Do You Make Travel Arrangements Online?

Do you use travel websites like Orbitz, Priceline, Expedia, and Travelocity? If so, be warned that they’ve been accused of colluding with some of the country’s largest hotel companies in a price-fixing scheme. The class-action lawsuit filed on Monday alleges that these sites have all agreed to sell rooms at the same price, so they don’t undercut each other and lose profit.

"The fact is that a consumer is led to believe that if he or she looks through a whole bunch of websites, you're gonna find the best deal," Mark Orwoll of Travel + Leisure magazine told NBC News. "The fact is, that's a shame because there is really no best deal. It's all the same deal."

Hopefully, this lawsuit will put an end to the price-fixing scheme—though the companies in question deny any anti-competitive behavior. In the meantime, before you book online, call the hotel itself and see how their prices compare to those advertised on the web. Many times they’ll be significantly lower.