FIGHTING THE HOTEL FEES

Posted on 06/22/2016 | About Las Vegas, Nevada

In 2012 when the US federal government’s consumer protection agency approved hotels adding fees to their room rates it was on the condition that the surcharges were transparent to guests upon booking. That has not been a reality, due to a legal loophole, so the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is now being pressured to make it mandatory for hotels to include resort fees in the initial quoted price for a room.

Hotels commonly participate in ‘drip pricing’; that is quoting a low rate and then adding the additional fees later. There is no limit to what the resort fee can be, and in some cases the resort fees exceed the advertised price of the room.
Consumer advocates argued that the practice was unfair and deceptive and the FTC (although it hasn’t stated it officially), appears to be in agreement.
The first half of this year alone, fees have increased by 8% to an average of $19.52 a night.
The markets with the biggest increases are the Florida Keys (24%), followed by Myrtle Beach, (22%) and Miami (20%).
“This was quite shocking to me because resort fees are already so high,” said Randy Greencorn, who tracks resort fees on his site, Resortfeechecker.com. “I did not think there was room to grow.”
“Breaking apart the resort fee from the room cost has no purpose, except to make the room rate look less expensive at the time of booking,” Greencorn added.
In February, Missouri Democratic senator Claire McCaskill introduced the Truth in Hotel Advertising Act of 2016. The law would prohibit hotels from advertising a room that doesn’t include all mandatory fees. It would also give the Federal Trade Commission the authority to enforce the prohibition and state attorneys general the power to bring a civil action in federal court against violators.
McCaskill is getting support from consumer groups and on-line travel agents who are weary of justifying these rates.
Surprisingly she is also hearing from hotel chains whose franchises keep the fees.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association, with hotels in Florida, Hawaii and Las Vegas being the most vulnerable, will likely oppose the bill.