Can You Dispute A Hotel Charge – Rachael McHenry is sure her hotel made a billing error. Comfort Suites Paradise Island provided a $150 charge for food and drinks, but charged her credit card $111 for dinner anyway.
“Our waiter assured us that the hotel would reimburse us,” he said. “Now the hotel refuses to respond.”
Can You Dispute A Hotel Charge
It is correct. The McHenry billing error is one of the many types I see regularly. Hotels wrongly charge guests for extra nights, damage to the room, and those who are reported to have taken souvenirs such as linens and pillows.
Can Cardholders File A Chargeback On Credit Card Deposits?
It’s crazy because the hotel has the guest’s credit card and can easily do whatever they want. Often, the credit card company starts directly with the hotel, even when there is little documentation.
But McHenry is out of luck, and neither are you. I’ll tell you how to fight hotel billing mistakes – and win.
Before we get into it, though, a disclaimer: Please use these strategies to fight real crime, not pay a legal bill. Running a hotel is tough. The last thing hotel operators need is a travel thief trying to evade legal fees.
McHenry said Choice Hotels offered him $150 in food and drink through an ad on their website. That played a key role in her decision to stay at the Comfort Suites Paradise Island when she visited the Bahamas this summer.
Expert Advice For Booking The Best Hotel And Finding The Lowest Rate
Travelex Insurance Services is an American travel insurance provider with over 55 years of industry experience helping people dream, discover and travel with confidence. We offer comprehensive travel insurance plans with optional upgrades that allow travelers to customize plans to suit their needs. Compare plans, get quotes and buy online at Travelexinsurance.com.
Here are the offers that attracted McHenry to the Comfort Suites Paradise Island. The double star limits the offer of one of the bars and restaurants on the premises of the hotel.
He checked the credit for $150 when he checked into the hotel. Then went to Crusoe’s Restaurant for a nice seafood dinner. His net worth: $111.
Before heading back to her room, McHenry checked again to make sure she could add $150 worth of food and drinks to her bill. The waitress said she could.
How To Avoid Resort Fees & Not Pay Them
At checkout, McHenry asked again for a credit card. Again, the agent verified that $111 was from the food and beverage credit.
His final bill was an extra $111 – a clear hotel billing error. The money showed up as “pending” after the check, and it went into his account five days later.
“I emailed the hotel at least three times and they refused to respond,” she said. “Choice Hotels finally responded to one of my emails saying they can’t help me because the hotel is a business.”
Choice Hotels’ answer is simple – and crazy. The company says customer service is not our problem, even though the hotel has our name.
The Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto, Toronto
I have seen everything. But the worst is when the hotel refuses to contact you, which was McHenry’s problem. No matter how hard she tried, Comfort Suites Paradise Island did not respond to her – even after representatives repeatedly assured her that her food and drinks were fine.
Hotels charge their guests incorrect amounts on a regular basis. Now more than ever, the attitude is: “When in doubt, add to the project.” This leads to all kinds of misunderstandings. Here are the most common types of hotel billing errors we see at Advocacy:
Your confirmation says you purchased the room for $120 per night. But your folio says it’s $140. Who is right? The hotel will insist that it is correct – so you must have photos for verification.
The hotel offers guests an extra night even if the person is late. Then they add a late fee to their credit card. The bad part of this mistake is that most guests don’t notice.
Ramada Hong Kong Grand View
From mini bars to toiletries, hotel rooms have become minimal. Often, the hotel waits until you check out to assess the bill. The calculation is incorrect. Consider that in some minibars, all you have to do is move a drink to charge.
This may be the most common hotel billing mistake. Hotels often blame their guests for smoking, even if they don’t smoke. The fight against hotel billing errors is a tough one. How do you prove that you don’t smoke in the room?
About half of billing errors occur during your stay. This means you can find it easily if you know what to look for. With many hotel chains, you can keep tabs on your expenses in real time. Even if you can’t do that, you should at least review your bills before checking out. Don’t let your bill slide under the door and then hit it – read it carefully before you leave. Your best chance to dispute a billing error is at the hotel.
This may be a bit over the top, but it is a proven way to avoid overcharging. Take pictures of your shipment. restaurant bills. Gift bills. Even take a picture of your minibar when you check out. I have seen hotels made twice for the same service and the problem is easily fixed with a picture of the pillow or the poster or the invoice. Remember, your hotel will send someone to your room after you check it out. If something is missing, it goes on your bill.
Airbnb Now Lets You Search For Accommodations With Ev Chargers
Charge you something, don’t expect anything good. Ask When you do, take the names. If you are talking to a manager, take that person’s name. If the service provider promises you won’t be charged anything, take that person’s name. It may seem like you’re being stubborn, but you’ll thank me later if you argue.
We explain how to do this in my free guide to filing a credit card dispute. (Do this only if the hotel refuses to respond to your polite request).
McHenry’s advocacy efforts were excellent. She triple checked to make sure she could use her food and drink, even as she was leaving. She also followed the procedure to resolve her complaint. And he had a full paper trail, contacting first the hotel and then Select Hotels at the corporate level. I’ll give him an A minus for his effort.
A call to one of Choice Hotels’ executive contacts may have done the trick. I have listed the names, numbers and e-mails of Select Hotels managers on this page.
Trump Hotel D.c.: Inside The World’s Most Controversial Hotel
I love it when clients like McHenry take initiative and follow through. She would make a great customer advocate.
My defense team couldn’t believe Choice Hotels’ response at the corporate level. They chose the excuse of “blaming the franchise”, which is the wrong thing to do. If you are part of a hotel chain, there is a chain of command that goes directly to the top. If the hotel can’t treat its guests well, it can lose its flag. In other words, the Election may waive the business license.
Our attorney Dwayne Coward contacted Choice Hotels and showed the house the paper trail between McHenry and the hotel. Here is how he responded:
On behalf of the entire team here at Comfort Suites Paradise Island, we would like to sincerely apologize for the inconvenience you experienced during your stay at our hotel. After extensive investigation of your concerns, it was discovered that your $111 food and beverage charge was processed directly by our in-house restaurant, which means it will not appear on your folio for a refund. Please note that this is not our apology, but rather an explanation of why the error occurred. A full refund of $111 was returned to the Visa card today as a goodwill gesture. Again, we sincerely apologize and hope you will consider staying with us again so we can have another opportunity to provide you with a great experience.
Why Do Hotel Credit Card Holds Last So Long?
Christopher is the founder of Advocacy, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that empowers consumers to solve their problems and helps those who can’t. He is the author of several books on consumer advocacy and writes weekly columns for King Features Syndicate, USA Today, Forbes and the Washington Post. It also publishes Confidential, the highly acclaimed customer service newsletter. If you have a customer problem that you can’t resolve, contact them directly using their advocacy website. You can also follow them on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, or subscribe to our daily newsletter. Read more of Christopher’s articles here.
The report is supported by Advocacy, a non-profit organization that provides free advice and advocacy for consumers. If you need help with any problem, please contact us using this form. We are always here to help.
Check out Advocacy Today, a free daily newsletter with links to your favorite reviews, tips and consumer advocacy news. You can also connect with other readers who want to make the world a better place. There are precautions travelers can take
How far back can you dispute a credit card charge, can you dispute a charge on a debit card, dispute hotel charge, can you dispute a debit charge, dispute hotel cancellation charge, can you dispute a charge for bad service, dispute credit card charge hotel, can you dispute a credit card charge for bad service, can you dispute a debit card charge, how far back can you dispute credit card charge, when can you dispute a credit card charge, how long can you dispute a credit card charge
