What happened
The reader, “AB” from north London, booked three nights at SIS Kata Resort in Thailand through Priceline in August 2025 at a non-refundable rate. Penny was the only contact option available.
Penny said the booking had been listed as non-refundable but that the reader was eligible for a full refund. The reader accepted and received a cancellation email. When no money arrived, Penny said the hotel was handling it.
The hotel said it had not been told of the cancellation and that a refund was against its policy. Agoda, which had confirmed the booking, and Priceline referred the reader to each other for about a month.
What happened next
After The Telegraph’s Ruth Emery pressed Priceline, it acknowledged the “misinformation” and paid £363.11 by bank transfer, less than the original after currency charges, nearly six months after the cancellation.
What would have stopped it
- Read refund eligibility from the rate’s cancellation rules through a tool, and block the word “eligible” unless the tool returned it.
- Do not let the assistant cancel a non-refundable booking without showing the penalty and getting explicit confirmation.
- When the bot’s statement conflicts with the supplier’s policy, give the case to one owner who decides, instead of passing it between companies.
Attack families
Test scenarios
Sources
Early access
Test your agent against cases like this.
We will email you when Countermove opens testing for agents like yours.