Thousands of European Hotels Sue Booking.com Over Two Decades of Price Clauses
Hotels Challenge Booking.com’s Practices
Thousands of European hotels launched a lawsuit against Booking.com, claiming its “best price” clauses restricted competition and suppressed direct bookings. These clauses, active between 2004 and 2024, allegedly forced hotels to keep their lowest rates on Booking.com, inflating commissions significantly.
Hotels argue this practice stopped them offering better prices on their own websites, reducing direct customer relationships and independent revenue streams.
Hotrec Leads the Collective Action
The Association of Hotels, Restaurants and Cafés in Europe (Hotrec) coordinates the collective legal action involving thousands of European hotel properties. The legal claim is filed in the Netherlands, Booking.com’s headquarters, where thousands of affected hotels seek rightful financial compensation.
Hotels had until August 29 to register their participation in the lawsuit, ensuring broad representation across Europe’s hospitality industry landscape. Hotels are demanding compensation covering commissions paid between 2004 and 2024, when “best price” clauses unfairly restricted competitive hotel pricing.
Compensation claims also include interest, meaning financial damages could reach substantial amounts, further highlighting Booking.com’s potential long-term financial liability exposure. This case directly follows the European Court of Justice ruling in 2024, which judged Booking.com’s parity clauses breached EU competition law.
Booking.com Responds to Allegations
Booking.com insists its clauses ensured fair competition and prevented free-riding, where customers booked directly after searching through their platform. The company argues its model supports consumer choice and visibility for hotels, despite hotels’ claims of artificially inflated commission-based operating costs.
Separately, a Dutch consumer rights group prepares action against Booking.com, alleging inflated rates unfairly impacted ordinary travellers across European markets.
Industry-Wide Implications
If successful, this lawsuit may reshape online travel agency practices, granting hotels stronger control over pricing and direct booking strategies. More than 30 national hotel associations support the lawsuit, signaling widespread concern across Europe’s hospitality sector about Booking.com’s previous practices.
Legal experts say this collective action could become a landmark case defining competition law application within Europe’s growing digital travel marketplace.