The double tree and extra payment???
I've got a question....I reserved a hotel room at the Doubletree, and the place gave me the final cost. When I called up to ensure they are not going to tag additional costs on me like Omni did last year, they told me that in addition to the final cost that I have been given via email confirmation, I have to also pay 50 dollars per night extra as some sort of a security deposit in case anything happens to the room, and that they will give that money back after we check out.
Omni only asked by the way for an extra 100 USD, but the Doubletree is asking for 50 USD per night...which is means that my group has to shell out an additional 250 USD...and if I had not called up ahead of time we would have never known.
Is anyone else being made to pay this amount too? Why was this not factored into the original cost? It seems unfair to me to tell the customer that "X amount" is left over and then spring a sudden charge when they show up without telling them.
But Uncle Kage, we are being made to pay an extra 50 a night per night and made to have to have that money available along with the original price given. Why should they be able to do that with out even telling the customer ahead of time? I mean, they could put it in the email confirmation, or say in the phone call dealing with the reservation, than an additional bit of money will be needed per day as a hold until we leave and the rooms are in one piece.
I understand why they are doing it, I just don't agree with how they go about doing this.
Are you by any chance using a debit card?
Is it tied to a checking account? If so, it's debit. (Otherwise, yeah, it's credit)
What I'm trying to figure out, from a banking perspective, is how you became aware of the extra charges. As was mentioned elsewhere, you shouldn't actually see those charges on your credit card if you didn't use room service, etc. And if there's some change in how some banks are doing credit card bills, then I gotta update the FAQ...
Oh...I was totaling up the final cost and crunching numbers and remember how Omni decided to unload a 100 extra cost when we showed up last AC so I called the Doubletree up to ask about if they would do that.
The manager said that I would have to pay an additional 50 USD per day we have the hotel, as a security deposit and that once we check out the money will be given back to us. If they want to make us pay that I'm fine...I just think they should have stated that upfront when we made the reservation.
Where I am getting at is that they don't say clearly in their confirmation that the extra per night charge is extra along with the final cost, or if it is factored in already. If it is not factored in already...than why tell me the final cost that is not the final cost?
Because that charge isn't exactly a charge; it just isn't exactly not a charge.
My experience is that every hotel does it--they don't charge you extra, but they do hold a certain amount of extra money while you're there, just in case you trash the room and don't budget for the damages. Because of the possibility of any number of incidentals (you could break a light fixture, you could run up a big phone bill, you could eat a lot of their food and charge it to the room...) they can't tell you exactly what the final final charge is. So they invent a number that seems like more than you're likely to run up and place a hold on it, to make sure they get paid.
With the deepest of respect for your frustration, it seems like maybe what you're dealing with here is more a difference in perspective than anything else. To you, it's an unstated charge, because they're taking money from you, even if they're going to give it back later. To them, it's not a charge, because even though they hold the money, they can't use it until you leave--and if it's not a charge, then they don't feel the need to state it.
You're right, it would be nice if they told you in advance what they expect that hold number to be. But then we furs are somewhat unusual for them--i imagine most of their other patrons don't travel on as tight a budget as we often do, and most of those other patrons are probably a lot gentler on their rooms than many furs, so the specifics of that security deposit aren't as crucial.
Because that charge isn't exactly a charge; it just isn't exactly not a charge.
More specifically, it's called a block. Find out more about blocking from the Federal Trade Commission here.
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Tom Brady/Duncan da Husky
Artists Alley and Con Store Manager
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You know you're completely right. It probably is just a difference in the way I see it.
And there is a big difference between us showing up and their usual patrons. They would expect their usual patrons to have more money so it's not as much an issue to make it known what the extra fee is.
It just feels misleading to be told, hey your final cost is around 600 something when in reality even though you get part of that back it's around 900 something. This clears a lot of things up though. Thanks everyone for the imput.
It is not a charge. They are simply holding the money in case something happens that needs to be paid for. In most cases it simply takes the form of a hold on your credit card which is released after you check out.
It only becomes a problem if you do not provide a credit card for your reservation, or if you provide a debit card. In the latter case, there is still a hold, but that means that $250 will stay in your bank account and can't be spent until the hotel checks you out of your room.