Booking accommodation for a holiday or business trip has never been easier. There are now dozens of websites that enable you to search and book private rental property with just a few clicks of a button.
These rental platforms are great as a marketing tool and for helping customers search what is available, narrow down the choices and make a reservation.
The problem is that anyone can pay for a listing on a rental platform and customers have no way of knowing whether an advertised property is legitimate or not. Fraudsters can have a genuine-looking property listed online within hours and on the most reputable sites.
While some rental platforms do offer a level of protection in the event that rental fraud occurs, there will be various terms and conditions that don’t always work as well as they could for customers and legitimate private owners.
But, even if you can eventually recoup your losses, this is often small comfort for the stress and heartbreak that can be caused by arriving at your dream holiday destination only to find the accommodation doesn’t exist.
The knock-on effects to your holiday or trip can be huge, and losses often extend far beyond the money paid for bogus rental accommodation.
I-PRAC offers a much better solution by helping prevent people from falling victim to fraud in the first place.
How I-PRAC Works
By providing a robust verification service for property owners and rental agencies, I-PRAC creates a tough new standard for the rental accommodation industry – one which fraudsters will avoid as they cannot create a fake I-PRAC membership and profile.
I-PRAC membership is awarded by a panel of rental industry professionals who liaise with government agencies around the world to conduct a comprehensive verification process. This involves several stages of checks to ensure all members are legitimate operators.
When approved, members receive a personalised I-PRAC logo and ID number that can be added to their websites and marketing material. If property owners use their I-PRAC logos as part of their listings on rental platforms, anyone searching for accommodation would instantly be able to distinguish between those properties which have been verified and those which haven’t.
All registered payments made to I-PRAC members are fully protected against rental fraud. The I-PRAC approval process ensures that only legitimate property owners and rental agencies can attain I-PRAC membership.
