AudiologyNOW! Unauthorized Hotel and Housing Providers

The Academy has recently been alerted that an unauthorized housing company has been contacting our attendees and exhibitors and informing them that they can offer cheaper rates at hotels in our blocks. This practice is called "Room Pirating". There are many reported situations of false and deceptive activities by some of these third-party room block marketers. In some cases this is an actual scam and all they are looking for is for you to send them a check or provide credit card information.

Here are other things that some of these groups do that may harm you:

• Many of these agencies do not have contracts for a block of rooms with the hotels. They will contact a housing wholesaler to see if anything is available that can be resold to you.
• Even legitimate wholesalers cannot knowingly book convention attendees in the convention room block. Only Audiology’s housing agent can book our block of rooms. If the hotel determines a convention attendee has been solicited or contacted by a legitimate wholesaler, those rooms may be canceled or increased in rate to match or exceed the group rate. A rate quote from a room broker is not a guaranteed rate.
• Rooms must sometimes be fully prepaid up front. (A one-night deposit isn’t enough; they want it all and for every room you book, when you book.)
• Reservation confirmations and numbers are generally not available until three to seven days before the first day of arrival. Even then, there is no guarantee a room will be available when you arrive.
• Generally, they cannot get a large block of rooms; only one or two at a time.
• It’s difficult to do name changes on rooms with unofficial wholesalers/room brokers.
• The Academy contracts with the hotels and includes clauses to protect our attendees should the hotel oversell the rooms or should any issues arise with your reservation. Because you reserved these rooms outside of the Academy block there will be nothing we can do to assist you.

If you receive a call  or email from any company that is not our official housing provider – Experient, Inc. – please contact us immediately. Please also note that our housing company would never call or contact you unless you had contacted them first. Some of these companies may claim to be a "partner" of the academy or even outright lie and claim to be the Academy’s housing company. Trust your instincts and the old adage, "If you ever feel that something doesn’t feel right or is too good to be true then it most likely is". Please, if you are ever unsure whether or not something is legitimate, contact us first before providing your company info, credit card or banking information.