Agent fined for failing to book hotel
A TRAVEL agent who has operated multiple online holiday ventures has fronted court for taking a customer’s money without booking their hotel.
Riley Lance Martin, also known as Lance Dudley Martin and Dudley Lance Martin, was fined $500 for his conduct as sole director of Varsity Lakes-based Exchange Travel Pty Ltd, trading as Travelalot.
Under a charge brought by the Queensland Office of Fair Trading, the 56-year-old of Clunes in northern New South Wales pleaded guilty in Southport Magistrates Court to wrongly accepting payment and failing to supply a service under the Australian Consumer Law.
His business, Exchange Travel Pty Ltd, pleaded guilty to the same offence on May 13 and was convicted and fined $1000.
The company’s name was changed to Galactic Social a week later and it is currently the subject of ASIC strike-off action, however the Travelalot website is still advertising deals.
The current Travelalot website was registered with the Exchange Travel Pty Ltd company number.
Another of Martin’s companies, Ataraxus, is also the subject of strike-off action, but a third, Sales Paradigm Pty Ltd, is still registered.
Sales Paradigm has also traded as Exchange Travel, and has also been registered as Australian Rewards Group, My Week Away, Top Hotel Deals, Vacation Plus and Hotels2go.com.au.
Another of Martin’s companies, Exchange Travel Technologies, was struck off in April this year.
The court heard on January 4 last year, Exchange Travel, through Travelalot, accepted payment from a Springfield Lakes consumer for a threenight stay at the Carlton Apartments in Surfers Paradise.
But Martin did not book the accommodation for the specified period or pass the money on to the hotel.
The affected consumer learned of this when they contacted the Carlton Apartments directly and was informed that the accommodation was not booked and that the Carlton Apartments no longer dealt with Martin’s online travel business.
Martin has previously been in the news over his travel companies and also for speaking out against the Universal Medicine cult, which he claimed had ruined his marriage.
In sentencing Martin this week, Magistrate Kerrie O’Callaghan said the community needed protection from these types of traders and had taken into account the need to protect consumers and deter others from committing similar breaches.
Fair Trading acting executive director Craig Turner said online businesses must not accept payment from consumers for services they cannot deliver.
“If a sale agreement has not been fulfilled, consumers have rights under the Australian Consumer Law,” Mr Turner said.
“Consumers should do their research and book their getaways through reputable travel agencies to avoid disappointment.”