Illegal card surcharges
This company operates a number of short stay rentals in Sydney. Their properties are listed through platforms like Booking.com / Stayz and Airbnb.
On recently making a booking with them, I was surprised to receive an additional charge - separately to the main charge. It was for a card surcharge and amounted to 4.5% of the booking amount.
Under Australian Consumer Law, card surcharges are illegal if there is no means of payment that avoid it. In this case, the only payment options were card. The charge should have been included in the total amount presented at checkout - not bolted on as a separate fee afterwards.
Trying to resolve this situation has been beyond frustrating. It's clear this is a real estate agency operating these places and not hospitality professionals.
I would recommend staying away from booking through this company at any cost.