Are hotels redefining “day” to raise revenues?

super 8If airlines can redefine the meaning of a day, then why can’t hotels?

At least one of them is, according to reader Catena Fugazotto. She recently booked two rooms at a Super 8 in Norwich, NY, for her daughter’s graduation. She was told she could cancel either one if she called within 24 hours of her stay. Trouble is, they couldn’t agree on when her stay actually begins.

On Thursday afternoon, I called to cancel one room because my parents couldn’t go. I was told that I could not cancel because it had to be 24 hours prior to the day.

I said it was more than 24 hours but she said it was 24 hours prior to the day prior to the reservation. I asked why they just didn’t say it was 48 hours in advance and let her know I was upset and her explanation was ridiculous. However, I didn’t have a computer at the moment to double check their policy.

The cancellation policy for Super 8 is vague, leaving it up to the individual property to explain and enforce. Fugazotto was less than pleased with the hotel’s unwillingness to honor its 24-hour cancellation policy.

When we arrived at the hotel on Saturday night, I mentioned it to the person at the front desk and he told me I had been misadvised and gave me the phone number to call to complain, but I was charged for the two rooms.

The following Monday I called the hotel directly first and was told that all they could offer was a room credit for the next stay. I told them it was unacceptable and called the central Super 8 customer service number. They said they would put in a claim to the hotel itself and I should hear within a week. I waited several weeks without a word and then called the central office again. They told me they would follow up and I would hear within a couple of days.

Uh oh. Sounds like Fugazotto’s getting the runaround from a hotel that isn’t shooting straight. But the story had a happy ending.

To my surprise, I did hear within a couple of days and was told that I was going to receive a full refund for the extra room. Although after being a regular customer for 4 years, the hotel itself basically ignored me, kudos to a wonderful central customer service department. They were extremely polite, helpful and efficient every time I called.

Good for Super 8 for fixing this problem. Not so good for having the 24/48 hour cancellation policy in the first place.

I think 24 hours should mean 24 hours. Don’t you?

  • Bill

    Marriott tells you when you make the reservation exactly what time and what day you must cancel by to avoid penalties. I see this everytime I make a reservation, both online and in the confirmation email.

    Maybe the other chains should do that too.

  • KathyJ

    When does my “stay” start? At 12:01 am of the day I am to arrive? At the earliest check-in time, often 3 pm? At the time I planned to arrive, which might be 10 pm? I seem to recall some hotels saying a stay starts at 6 pm and you must cancel 24 hours before that. Arbitrary but clear.

  • David Z

    Don’t know if this is the one in question, more so if the Norwich branch’s cancel policy hasn’t changed, but this is what it said after I just searched on Super 8′s site as if booking for one night July 10:

    “Super 8 Norwich
    6067 State Hwy 12
    Norwich, NY 13815 US

    Cancellation Policy: If you need to cancel, you must do so by 6:00 PM local hotel time on July 10, 2009 or your credit card will be charged for one night’s stay.”

    Sounds like whoever told Ms. Fugazotto that 24 hour thingie should’ve been more specific. Sigh.

  • Carver Farrow

    As long as the cancellation policy is crystal clear and clearly disclosed prior to booking I’m fine.

  • Mort B

    I had a similar problem with a Super 8 motel near O’Hare airport in Chicago. Having a 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. layover, I went to the motel who offered me a room until 2 p.m. for the rate of $59, to which I agreed. When I left the hotel, they were apparently unable to provide me with a printed bill, just a hand-written sheet showing my payment. When my credit card was charged, however, I found I had been bill the double, i.e., for two days. After numerous attempts to have this problem resolved by the motel, I contacted the central customer service, and they eventually refunded my overpayment. As Ms. Fugazotto said, kudos to the central customer service. I will, however, not be staying in any Super 8 hotel if I can possibly avoid it.

  • Ed

    Wow…if this article tells me anything, it says to avoid Super-8 motels at any cost…
    Good to know.
    Ed

  • kiki d

    if you’ve ever been to san diego, you know to avoid super 8 in that area, anyway :)

  • Chris in NC

    Not to defend Super 8s, but they are not ALL bad. My experience with Super 8s is that like any other chain where the individual hotels are licensed franchises, some are good, some are bad, some are awful. Historically, the Super 8s in the Rocky Mtn region and in the Pacific Northwest tend to be really good. Have stayed in a Super 8 in Leadville CO, Winter Park CO, Georgetown CO, Moab UT, Page AZ, Flagstaff AZ, Pendleton OR, Kalispell MT without any complaints. All were EXCELLENT properties, clean and comfortable. Apparently, I didn’t realize that some Super 8s were awful. We had some of the worst stays EVER at Super 8s in Hardeeville, SC, and St Augustine, FL. I rarely complain, but sent a letter to corporate regarding how dumpy the St Augustine, FL property was, and realized that it was delisted a few months later. The Hardeeville property had a moldy smell and a non-functional A/C. We were moved to another room and it was equally bad. We gave up and just did the best we could to sleep. It was the next morning I realized that the front desk person was also the housekeeper, cleaner, breakfast person and the owner. Apparently, they were too cheap to hire any additional staff!

    However, the same can be said for any other hotel chain (Best Western, Days Inn, Travelodge, Comfort/Quality Inns, etc) Some are really good, others are roach motels. Now that I am married and getting further from our college days, we generally pony up more $$ and stay in Fairfield Inns, or Hilton Garden Inns when we travel.

    BTW, when I make an internet reservation on Super 8s, it lists the date and time of cancellation, so I am assuming that Ms Fugazotto probably made a PHONE reservation rather than an internet reservation.

  • Joe Farrell

    This one seems so simple – when is check in time? Every hotel/motel/B&B/hostel and rooming house I have EVER stayed in has a check in time – usually 3pm, sometimes 4 or even 6p for resort properties. Seems to me unless a specific time has been provided to you to cancel by, that 24 hrs in advance is 24hrs in advance of the specific hotel check in time.

    Call the specific Super 8 and find out. Thats your time. Did you call in time?

  • Durland Frappa

    Not only do hotels loosely define various items; but the landlord for one of our offices redefined “year” as 4 1/2 months.

    The rental contract states that after a “year” , we would then be responsible for a certain percentage of the “overages” on budgeted expenses for the building we are located in ( as, I would guess , all the business in the building would be paying that percentage based on square footage).

    We moved into the space Aug 15 of 2007, yet we have been billed for “overages” as of Jan 1, 2008!

    After we asked for an explanation, they said they had defined a “year” as that calender year that we moved in. Pretty amazing! We’re still fighting about the 7 1/2 months I don’t think we are responsible for.

    So, It’s not just the travel industry..but even “respectable” business parks.

  • Drew

    I’ve had weird cancellation policies, but I agree with what others have said–with Marriott properties (my preferred chain), I always get a notification that I need to cancel by a certain time on a certain date. It even goes so far as to say that it has to be by a certain time–hotel local time!

    Now… one that actually benefits the traveler… I stayed about a year ago at the (then) brand new JW Marriott Grand Rapids, Michigan. I was told that the days for my stay (was staying 2 days) were in 24-hour increments. I checked in at 11pm on Thursday night, so I could have stayed until 11pm on Saturday for only 2 ‘days’ stay…

  • http://www.cutcat.com Regina

    I checked the Super 8 Website for that location, and the policy says you can cancel THE DAY OF your reservation, up until 6 PM. So the person she originally spoke to was either misinformed (not likely) or lying.

  • RCP

    Cancellation policy can change based on demand just like rates can. On a day taht you are 20% occupied, you may be more lenient than during a special event where the hotel is projected to be sold out.