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| Vacation Rental Complaints |
| 1. |
DON'T BOOK WITH "UNDER THE ROMAN SUN" ROME - ITALY
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My wife and I along with another couple had the recent pleasure to visit Italy, staying in Cinque Terre, Sorrento and finally Rome. Our trip was beyond expectation until we reached Rome. Having made all our own travel arrangements, we had contracted with several agencies among them one in Rome named “Under the Roman Sun”. We had forwarded this agency 450€ in advance to hold the Trevi Penthouse Twin Terrace for four nights with another 1080€ to be paid in cash upon arrival. Through several emails, this was confirmed and the voucher was in our hands (not a bill, only a paper indicating the address and the total amount to be paid at check in, with no mention to taxes). I had spent a great deal of time seeking a property like this because I absolutely required two bedrooms with two separate bathrooms because of illness in our group.
Upon arrival in Rome, we called the mobile number provided and were told to taxi to the address which had been provided. We were met by this young lady who sent my sick wife and me up to the 5th floor in the building’s small elevator. After several trips, the other couple and the luggage arrived. As she opened an apartment door with all of us eager to see the accommodations, she led us into an inferior suite with one twin room, one double and only one bathroom. I immediately stated that this was not what we had contracted for. In Italian, she said it was all that was available since the penthouse (which we could see through the window) was occupied by a large group. After multiple arguments and phone calls, we finally talked to an English-speaking representative named Clemente. He stated that he had emailed us about the change and that this apartment was all he had. After some discussion, he did lower the price by 290€, which made the disaster cost only 260€ per night.
We were stymied. My wife was very ill and needed to lie down immediately. We had to accept what we had because of that situation alone. However, after a day or two, the other couple moved to a nearby hotel at their own expense to get away from the poor water pressure, insufficient lighting, and lukewarm water as well as a need to have access to their own bathroom.
When I returned home, I found an email from Clemente on September 23rd as well as a telephone call in September. Both of these messages ignored the switch of rooms and merely asked for our time of arrival which I had already provided before we left for Europe on September 10th. Here again this agency lied to us.
I do not know if this is an outgoing scam, but, in this case, it comes across as premeditated fraud. I have emailed them to advise them that I consider their actions criminal and at least illegal in their breach of contract. My only recourse now is to warn any and all travellers about this agency and use every resource available to broadcast their deceit. This makes the rental system in Rome very suspect and travellers need to be forewarned. We have the voucher, the email, the audio phone message and four witnesses to this con game.
Date Added: Nov 13, 2008
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