Mayhem in Margaritaville

Q: In March I booked two two-bedroom cottages for ten members of our immediate family at the Hilton in Key West for our daughter’s wedding. When we arrived, we were informed by the front desk clerk that our reservation had been canceled. We missed our daughter’s wedding rehearsal while we stood in the front lobby arguing with the manager. Finally, he found us another guest suite, which my husband, son and I took. The other family members took a two-bedroom suite and guest suite. The hotel manager admitted to me that the cancellation was his mistake. We found the bill unreasonable and unjust. I called several friends of mine in the hotel industry that manage big properties and asked what they would under these circumstances. Everyone said the same thing: “I would comp the guest and ask them to come back as my guest at another time.” What should we do?

– Denise Madan

A: What a fiasco. I’m sorry your daughter’s wedding was ruined and agree that a complete refund is in order.

But that’s just one guy’s opinion. I’m not running the Hilton in Key West, nor do I carry any meaningful clout with the folks at corporate Hilton in Beverly Hills. I ought to note for the benefit of readers that you sent a lengthy letter to Barron Hilton detailing the agony of your stay at his property. I had to edit the letter for brevity, but in a nutshell, I gather you don’t think you should pay for the room.

The hotel is under no legal obligation to refund your money. Unlike airlines, which are federally regulated, hotels aren’t kept in line by Uncle Sam. There are Florida statutes that would apply to your situation, but I don’t want to give you any hope that they’ll help you recover the cost of your room.

I studied the rules carefully and found only one relevant clause. Chapter 509.201 governing room rates, posting, advertising and penalties covers the way a property must represent itself to a customer. You might be able to come up with a clever interpretation of the paragraph stipulating that a hotel disclose “the maximum amount charged for occupancy per person; the amount charged for extra conveniences, more complete accommodations, or additional furnishings; and the dates during the year when such charges prevail,” but that’s a real stretch and it would require a really, really good lawyer. And the really, really good lawyers don’t do small claims.

Even if you could prove that that the Hilton somehow misrepresented itself to you, there seems to be an opt-out for vacation cottages on a property. Certain portions of the rules don’t apply “to any facility or unit classified as a resort condominium, nontransient apartment, or resort dwelling.”

Put differently, just when you think you got ‘em, they can escape through a trap door.

Your best approach is to bring this matter to the property. And if the property doesn’t respond, then you have to take your complaint to the next level. In your letter, you describe your efforts to get the property manager to see things your way. That having failed, you wrote Mr. Hilton a painfully long letter. I fear that you’ll receive little more than a form letter with a coupon from the chain in return, because you failed to write a note that was results-oriented or to send it to the right person. “When a letter like that goes directly to Mr. Hilton, it takes it out of the loop a little bit,” Hilton spokesman Tom Wingham told me. “As far as an operational standpoint, the best place to direct a complaint to is the guest relations department.”

Who to send your letter to?

Patricia Bush
Manager of Guest Relations
Hilton Hotels Corp.
9336 Civic Center Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
(310) 205-4047
patricia_bush@hilton.com

Wingham explained that Patricia’s biggest challenge is figuring out what people want, and based on your letter, I can certainly see his point.

My advice: try again. Send the guest relations department another letter and do the following:

- Keep the letter to one page, double-spaced.

- In the subject line, summarize the story. Your subject line might read: “Re: requested refund on two-night stay at Key West property.”

- Describe the circumstances briefly.

- Tell her how much your business means to the hotel chain. If you’re a frequent guest, throw in your card number so that your status can be proven. You also mentioned industry connections in your original letter. Those are good to mention as long as they don’t come off as a threat.

- Describe the events of your stay — no more than one paragraph.

- Tell Patricia what you want. A refund? A free night’s stay? It’s up to you.

- Be as cordial as possible. Don’t allow yourself to become emotional. I know it’s difficult, given that this was your daughter’s wedding. But throwing in a line about “respectfully requesting a refund” works better than “I am outraged” or “I demand a refund!”

- Send copies to the hotel itself and cc any relevant industry contacts.

- Mail it certified so that you’re sure they receive the note.

One final observation about this grievance. I lived in the Florida Keys for a year and visit the islands often. In fact, I am working on a book about the Keys at the moment. I can tell you that the mindset of most visitors — particularly in Key West — is, as one hotel manager recently put it, “to come down here and expect to eat and drink for $20 a day.” The Keys attract more than their fair share of blue-collar vacationers and white-collar tightwads, and I think the hospitality business has immunized itself against complainers to some extent. What I’m saying is that you probably wouldn’t have had this experience in other parts of Florida and that, bottom line, Key West might not have been the best place for this wedding.

A honeymoon, now there’s another story.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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