A friend made a reservation at a charming small hotel in the south of France months before her stay there last summer. She guaranteed the reservation with a credit card. Much to her surprise, her next month’s credit card statement reflected the fact that she not only guaranteed the room, but paid for it well in advance.
While the practice of charging you for a room before you have set foot in the country isn’t all that common, it can happen. The lesson for consumers: Ask about the hotel’s deposit and cancellation policy when you make the reservation.
Normally, when you guarantee a reservation with a credit card, you have until 6 p.m. on the day of arrival to cancel. If you don’t cancel and are a no-show, the credit card will be charged and you will find a one-night charge for the room on your next statement.
In the case of the reservation at that charming French property, the hotel is a member of Relais & Chateaux, an international association that represents more than 452 privately owned hotels and restaurants in 47 countries.
Whether a Relais & Chateaux property runs the credit card or not depends on the hotel, explained Rosann Valentini, director of the group’s North American office. “Every single property has its own deposit and cancellation policy, and some hotels do run the card. More specifically, it would be a few properties in the Cote d’Azur and Provence in France in high season.”
Valentini said some smaller hotels charge the card in order to protect themselves against short-term cancellations. “Some of our hotels are sold out months and months in advance, but they keep getting reservation requests which they must turn down. Then someone cancels and all of a sudden the owner finds himself with a couple of empty rooms and lost revenue. Some hotels require a 35 percent deposit and charge the card when you make the reservation. If you cancel 21 days prior to arrival, they’ll make a full refund. But some have a cancellation fee, so you must ask about the hotel’s policy at the time you book.”
The Relais & Chateaux guide states that “reservations conditions will be given to you directly by the properties themselves or by our central reservations office. Each property has it own conditions for canceling or shortening a stay.” Whether that happens is another matter. That’s why it pays to ask.
Leading Hotels of the World, which has a working alliance with Relais & Chateaux, also pointed out that 85 to 90 percent of its member hotels guarantee a reservation with a credit card, but do not run it through. “The other 10 to 15 percent–resort properties or high-volume properties–when they take the reservation will say to the client up-front there’s a credit card deposit of one night or whatever it might be and they are notified if there’s a cancellation, they will lose their deposit,” said Jane Coloccia, a spokeswoman.
Hotel chains, too, have their own deposit and cancellation policies, but most are similar.
Hyatt International, for example, said, “we generally do not bill credit cards prior to the guest’s arrival unless there is an event in the city creating tremendous demand that would warrant it. We request a credit card to guarantee the room. The credit card would be billed for a one-night stay in the event the guest does not show for the reservation and does not cancel. We request 24 hours notice for cancellation.”
“Because we do business in more than 30 countries and each country has various regulatory issues regarding billing credit cards without a signature, we generally keep our policy simple and user friendly,” said Sara Kearney, Hyatt International spokeswoman.
At Hilton Hotels, spokeswoman Jeanne Datz said nothing is charged to the credit card until the guest arrives. If you need to cancel, she said, do it by 6 p.m. and ask for a cancellation number. She also advised that Hilton resorts and hotels in warm-weather destinations have other deposit and cancellation requirements, especially in high season and during holiday periods.
At Four Seasons Hotels, “if cancellation of a guaranteed reservation is not received before 6 p.m., the hotel will charge for one night’s accommodation,” said Nicola Blazier, media relations manager. She also said that resort policies differ, so check at the time of booking.
At the Peninsula Group, a reservations specialist in Chicago said, “we use a credit card just to guarantee the room. Cancellations must be received by 4 p.m. the day of arrival, but basically, each hotel has its own policies.”
The Savoy Group in London requires cancellation prior to 6 p.m. the day before arrival. “Therefore, the late cancellation charges would be levied any time after that, perhaps at 9 a.m. the morning of arrival,” said Alan Palmer, the group’s central reservations service manager. “If a guest sends us a check as a deposit, then that will be cashed prior to arrival. We need to ensure that the funds are available in the bank account. If a guest then cancels this type of booking, the money would not be refunded. If the check is for more than the first night’s accommodations, the amount for the subsequent nights would be refunded.”
Since there are nuanced variations in the deposit/cancellation policies of hotels, the best bet is to not allow yourself to be surprised. Ask about the property’s policy when you book.
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E-mail Alfred Borcover: aborcover@aol.com
