Hotel charges couple’s credit card $156 for negative Trip Advisor review

[aggiesal]

Last edited Thu Nov 20, 2014, 02:06 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Ars Technica

Terms of service for "Dirty rotten stinking hovel" authorizes bad-review fines.

by David Kravets - Nov 19 2014, 11:40am PST

A British hotel added $156 to a couple's credit card bill for violating its terms of service that says guests can be dinged for leaving bad online reviews.

The Broadway Hotel charged Tony and Jan Jenkinson's credit card, CNN reported Wednesday, after they left a review on Trip Advisor decrying the Blackpool hotel as a "filthy, dirty rotten stinking hovel." The BBC described the hotel's terms of service contained in a booking document as:

Despite the fact that repeat customers and couples love our hotel, your friends and family may not. For every bad review left on any website, the group organiser will be charged a maximum £100 per review. (About $156)

This isn't the first time we've seen fines like this from a hotel. In August, the Union Street Guest House in Hudson, NY included a table-turning clause in its reservation policies: if you book an event at the hotel and a member of your party posts a negative review, the hotel will fine you $500. Amid an Internet firestorm, that hotel changed its policy.

Read more: http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/11/hotel-charges-couples-credit-card-156-for-negative-trip-advisor-review/

---

Don't want a bad review, don't have bad service.

This will be known as the Yelp fee.

[sakabatou]

1. WTF?!

[Ash_F]

2. That fine print will get you. /nt

[davidpdx]

3. Wow, this is buyer beware

I'm sure this was burried somewhere in the fine print. What would stop other people from going and posting nasty things about them after the fine? I don't really know how Yelp works and all I have heard is these nasty stories about people getting charged or sued for posting reviews that the companies don't like.

[NutmegYankee]

4. Heh. This place has apparently never heard of chargebacks.

take your fee and shove it where the sun don't shine.

[KingCharlemagne]

16. Anyone who has worked in retail will tell you that you end up spending

more money in staff time disputing chargebacks than to simply let 'em go (at least for moderate amounts). If this couple takes the time to file a chargeback, by the time it is over, the hotel will have spent a hell of a lot more than $156 justifying its outrageous charge and it may still find itself forced to eat the $156 anyway.

[imthevicar]

5. Call the CC company,

Demand your Money back.

REVIEW: The Hotel's fine print restricts posting the review they so richly deserve. and will charge anyone an extra fee if this rule is violated.

That would cover it for me.

[SoapBox]

6. This has just got to be illegal.

No matter the bullshit in their "fine print".

[Prophet 451]

15. Not exactly

There is no specific law saying "do not do this" but unfair contract terms are actually illegal here, judges can rule that the terms are unfair and void even if you signed to agree to them. The hotel would be ruled against so quickly, it would set records.

Also, under the Consumer Credit Act, you can reclaim the money from your credit card company for things like this.

[GreatGazoo]

7. Full review title: "FILTHY, DIRTY ROTTEN STINKING HOVEL RUN BY MUPPETS!"

link to actual review:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g186332-d554701-r225482738-Broadway_Hotel-Blackpool_Lancashire_England.html

Some highlights:

The drawer fronts fell off when we opened the chest of drawers. Again, they knew about this and it was supposed to be dealt with in the morning. The kettle wouldn't work, were told you had to switch on the socket it was plugged into, also switch on another socket to make it work. This was because the whole place was rewired wrongly according to the member of staff who dealt with us, and they couldn't afford to have it put right.
...
The wallpaper was peeling off the walls, the carpet was thin, dirty and stained. The bed was something else, it must have come out of the ark, the base was all scuffed and dirty and the springs in the mattress attacked you in the night.
...
If you are offered this place to stay for a fortnight for 10p, you are being robbed!!
STAY AWAY!!!!

[Kalidurga]

8. I dare say...

if the hotel was RUN BY MUPPETS, it would be a better hotel. At least it would be entertaining.

[Bluenorthwest]

13. muppet is a pretty common insult in many English speaking countries, means inept or stupid or

incompetent.

[Rhiannon12866]

25. Maybe it was run by this Muppet:

[Kalidurga]

31. It sounds like it

[whistler162]

9. Next up Disney sues reviewers

for defaming Muppets.

[oberliner]

35. Was it The Happiness Hotel?

Anyone?

[GreatGazoo]

36. perfect !

[T_i_B]

10. That ploy has backfired on the B&B

Now everybody in the country knows they are shit. And even with the fines in the small print their rating on tripadvisor is still pretty poor. Ranked 858 of 894 Blackpool B&B's ad Inns.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186332-d554701-Reviews-Broadway_Hotel-Blackpool_Lancashire_England.html

[appalachiablue]

11. In the last five years I've noticed more corporations and merchants keep cc info.

on file like retailers, drugstores, insurance cos., utilities, hotels and non profits once you donate. If noticed I ask to take it out. Started using pre paid Gift Card Visas, especially for online purchases. The $4.95 fee is worth it. It's a start. Having a balance of $100-$500 covers most expenses, can be easily used up, hence no ability to make costly 'extra charges'. Cards can be filled up to 1k or more, balance info. is kept online, toll free no. Only one utility company hasn't accepted. Maybe not practical for some travel, or hotels who charge overage initially. (Had a bank cc card used by unknowns for 7k of hotel and international airline purchases years ago. Bank fraud dept. caught it in time. Same w/ friends whose card was used for purchases in Romania. Nuisance part of life).

[rpannier]

12. My U.S. credit cards are Cap One and my overseas (Korean) is Shinhan

Both will let me recover those charges for posting a bad review
Shinhan sends a message to me every time a charge is made against my card. I did check on it with them and they said it would be considered unauthorized charge. The company trying to get the money would have to win judgment in a lawsuit

[Prophet 451]

14. I'd love to see this go to court

Unfair contract terms are actually illegal here, judges can rule that the terms are unfair even if you signed to agree to them. The hotel would be ruled against so quickly, it would set records.

Also, under the Consumer Credit Act, you can reclaim the money from your credit card company for things like this.

[daleo]

17. They just bought themselves hundreds of thousands in bad PR

It is a dumb move.

[Javaman]

18. Always use a fake email and name. nt

[eppur_se_muova]

19. One more reason for the push to a cashless economy ...

corps want to be able to collect payment for any reason they choose, and you can't do anything to prevent it once you've handed over your account number and signature. You can't rent a hotel room or a car without a credit card, and "card only" is creeping its way into other lines of business seemingly all the time. Of course you can take dishonest businesses to court later, but who wants to run the risk of a court case with every purchase ? Better to be a "consumer" as seldom as possible

I used to have two checking accounts, one linked to an ATM card, the other to a Visa debit card. If I planned to make a purchase that required a Visa card, I put enough money in that account to make that purchase, plus a little extra, otherwise left it nearly empty. If I got overcharged, it would be turned down. Unfortunately, not all credit unions will give you a second checking account for free.

[sendero]

20. If this was Visa or MasterCharge..

... they should perform a Chargeback and I'll bet money the CC company will back them up.

[NutmegYankee]

26. In the US, Discover too.

[Matariki]

21. Brilliant

Because that will go well for them.

[Kelvin Mace]

22. Maybe I should put a sticker on my credit card that says:

"By accepting this credit card, you agree that should you use it for any charge which attempts to circumvent my freedom of expression, you will pay me a fine of ten times the amount charged, plus an annual interest rate of 36% starting 10 days after I notify you of the fine. You agree to wave the right to a court trial and agree to submit to binding arbitration conducted by my Mother or other close relative. Should my Mom rule against you, you will be liable for all arbitration fees she decides to charge."

[aggiesal]

23. Brilliant!!! ...

you should add "... conducted by my Mother or other close relative [font color=red]of my choosing.[/font] ...",
so that the other party doesn't get to pick the family idiot (not that you have idiots in your family, but others might).

[Kelvin Mace]

24. I would realy love to sit down with a legal expert

and draft text to stamp on my personal checks that I send to my credit card company using the same tactics they do to alter the contract with me without me signing off on it:

"By cashing this check you agree to me bound by the Terms & Condition as stated at xxx.com." If you do not wish to be bound by these terms, you must inform me in writing, by certified mail at the following address {address}. Upon receipt of your notice, a money order will be issued to cover that month's payment. No penalties, late fees, or other adverse actions may be initiated by you during this time. You have the right to "opt out" of this each month upon written notification of your wish to do so, which must be presented by certified mail to the specified address ten business days prior to the presentation of the monthly statement."

If you go to xxx.com my "T&Cs" basically disavows all junk fees and usurious interest rates, allowing for an APR of 12% and a late fee of $5.00 and a return check fee of $5.00 and re-establishing my right to sue in court rather than submit to "binding arbitration".

I would have a completely different one for buying software which totally disavows the "click-wrap" license.

[closeupready]

29. You'll likely need to incorporate before being treated as a real person in court.

[Old Vet]

39. Absolutely brillant comment......

Kudos my friend , Wish I was as quick witted as you.

[unblock]

27. they should respond: "that was not a bad review. a truly bad review would have said...."

"... but instead, in strict accordance with your terms of service, we chose to provide a review far more favorable than our actual experience, merely saying it was a filthy, dirty rotten stinking hovel."

[Eugene]

28. TripAdvisor bad review hotel to refund £100 ‘fine’ to customers

Source: Press Association

TripAdvisor bad review hotel to refund £100 ‘fine’ to customers

Press Association
The Guardian, Wednesday 19 November 2014 17.06 GMT

A couple “fined” by a hotel after they wrote a damning review about it are to be given a refund, a council has said.

Tony and Jan Jenkinson said they were charged an extra £100 after describing the Broadway Hotel in Blackpool as a “filthy, stinking hovel” on TripAdvisor.

When they queried the charge, they were said to have been told it was incurred under a “no bad review policy” included in the terms and conditions.

Blackpool council said on Wednesday that it understood the hotel will reimburse them, as well as scrapping the policy.

[font size=1]-snip-[/font]

Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/nov/19/tripadvisor-bad-review-hotel-refund-100-fine-customers-blackpool

The Wikipedia article Streisand effect applies here.

[aggiesal]

30. Yea, now that someone notified the press ...

How many other "guests" did the same and never noticed the £100 charge on their CC?

I'm sure the publicity is really going to hurt their business, regardless that they scrapped the policy.
The damage is done.

[Strelnikov_]

32. Was the owners name Basil Fawlty? n/r

[jmowreader]

33. I wonder: how many other people were fined

If you go to TripAdvisor, you'll quickly learn this place draws bad reviews like honey draws flies.

[ThoughtCriminal]

34. The flies left bad reviews - nm

[Nye Bevan]

37. LOL reading some of those reviews.

The net curtain was brown in muck, the mattress was a double lump of springs - 3 days on and I still have back ache. The bathroom was the worst bathroom I have ever seen. The toilet brush made me want to be sick. Mould on every wall, wall paper peeling off. I had to use the toilet downstairs next to the bar on the way out...... only to find mouse droppings! MOUSE droppings all over the floor, some of which had mould on them. This tells you how often they clean up!


Terrible night, bed legs broken so slept on a slant. Next morning discovered mattress was ripped and spewing vile stuffing out. Went for a shower to wash the feeling of filth away. No hot water, cold water flooding out from under shower tray


This place is filthy,it really needs closing down,bedroom full of mould no heater,no hot water,beds need throwing away,couldn't bear to eat breakfast staff drinking cans of strongbow while serving breakfast,could not wait to get out of this place and get home to bath. environmental need to get in there quick....


My colleagues were dismayed to be greeted be a discarded sanitary pad wrapper between the beds in the family room. The wardrobe in my room contained a heavily stained sheet.


http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186332-d554701-Reviews-Broadway_Hotel-Blackpool_Lancashire_England.html

[T_i_B]

38. Blackpool hotel guests fined £100 for not voting UKIP

This may be satire, but in Clacton-On-Sea I think they really would!

http://newsthump.com/2014/11/27/blackpool-hotel-guests-fined-100-for-not-voting-ukip/

Further embarrassment was heaped on Blackpool’s tarnished image yesterday, when news emerged of yet another hotelier fining guest for opinions he didn’t like.

Elderly guests Arthur and Hilda Spleen were shocked to discover an extra £100 had been charged to their credit card after staying one night at the Hotel Musty Odour on Blackpool’s promenade.

Investigating their bill’s small print further with the aid of a nearby scanning electron microscope, they discovered the clause: “All guests must pledge to vote UKIP at the next election, otherwise the country will go to the dogs. You owe me £100″.

Hotel owner Colin Chipfat was unrepentant when questioned about the clause in his terms and conditions. “It’s all their fault. My wife distinctly overheard this couple at the breakfast table, telling another guest they were considering voting Green. Bring back Enoch Powell I say, and the birch”, he continued, foam emanating from his mouth.