Who: The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) and We Love Holidays Ltd (LoveHolidays)
Where: the United Kingdom
When: 23 July 2025
Law stated as at: 15 August 2025
What happened:
LoveHolidays advertised two holiday listings on their website for flights and hotels: to New York with text stating “£1,090pp [crossed out] £749pp” and to Tenerife with text stating “£1,119pp [crossed out] £699pp”.
Two complainants challenged whether the ads were misleading as, in both instances, they found that when attempting to book the holiday packages, the price increased from the stated price in the ad. In addition, once the holidays were booked, the advertised price continued to be displayed on the website.
LoveHolidays conceded that on a small number of occasions, out-of-date search results would appear. It stated that flight data on its website was refreshed continuously throughout the day, while accommodation data was updated three times daily. It therefore claimed that its systems were reasonably effective in ensuring that the prices displayed on its website were as accurate as possible, considering the dynamic nature of the travel industry and its reliance on third-party suppliers.
LoveHolidays acknowledged that the prices seen by the complainants were out of date. It explained that this was because its pricing was dynamic and subject to third-party suppliers, but admitted that the delay in its system in updating accommodation information, may have caused the incorrect price to be displayed. It also said that it had plans to prevent similar problems reoccurring, including increasing the speed and accuracy of price updates.
The ASA upheld the complaints. It considered that consumers would interpret the price claims on the website to mean that the prices were available at the time they viewed the ad. This impression was reinforced by the crossed-out reference price, suggesting that the advertised price was a static offer and represented a cost saving.
The ASA recognised that travel marketers often work with third-party suppliers and face dynamic prices. However, the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) guidance on “Travel marketing: Working with third parties” states that marketers should take reasonable steps to reduce the likelihood of consumers being misled. For instance, marketers should ensure that prices subject to change are described as “from” and clearly indicate the date of the last price update. As accommodation price data on its website was not being updated in real time, LoveHolidays should have provided these explanations. The argument that the mispricing was due to a website delay also failed.
Since the holidays could not be booked at the prices advertised, and those lower prices continued to be advertised after the price had increased, the ASA concluded that the ads were misleading.
Why this matters:
This ruling highlights the importance of including disclaimers in advertising if the information within the ad might be subject to change, due to, for example, dynamic pricing. The ruling shows that the ASA will not be lenient to undertakings operating in industries where dynamic pricing and reliance on third parties means that the information displayed in ads might change frequently. Businesses in the hospitality and travel sectors must ensure that their marketing accommodates foreseeable changes, such as changes to prices, through the use of clear explanations. In particular, businesses should review the CAP guidance “Travel marketing: Working with third parties” to ensure they are following best practices.
