Morairaway.com rips off the consumer

Whenever you book a villa vacation rental make sure payment is made through a reputable holiday website and not a scam front that disappears into the night with your hard earned money. Thousands of European consumers have been scammed by this bogus company who purported to rent legitimate villa holiday property. Guests arrived in resort for their hard earned vacation only to find not only did the company not exist, neither did the villas.

Consumers should follow a simple check list to ensure they don't fall foul of this sort of scandal.

1. Always pay with a credit card. Your money is then safe under S75 of the Consumer credit act.
2. Always check out the legitimacy of a website by doing a 'whois' search on google. If you can't find and verify the details of those behind the site walk away.
3. Check with local tourist organisations that the address of the property exists.
4. Always book through an agent and do not pay money direct to private owners.
5. Always book with a company registered in your country not that of the villa
6. Always check the cashflow cycle with the agent. When do they pay the villa owner and how many guests have stayed previously.
7. Do not trust websites that earn revenue from advertising villas. Always check the villa out. They do not earn from you and are interested in the revenue from the advertiser only. Expect them to not check the legitimacy of the advert properly.
8. Always book with a website that facilitates credit card payments so that they hold the revenue in an escrow account and do not pass it to the owner until they know the villa is genuine.
9. Ask questions of the website to establish business practice.
10. Finally, always pay with a credit card. Yes it's in twice because it's important!

There are many examples of websites that take fee's to advertise villa properties. Clearly, their business aim is to recruit as many properties as they can to ensure revenue. Because they do not earn money from paying guests at the villas the only interest they have in you is getting you to visit their site. They then use your visit (or collectively all visits to their site) as justification they can earn the villa owner money. You can see that they carry thousands of villa properties. Other than trying to avoid connection to a scandal such as this you can see why they cannot cope with checking owners out thoroughly. It affects their bottom line. Their are plenty of alternatives for owners who have to go through lots of checks before listing, so the websites make it easy to list.

If you pay for your villa vacation through a website that earns it's revenue through a booking commission, i.e. through the guest who is going to stay at the villa the following safety principles are applied.

1. The website has no interest in the volume of villas on the site because that is not how they earn their income
2. The website is interested in you as a customer because if you don't book they don't earn.
3. They want you to return year after year.
4. They protect you from fraud by hanging on to your holiday payments to the point of your return date when an owner is new to the site. This protects you from these scams.
5. The cashflow cycle is controlled by the website not the owner building in protection.
6. They frequently automate their booking process providing you with security and peace of mind at the point of booking.
7. All money paid is held in escrow accounts protecting your money
8. The website protects the owner also, they ensure money is held and payments are made on time every time.
9. They work with owners to improve standards at the villa and with their business operation to ensure return custom.
10. Lastly, they allow credit card transactions. And yes it's in for a third time because it is important and provides you with a level of security.

It is relatively easy to search for a company that facilitates credit card payments and live time internet bookings. VIPvillas.com rent luxury villas around the world and is one such company. They offer to owners a range of facilities to improve the transaction process and also marketing ability of the owner. Live bookings via credit card, availability calendars, email marketing function and consolidated adverts are among it's offering to owners.

For holiday-makers booking with a company that provides this to owners allows you to be reassured your money is safe and protected. Don't get caught by the 'scammers' on the listing sites. Search for those that allow live bookings and pay with a credit card!