Hajj: how Mecca pilgrims pay for trips they never make

Suleiman al-Shaer, a young Palestinian with an Egyptian passport, sits in an office of the National Committee for Hajj and Umrah in Saudi Arabia, in a mixed state of heartbreak and shock.

A few hours ago, he discovered that he had been the victim of what he calls a scam by what he believes to be a “fake” Hajj company that sent him fake pilgrimage permits.

Less than a week earlier, Suleiman had arrived in Mecca from Egypt on a Saudi visitor visa.

As soon as he arrived, he contacted a company which advertised Hajj packages on social networks at prices he considered “attractive”. He hoped to obtain a permit allowing him to perform the pilgrimage.

He says he fell for a “misleading” advert posted by a company claiming to be based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

“I paid 6,000 dirhams (1,600 dollars, approximately 972,000 CFA francs) to this company to obtain authorization to perform the Hajj.

“They sent me the permit and a barcode for the Hajj. But I later discovered that I had been cheated because all the papers were fake.”

This revelation means that Suleiman is unable to perform Hajj this year and must accept that he has been let down by society.

He claims he was unable to get the funds refunded because company representatives stopped answering his calls.

“I am shocked and heartbroken. I lost both my money and my Hajj,” he said.

Saad al-Qurashi is an advisor to the National Committee for Hajj and Umrah, which oversees tourism businesses in Saudi Arabia and verifies the validity of permits issued for the pilgrimage.

He told the BBC that many people like Suleiman only realize they have been defrauded when they arrive at the committee’s headquarters.

They receive a devastating shock when they attempt to complete Hajj procedures and receive the bracelets that pilgrims typically wear to indicate that they are legally there.

“When Hajj permit holders come to us with Hajj permits and barcodes, we find out that they have received fake papers and ID cards from fake companies. In this case, the person is banned from Hajj, having lost a large part of the money he transferred to these companies.”

Al-Qurashi, who sits on the Saudi Chambers Council committee, points out that many gangs have been particularly active in Egypt, Syria and Iraq during the Hajj season.

He claims to have single-handedly spotted at least three “scams” ​​in a week.

Al-Qurashi advises to be wary of companies that offer “last minute packages”, and which often include cheap deals that are heavily promoted on social media.

Suleiman al-Shaer, who spoke to the BBC by telephone while sitting in the office of the National Committee for Hajj and Umrah, says he made a mistake in transferring funds to a company he hadn’t taken the time to check.

He advises against anyone transferring money to individuals or representatives of foreign companies, who may use unofficial means to issue Hajj permits.

Suleiman is not the only one to have lost tourist tickets for the Hajj which were of no use.

Farouk Abdel Wahab, a UK-based doctor, told the BBC he never imagined he and his family would be left penniless after booking with a UK-based tour operator .

Farouk, who is of Pakistani origin, tells the BBC he faced a long battle with a company that promised him something that wasn’t delivered.

He eventually got back the 7,000 pounds sterling ($9,000) that he and members of his family had transferred as a deposit for a Hajj package, but only after leading his own campaign for get a refund.

Three years later, he traveled to Mecca outside of the Hajj period, booking with more conventional travel agencies.

Farouk’s experience dates back to 2020.

It took two years for official procedures for booking Hajj packages for Muslims in Europe, the United States and Australia to be limited to the Nusuk platform, set up by the Saudi authorities.

Through Nusuk, pilgrims can choose from an assortment of Hajj packages, submit the required documents, and then confirm payment with official entities and trusted tourism companies.

Pilgrims from other Muslim countries can perform Hajj after obtaining a visa from the official bodies responsible for Hajj matters in their country.

Saudi Arabia allocates a quota for visitors from many countries. This quota is 1,000 people for every million Muslims in the country.

Farouk says: “Shortly before the Covid pandemic, six members of my family and I wanted to do the Hajj.

“So we approached a so-called reputed company and paid a large amount of money to get the Hajj package.

“But that year, Hajj was canceled due to the pandemic.

“So I asked for a refund, but received no response for a whole year. So I had to take them to court.”

The court ordered the company to reimburse him.

Farouq initiated proceedings to get his money back, but realized the business had closed when he checked its registration on a government website.

He says: “While I was writing down the company details for the procedure [d’exécution du jugement]like its registration number and advertised address, I discovered that the company had been dissolved and no longer existed.”

He claims that while he was trying to get a refund, company representatives used “religious language.”

They notably used phrases such as “It’s a matter of trust, brother” and affirmed that they were committed “to paying back”.

Farouk says he hasn’t found any other way to get his money back other than trying to shame the owners of the old company by posting his story on social media.

A new company contacted him and said they would reimburse him in installments.

“It was only when my video went viral that the company started contacting me and refunded the money through another company,” he explains.

The BBC attempted to contact the company which organized the refunds in installments.

She did not respond to inquiries sent to her email address, phone numbers and social media messages.

The Ezus company, specializing in travel logistics, has a list of tourist associations in many countries.

The UK’s ABTA recommends that all agreements between travelers and businesses should be documented and signed in contracts displaying terms and conditions, rather than relying on phone calls or verbal agreements.

One of the lessons Farouk learned is that you shouldn’t rely on positive online reviews.

“In my experience, many scam companies pay large sums of money to people to write fake good reviews and post them online. And many people fall victim to scams after purchasing packages pilgrimage due to misleading advertising,” he explains.

According to Saudi government statistics, the number of pilgrims exceeded 1.8 million last year, with 90% of them coming from abroad.

The council estimates that only 3% of the total number of people who have been defrauded make a formal complaint, and the average age of the most vulnerable pilgrims is 42 years old.

A council spokesperson told the BBC that the introduction of the Nusuk platform had significantly reduced Hajj fraud.

The platform streamlines the booking process for pilgrims from 126 countries and verifies all identification documents and financial transfers made to fulfill the booking conditions of Hajj packages.