are you really that clueless?

I guess I am. But that’s because I’m not U.S.-based, and I’m not a public school graduate. :)

Going back, I think my actual question should’ve been “did Marriott know personal vehicles aren’t allowed when Ms. Robinson booked?” Again, if they didn’t know prior, how were they supposed to inform her of that?

Common sense? Heck, I’ve observed common sense isn’t as common nowadays here and abroad.

BTW, the travel agency I work with didn’t post anywhere or inform users cars won’t be let through in Washington during the Inauguration. But we were notified of such around mid-January (I think) so I don’t know how we’re supposed to tell those who booked before that.

(Yeah, yeah, I shouldn’t be commenting on things I’m not knowledgable about. But one can question, right?

If one finds it stupid, then one isn’t obligated or forced to reply.)

We are not talking niceties and courtesies, we are talking legal rights and common sense.

@ David Z – are you really that clueless? Sorry, it seems rude, and it is, but ‘when the inauguration date was ‘announced”? While Obama may not technically have become President until he completed the oath on Jan 21, the terms of the Bush and Cheney have been scheduled to end at noon 1/20/2009 since 1/20/2005 when he was sworn in for his second term.

Yet another public school graduate makes it into the workforce and is somehow eligible to vote.

The 20th Ammendment to the Constitution: “The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January”.

So, is has been January 20 since the 1937 inauguration of FDR.

Not to be nitpicky, but my next question is how many people knew or proactively learned that? Did the property know that also when Ms. Robinson booked?

As of this comment, the earliest “notification” I found was the Washington Post’s online version about December 20. If Marriott didn’t know that (either on or offline) when Ms. Robinson made the reservation, then how were they supposed to tell her or any user about that prior to purchasing?

It would’ve been nice if Marriott notified its customers that time cars won’t be allowed or so after it found out. But if one doesn’t even have to watch the news, then I guess Marriott doesn’t really have to send an alert if they don’t feel like it either.

I mean, we can pretty much tell people what they “should” do. But it’s really up to each one to decide whether to do so or not, especially if it’s not part of what’s agreed upon.

A thousand pardons if I’m not really making sense. :)

The 20th Ammendment to the Constitution: “The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January”.

So, is has been January 20 since the 1937 inauguration of FDR.

No, requesting a chargeback due due to a dispute of servce/goods should not affect your credit standing in and of itself.

HOWEVER some businesses will then report your chargeback as an unpaid debt to the credit bureaus. I believe their contracts with the credit card companies are supposed to prevent them from doing so, but some will any way just to screw with someone they believe owes them money. You would then need to contact the credit bureaus and dispute the debt.

On another note…I believe that if a business has a successful chargeback against them, the business is then assessed a penalty fee by the CC company…making Marriott’s response even stranger.

If the roads to your hotel are closed, you need to tell your guests and allow them to make a booking decision based on those facts.

Did Ms. Robinson book her reservation before or after the Inauguration date was announced? If after, when or how was everyone in Washington notified that personal vehicles won’t be allowed that time?

I’m probably not searching hard enough, but I’m having trouble determining when did all that exactly happen.

While we’re at that, we might as well get gun dealers to state online or their tangible sales brochures what states don’t allow guns (if any) in, tell coffee shops like Starbucks to state not to put coffee inbetween your lap when driving, etc. That’s a lot of telling to practically do, and I’d be impressed if all of you can do that on your respective fields.

And that’s some “weird” response from Marriott, too. But I guess the first part was to explain what might happen, while the second is what they’ll do if things don’t work out.

And correct me if I’m wrong since I don’t completely remember this part. But won’t doing a chargeback possibly affect your credit standing in the U.S.?

That’s the one thing the hotel cannot do. I can’t keep the money AND resell the room. That’s double dipping and strictly prohibitted. If the hotel keeps the money then the room is hers until the next day. If the hotel resells the room,i.e. the last room in its class, then a refund is due.

2) The bridges were only closed on inauguration day. Arriving on inauguration day is bad planning.

3) The hotel can not beheld responsible for all the road closures. It was well known in advance that the inauguration would be a crazily busy event, and that getting around DC was going to be a hassle.

4) The hotel could have been nicer, and offered a refund. All hotels were near capacity anyway, and chances were large they could have resold the room.

5) (Marriott) Customer care does not make sense. Not surprising.

Last: Can I have some applause for the inauguration crowd and metro? 1.2 million people have a party, get safe in an out of town, and all that with virtually no violence of any sort. Try that in Europe.

Why should anyone but the traveler be out the money? The hotel did nothing wrong, it did not prevent her from using the room. The card issuer did nothing wrong they simply handled the transaction the traveler requested.

The offer from corporate to provide a voucher is nice, but certainly not required. Where did the traveler stay, it is never revealed.

I make hotel researvations all the time an never have I been told that there might be road works, bridge closures, rain, a plague of locust, nor am I ever asked how I plan to drag myself and my cases to their front desk. The airline does not ask me how I am getting to the airport, the restaurant does not ask me if I am going to brush my teeth – why does this traveler think they should transform into her mother for this event.

Not to be rude, but if I found I could not use a hotel room (even if for reasons I misunderstood) I would find a friend, relative, co-worker, or even a vagrant to bed down there for the night. If the hotel refused to give the room to the replacement traveller who has a letter of authorization from the original guest then it may be time to think of a charge back, but asking for money back because you didn’t feel like taking public transit, or were unaware of traffic re-routing is certainly worth a try, but certainly no guarantee.