The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF), the national organization of the hotel and guesthouse industry in Ireland, announced on Wednesday, May 28, that it is joining with hotels across Europe to support a landmark collective legal action against Booking.com.
The IHF said on Wednesday that hotels are seeking substantial financial compensation for damages resulting from inflated commission rates charged by the platform.
This action follows a judgment by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on September 19, 2024, which found that the platform’s ‘parity clauses’ - contractual terms that prevented hotels from offering lower prices or better availability through other channels - breached EU competition law.
These clauses led to additional commissions, suppressed direct bookings, and distorted online market competition.
The ECJ's judgment in September has a binding effect across all EU member states.
The IHF said that the legal claim is being coordinated by the Stichting Hotel Claims Alliance and will be brought before the Amsterdam District Court in the Netherlands, where Booking.com BV is headquartered.
The collective legal action is being supported by the European hospitality association HOTREC and over 25 national hotel associations across Europe.
In addition to the Irish Hotels Federation, the action is supported by national hotel associations from Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland.
The case is being led and handled by a team of highly experienced and recognised competition lawyers, litigators, and competition economists, who have already successfully achieved the ECJ’s judgment of September 19, 2024.
The IHF says that it is estimated that over 900 Irish hotels and guesthouses are eligible to join this legal action, having been negatively impacted by Booking.com’s use of anti-competitive parity clauses that were in effect from 2004 to 2024.
These clauses placed hotels and their customers at a significant competitive disadvantage by suppressing price competition between Booking.com and other online platforms. This resulted in hotels being charged inflated levels of commissions.
The clauses also restricted hotels from offering better prices or availability on their own websites, limiting direct sales and autonomy.
Under the general principles of European competition law, hotels in Ireland and across Europe are now entitled to claim compensation from Booking.com for the financial losses suffered. Affected hotels may be eligible to recover a significant portion of commissions paid to Booking.com in any period from 2004 to 2024, plus interest.
Paul Gallagher, Chief Executive of the Irish Hotels Federation, said: “This is an unprecedented legal action which the Irish Hotels Federation is supporting on behalf of members, seeking to obtain full compensation for hotels affected by Booking.com’s anti-competitive practices.
"The platform’s parity clauses have been a major issue for Irish hotels going back 20 years, resulting in significant financial harm due to the inflated levels of commissions charged.
"We see this as an important opportunity to send a strong message to online booking platforms that unfair business practices will not go unchallenged."
The IHF said it is in direct communication with affected hotels and guesthouses in Ireland in relation to the next steps for joining the collective legal action against Booking.com.
Comments