Booking accommodation for the 2012 Games

We are sure that you will have a great time in the Royal Borough of Greenwich during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, but it helps to know how the law protects you if things go wrong. Here are some precautions you can take when booking accommodation, and information about what you can do if services you have paid for turn out to be different to what you were led to expect.

Paying for accommodation

First, consider paying for your booking or deposit using a credit card rather than a debit card. 

If you use a credit card to buy goods or services costing more than £100, you have added protection under consumer credit laws. If things do go wrong you may be able to make a claim against your credit card company.

Hotel, guest house, bed and breakfast, apartment and house rentals

There is a wide range of accommodation being provided for the 2012 Games and many rentals will be run by new businesses, so it is important that you check that the accommodation actually exists.

Ask for the exact address and full contact information for the business making the offer.

Before making a booking

Take a few moments to check that claims made on a website or in a brochure are accurate.

Claims may be made, for example, about the distance from a venue, the size of beds available, parking costs and may include photographs. You can also expect to be told about any building work and how it might affect your stay.

If you have a special reason for booking, such as the need for a shower rather than a bath or any early check in, get this agreed in writing before making your booking.

If you think the accommodation may be misdescribed (that is, it has misleading descriptions) or does not exist, please contact Trading Standards. We would also like to know if any suppliers use the Olympic logos.

How am I protected?

If you have received a poor service from a holiday rental company or other business then you may have rights under the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982.

This says that all services should be carried out with reasonable care and skill.

It is against the law to mislead consumers either by misdescribing accommodation or leaving out important information, for example, no access after 11pm.

What if there is a problem?

If you discover a problem when you are in the accommodation then contact the business straight away. Try to resolve the issue amicably there and then, but if this is not possible then you should consider putting your case in writing.

You should keep to the facts and be sure to mention:

• date of your stay
• accommodation details
• details of the problems
• how you tried to resolve them
• what you are reasonably expecting from the business
• your contact information.

Include evidence (take a few photographs) and record details of times and dates you contacted the business. Send the letter by recorded or registered mail and propose a reasonable time for the issues to be resolved.

You can get advice about your consumer rights from Consumer Direct using the link on the right.