Hotel and room scams
Room poachers: the hotel booking scam that targets every exhibitor
Calls and emails offering ‘official’ conference hotel rooms at a special rate are one of the oldest event scams. How room poachers work, the red flags, and how to book safely.
The phone rings a few weeks before the show. The caller is friendly, knowledgeable and in a bit of a hurry. They’re from the event’s housing team, they say, and the hotel block near the venue is nearly sold out. They can still get you rooms at the special conference rate, but only if you book today.
It sounds helpful. It sounds official. And for thousands of exhibitors and attendees every year, it turns out to be neither. This is room poaching, and it’s one of the oldest scams in the events business.
What room poachers do
Room poachers are companies, or individuals, who contact exhibitors and attendees claiming to be the event’s official housing provider, or to be working with it. They’re not. They might book you a room somewhere else entirely, sometimes at a higher price than the official block. They might add hidden fees or a hefty cancellation charge. Or they might take your money and book nothing at all.
The approaches usually start as soon as the exhibitor list is published on the show website, because that’s where the poachers get your name, company and contact details. They come in waves, timed around the real housing deadlines.
How big is the problem?
It’s large enough that the hotel and events industries have campaigned on it for years. The International Association of Exhibitions and Events has estimated that poaching scams affect more than 15 million bookings a year and cost over $1.3 billion annually (TSNN). That’s an industry estimate rather than an audited figure, but it gives a sense of the scale.
Organisers have started fighting back in court. In 2018, a US federal court awarded the organisers of the International Production and Processing Expo almost $750,000 in damages and legal fees against a travel agency, Tarzango, which had emailed exhibitors and attendees as though it were connected to the show (TSNN). The show’s real housing partner was a different company altogether.
It isn’t only an American problem. In 2015, the UK’s Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association warned exhibitors that a housing company was using its name and its show to sell rooms (ADBA). Many UK shows now carry exhibitor warnings that cover unofficial housing offers.
What it feels like when it goes wrong
Keith Pollard, who organised the IMTJ Medical Travel Summit in Madrid, described on LinkedIn how his speakers started emailing him weeks before the event. They’d been phoned by a company offering rooms at a “special discounted conference rate”, supposedly arranged with the organiser and the hotel. Those who tried to cancel were told they’d be charged a 25% fee. As he put it: “None of this of course is true” (LinkedIn).
On review sites, exhibitors have described turning up at the hotel to find no reservation in their name, refunds that were promised but never paid, and cancellation calls that kept getting cut off. One first-time exhibitor at a large scientific conference in San Francisco described signing a form and handing over card details to someone who called themselves the “official” housing agent, only to find the conference had no record of the booking and no connection to the company.
The American Alliance of Museums has warned that past attendees “lost their significant deposits”, were moved with little notice, or never got the rooms they’d booked (AAM). Imagine landing in a strange city after a long day of travel, with a stand to build in the morning, and being told there’s no room for you. That’s the reality for some people every season.
The red flags
- They contacted you. Official housing bureaux rarely cold-call exhibitors to sell rooms.
- They say they’re “official”, “authorised” or “working with” the show, but you can’t find them named on the event website.
- There’s urgency: the block is nearly sold out, or “there’s a problem with your reservation”.
- The rate is lower than the official block, or described as a special discount.
- They want full payment up front, or your card details over the phone. Genuine housing providers usually take a one-night deposit.
- There’s a big cancellation fee, often around a quarter of the booking.
- The booking link or confirmation looks slightly off, with a web address that isn’t the hotel’s or the official provider’s.
How to book safely
- Only book through the link on the official event website. If the show has a housing partner, it will be named there, usually in the exhibitor manual too.
- If someone calls, don’t give card details. Ask for the offer in writing, then check it against the event website or with the organiser directly.
- Book directly with the hotel if you’re not using the official block, using the hotel’s own website or phone number.
- Pay by credit card, which gives you more protection if things go wrong.
- Forward any approach to the organiser. They want to know, and they can warn everyone else.
There’s one more reason to book within the official block: if you book elsewhere and something goes wrong, the organiser has no relationship with that hotel and very little they can do to help you.
If you think you’ve been caught
- Contact your card provider straight away and explain what happened. You may be able to dispute the charge, and paying by credit card may give you extra protection.
- Call the hotel directly to check whether a booking actually exists in your name.
- Tell the organiser, who may be able to help you find a room in the official block and will warn other exhibitors.
- Report it to Report Fraud, the police service that replaced Action Fraud, at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, contact Police Scotland on 101.
If you organise events
Room poachers find your exhibitors through the lists you publish, and they win because people can’t easily tell who’s genuine. You can change that. Name your official housing partner prominently on your website, in your exhibitor manual and in every booking email. Tell exhibitors early, and in plain words, that you will never cold-call them to sell rooms. Make it quick and easy for anyone to check a phone number, email or booking link against your official ones. And if you share rooming lists with hotels, consider planting a made-up contact in each copy, so that if a list leaks, you know exactly where it came from.
Your exhibitors are trusting your name when they book. A little clarity from you is often all it takes to stop them trusting the wrong caller.
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. If you have lost money, contact your bank straight away and report it to Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040 (in Scotland, Police Scotland on 101).
