Warning: Be careful when booking a holiday
Fly by night holiday agents give true agencies a bad name.
There can be few things as distressing as booking and paying for your holiday, only to find you have been fleeced.
The most common experiences are either finding that the actual property bears little or no resemblance to the one advertised, or that there are already tenants in place.
In one case, a Durban man and his family lost R2 500 when they saw a weekend away in Margate advertised on the Internet.
Police spokesman, Captain Louise Naidoo of Phoenix SAPS said, “Because of the reasonable price, the man contacted the consultant. The consultant in turn advised him that he should pay a deposit of R2 500 in order to secure the booking, which he did.”
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The man sent proof of payment to the consultant via WhatsApp. Later that month, when the man tried to contact the consultant, the calls went straight to voicemail. According to a complaints group on WhatsApp, the same consultant had apparently scammed many others booking their December holidays. Several cases have reportedly been opened against the man.
The Herald also received information that a woman in the Margate area was involved in scamming not only holidaymakers but also those looking to rent properties.
A woman from Gauteng said she paid a deposit of R5 600 for accommodation over the Christmas period to a woman whose name and ‘company’ is known to the South Coast Herald.
“She made the booking and confirmed that she had received the money and that my holiday was secure. A few weeks later, I saw all the fraud warnings on social media and made contact with the owner of the property. The owner said they had never received any money and that the booking was not secured. We would have driven all the way down only to find we had nowhere to stay,” she said.
“One would think everyone would be wiser by now, but it seems many people are still falling for scams, making their bookings and giving their personal banking details to strangers over the phone,” said Joan van Loggerenberg from Uvongo Holidays.
She said in the past they had had many calls from people left stranded when they realised their accommodation didn’t exist and that they had lost not only a deposit, but in some cases the full amount charged for the stay.
“Many then need to find alternative accommodation, which is almost impossible in December, and then have to pay again. We urge people to watch out for these fly by night agents who steal photos from other websites and advertise these as their own,” said Mrs van Loggerenberg.
Remember, one has to be an estate agent to legitimately handle holiday letting or bookings.
Questions a client should ask an agent when making holiday bookings include:
* Do you belong to the Estate Agency Board?
* If yes, could you please send me your latest Facility Fund Certificate, which must be for the current year as it needs to be renewed annually.
* Are you a registered company? If so, please supply the CK registration number.
* Check if they have a proper website with all available units listed.
* Should a property be advertised by an owner, you could request proof of ownership.
* Please be careful when booking online. Try and get references and take a look at reviews on Tripadvisor or Hello Peter.
If you are in doubt, contact Ugu South Coast Tourism at 039 6827745, approach the property owners directly, or use a credible travel agent.
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