Aman Chawla cancelled his hotel room in Wrocław, Poland, which he had booked through Booking.com. But even though he’s within the cancellation window, he’s not getting a refund. Did he lose his $742?
Q: I booked a hotel in Wroclaw, Poland, through Booking.com. I cancelled my reservation well within the free cancellation period. However, I then discovered a charge on my card for the full amount of $742.
I reached out to Booking.com, and a representative told me I would be refunded within 10 days. That didn’t happen. I called back, and this time, a representative told me to wait one month, as the property had made the charge, and it was the hotel’s responsibility to process the refund.
I then escalated this to the property. I sent my bank account details. A hotel representative informed me it could not refund to an Indian account and that Booking.com would have to process it.
After making close to 30 calls to the hotel, I escalated my case to Booking.com. However, it reiterated its policy: it cannot issue refunds, as that is the responsibility of the hotel.
Each time I talk to customer support, they spin a different story. They either say my refund is being processed or that the merchant name is a mismatch. I also discovered that the property has negative reviews for doing similar transactions with other people, yet Booking.com took no action.
In one of my conversations, a customer representative also mentioned they were investigating the property, but that their hands were tied. Can you help me recover my money? — Aman Chawla, New Delhi
A: You made your reservation through Booking.com, so the company should help you get a refund, no matter who charged your card.
This is a disturbingly common problem when you’re dealing with an online travel agency. Since there are more than one party involved — an online agency, an airline or hotel, and often a third entity that buys rooms or flights in bulk — there are numerous opportunities for finger-pointing. In my experience, companies rarely miss a chance to do that, which is endlessly frustrating for customers like you.
When you cancel a hotel room within the cancellation window, you can expect a prompt refund. But your hotel had done this to other guests who cancelled, and the property had negative reviews to prove it. So please, next time, read the hotel reviews and consider booking a reputable property with one of the major hotel chains.
I’m a little dubious of the claim that a Polish hotel couldn’t refund your Indian account. It had no problem charging you the first time, so what’s the problem with refunding you quickly?
There was a breakdown in communication between Booking.com and the hotel. I’m not sure if that was intentional on the part of the hotel or just a problem of incompetence.
It doesn’t matter. Booking.com should have stood by your purchase and refunded you as promised.
You might have been able to get this fixed quickly by appealing to one of the customer service managers at Booking.com. I publish the names, numbers and emails of the top Booking.com managers on my consumer advocacy website, Elliott.org.
I contacted Booking.com on your behalf. A representative informed me that the company is dedicated to providing “seamless travel experiences” for its customers. “In this case, our customer service team has identified that there was a delay in processing the customer’s refund and has since escalated the full refund payout to the customer’s Booking.com wallet,” the representative said. You received a full refund.
By Christopher Elliott
BIO:
Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organisation that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at [email protected] or get help by contacting him on his site.
© 2025 Christopher Elliott.
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