Over 15,000 hotels raise a lawsuit against Booking.com - register now!

Over 15,000 hotels raise a lawsuit against Booking.com - register now!

Amsterdam, Niederlande - The European hotel industry faces a historical legal dispute: more than 15,000 hotels have teamed up and plan a class action lawsuit against the online travel portal Booking.com. This is done in the course of a judgment of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) from autumn 2024, which classified the so -called best price clauses as potentially competitive contrary to competition. Under these clauses, hotels had to keep their prices on the platform at least at the level of the cheapest prices, which many perceive as unfair and see as disproportionate price binding.

The initiative for the lawsuit is coordinated by the "Stichting Hotel Claims Alliance", supported by the European Hotelverband Hotrec and more than 30 national representations, including the German Hotel Association IHA. This powerful alliance plans to submit the application to the district court in Amsterdam by the end of the year. Hoteliers hope for a reimbursement of up to 30 percent of the commissions paid, including interest rates that have been accumulated for the past decade from 2004 to 2024.

deadlines and registrations

The deadline for registration for the class action on the "MyBookingClaim" platform ends this day, August 29, 2025. Around 2,000 German hotels have already registered, while around 3,000 hotels have participated in Italy. Numerous participants have also joined other countries such as the Netherlands, Greece and Austria. In addition, around 2,000 hotels initiated parallel procedures in Amsterdam and Berlin in 2020 to act against Booking.com's practices.

A central concern of the plaintiffs is the question of the economic damage caused by the forced price bonds. These clauses not only prevented cheaper prices on the hotels' own websites, but also broke the basis for many hoteliers. The ECJ judgment confirmed that platforms such as Booking.com can continue to prosper without these best price-binding clauses. In 2023, the market share of Booking Holdings in Europe was over 71 percent and 72.3 percent in Germany. This is a clear sign of the dominance with which such platforms work - a fact that has had a negative impact on the direct bookings in Germany that have dropped by over 8% between 2013 and 2023.

booking.coms position

On the other hand, Booking.com vehemently rejected the allegations. The company argues that the judgment of the ECJ does not form a basis for claims for damages. Despite this legal discussion, Booking.com reported an increase in sales from 16 percent to $ 6.8 billion in the second quarter of 2025. For the third quarter of 2025, even growth expectations of 7 to 9 percent are forecast, supported by robust demand from Asia, especially by wealthy Chinese travelers.

This exciting argument shows that not only bookings in the world of travel are decisive, but also the legal framework and competitive regulations. The outcome of the class action could have far -reaching consequences for the entire industry and fundamentally change the contracts between platforms and hotels.

The developments in the collective action and the reactions of Booking.com are still being followed closely, while the hoteliers hope for a fair solution. It remains to be seen whether this legal step can actually make changes or whether the platforms will continue to indicate the sound in the industry.