Double internet booking dilemma

Aug 9 2009 by Mr Justice, Sunday Sun

NEIL DAVISON is @ loggerheads with an online holiday company after paying for a trip twice.

He had booked a holiday in Lanzarote with On The Beach using his home computer.

But he accidentally missed the @ symbol in the space for his email address.

And, when his computer went offline, he assumed the booking had failed.

So he went ahead and booked the holiday again with a different company.

No surprise what happened next . . . On the Beach took the money from his credit card account. Neil, 47, of Blyth, Northumberland, said: “As I was booking the holiday, my computer went offline with no notification the holiday had been booked. I thought nothing had gone through so I rebooked the holiday with someone else. Later, I found out the amount of £891.94 had been debited from my card by On The Beach.

“When I got in touch with them they said the booking had gone through after all. They said I had forgotten to put the @ sign into my email address.

“As my knowledge goes with emails, this should have been returned as an unsent message. Not at any time did they try to contact myself by phone or send any confirmation by post.”

I asked On The Beach for an explanation and was less than impressed by their response.Spokesman Jamie Wortley told me: “I am writing with regards to your email regarding a booking made by Mr Timothy Neil.” Timothy Neil? Who’s Timothy Neil? A quick check with Neil revealed his first name is Timothy but he goes by Neil.