-SA.

4. If you are still in doubt, contact the property directly and find out from them if they advertise through the source or if they have any affiliation to the source before paying any deposits.

5. If you are uncertain about a company, search for it on Google and if there are any problems there will more than likely be something written about it online. Alternatively you can also contact your local tourism office to find out about the company.