More than 10,000 hotels across Europe have now joined a collective legal action against Booking.com over what they say were unfair price parity clauses.
The claim, coordinated by Dutch non-profit Stichting Hotel Claims Alliance (SHCA), alleges hotels suffered losses as a result of Booking.com’s use of price parity clauses between 2004 and 2024.
SHCA launched proceedings before the Amsterdam District Court in January on behalf of 3,087 hotels. Almost 7,700 more hotels have since joined the legal action, bringing the total number to 10,783. SHCA says the collective claim could be worth several billion euros.
The hotels are seeking compensation over what they claim were anti-competitive practices that restricted their ability to set room rates and limited competition.
SHCA said it plans a third and final expansion of the case this autumn and expects the number of participating hotels to reach around 18,000. Hotels have until 11 September to join the action.
The class action is backed by European hospitality industry association HOTREC and more than 30 national hospitality representatives.
HOTREC President Alexandros Vassilikos said: “Hospitality businesses across Europe have recognised the detrimental effects of Booking.com’s anti-competitive practices and are now seeking redress.
“The scale of this collective action reflects the determination of European hoteliers to defend fair competition and seek compensation for the harm they have suffered.”
SHCA claims Booking.com’s parity clauses helped strengthen the online giant’s dominant market position by preventing hotels from offering lower prices through other sales channels.
The case is being heard in Amsterdam because Booking.com’s terms and conditions specify that disputes with hotels should be handled by Dutch courts. SHCA said the Amsterdam District Court is already familiar with related proceedings dating back to 2020.
Booking.com has previously rejected allegations that its use of parity clauses harmed hotels, saying the claims are ‘incorrect and unjustified’ and that it will vigorously defend the proceedings.
In a statement published on its website earlier this year, Booking.com said the use of parity clauses has been a standard practice in the accommodations sector and other industries for many years.
“In fact, they were initially a concept introduced by accommodation providers to ensure that travel agents did not undercut their pricing,” it said.
It added: “While we no longer use parity clauses with our partners in the European Economic Area (EEA), at the time they ensured that consumers visiting our platform could be sure that they were seeing a property’s best price. It saved them having to spend significant time and effort checking multiple websites to make sure they received value for money. That experience was not only better for travellers, but also simpler for accommodations.”
Booking.com operates an affiliate partner programme with travel agents, including those in the UK.
