Travellers searching for lodging, whether on hotel websites or separate travel portals, typically are not made aware of resort fees until after they have clicked past the initial search results page and have started booking
The hotel charges known as resort fees are again under scrutiny — this time, from state attorneys general.
Travelers loathe the mandatory — and consumer watchdogs say, confusing — fees, which vary by location and the services they purport to cover. Some hotels charge the fees for Wi-Fi and gym access, while others may use them to cover in-room safes, newspapers or bottled water — whether guests use them or not.
Attorneys general in Washington, D.C., and Nebraska filed separate but similar lawsuits this summer against two big hotel chains, accusing them of deceiving travelers by failing to include the resort fees in their published room rates, making it hard for consumers to compare rates when booking online. The suits allege that the hotels’ “deceptive and misleading” pricing practices violate consumer protection laws.
The suits, brought against the Marriott and Hilton chains, follow an investigation of hotel industry pricing practices by attorneys general in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to attorneys general in Washington, D.C., and Nebraska.
Travelers searching for lodging, whether on hotel websites or separate travel websites, typically are not made aware of resort fees until after they have clicked past the initial search results page and have started booking, according to a complaint filed in July against Marriott International by the attorney general in Washington.
The practice — known as drip pricing, because the full price is revealed piecemeal — makes it difficult for consumers to quickly determine the true cost of a room and compare it with other options, the suit said. “This is a straightforward price deception case,” according to the complaint.
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