Booking.com Charged Before Check-In: $204 Refund for Missing Reservation

I made a reservation through Booking.com for Hilton Garden Inn Hanover Arundel Mills, Maryland, with check‑in on August 3 for one night, for a total amount of $204.06. On your site it was clearly stated that the money would not be deducted from my account until the check‑in time, but the amount was taken from my account before check‑in and before any service was actually received. When I arrived at the Hilton to check in, the hotel informed me that they had not received my reservation from your third‑party system at all. Even at the time of writing this, the reservation has still not been properly sent to the hotel. I had reserved this room through your portal in good faith, yet no service was provided at check‑in, which caused a serious inconvenience. I then spent approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes on the phone with one of your representatives and was told that the confirmation would be sent over to the hotel. This never happened. After waiting a total of about 2 hours, I was forced to pay an additional $287 at the hotel, plus a $100 holding fee, just to secure a room. I am requesting a full refund of $204.06 for the original booking, as the service I paid for was not delivered, your payment policy as advertised was not honored, and I had to incur extra costs and stress because of this. My husband, who is diabetic, endured significant stress and discomfort after driving for miles and then facing this situation without any proper assistance from either Booking.com or the hotel. The experience felt deeply unprofessional, inconsiderate, and left us with a sense of discriminatory and unethical treatment. I ask that my refund of $204.06 be processed as soon as possible and that you review this case to ensure other customers do not go through a similar situation.