The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced a brand new rule that can help protect travelers from all those unwanted add-on fees.
The rule tackles “Unfair or Deceptive Fees.”
These are sometimes applied to short-term lodging as “resort” or “destination” fees when customers use hotel amenities resembling pools or gyms.
Short-term lodging includes hotels, motels, vacation rentals and businesses like Airbnb.
About 6% of hotels charge resort fees, in accordance with the American Hotel and Lodging Association.
“The rule prohibits bait-and-switch pricing and other tactics used to cover total prices and mislead people about fees within the live-event ticketing and short-term lodging industries,” in accordance with the FTC’s press release.
Taxes or other government fees are excluded from the rule.
Short-term lodging and live-event businesses must include the pricing information of their ads and provides the overall price “upfront.”
“The overall price includes all charges or fees the business knows about and might calculate upfront, including charges or fees for mandatory goods or services people must buy as a part of the identical transaction,” says the FTC’s site.
A Marriott spokesperson told Fox News Digital the corporate began “providing customers with clear and transparent pricing in May 2023.”
“We were the primary hospitality company to make sure non-government fees charged by hotels are upfront and included in the overall price exhibited to customers,” the spokesperson said.
“This enhanced display has been in place for 2 years, so guests are unlikely to note a difference from what they see today,” Marriott also said.
Fox News Digital also reached out to the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), based in Washington, DC, for comment.
Earlier this yr, the group’s president and CEO, Rosanna Maietta, said in an announcement that it had “led the charge in establishing a federal standard to supply travelers with consistent, upfront pricing that can bring much-needed clarity to the marketplace.”
She added, “We strongly consider that all consumers deserve transparency within the booking process, irrespective of where they decide to book their stays.”
There are a couple of ways travelers can avoid paying resort fees, in accordance with Nerdwallet.
“Once you book rooms on points, some resorts still tack on resort fees, which you will need to pay in money on top of the points rate,” reads the web site.
Travelers who have hotel elite status are sometimes exempt.
Nerdwallet suggests using hotel points to avoid the fee.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced a brand new rule that can help protect travelers from all those unwanted add-on fees.
The rule tackles “Unfair or Deceptive Fees.”
These are sometimes applied to short-term lodging as “resort” or “destination” fees when customers use hotel amenities resembling pools or gyms.
Short-term lodging includes hotels, motels, vacation rentals and businesses like Airbnb.
About 6% of hotels charge resort fees, in accordance with the American Hotel and Lodging Association.
“The rule prohibits bait-and-switch pricing and other tactics used to cover total prices and mislead people about fees within the live-event ticketing and short-term lodging industries,” in accordance with the FTC’s press release.
Taxes or other government fees are excluded from the rule.
Short-term lodging and live-event businesses must include the pricing information of their ads and provides the overall price “upfront.”
“The overall price includes all charges or fees the business knows about and might calculate upfront, including charges or fees for mandatory goods or services people must buy as a part of the identical transaction,” says the FTC’s site.
A Marriott spokesperson told Fox News Digital the corporate began “providing customers with clear and transparent pricing in May 2023.”
“We were the primary hospitality company to make sure non-government fees charged by hotels are upfront and included in the overall price exhibited to customers,” the spokesperson said.
“This enhanced display has been in place for 2 years, so guests are unlikely to note a difference from what they see today,” Marriott also said.
Fox News Digital also reached out to the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), based in Washington, DC, for comment.
Earlier this yr, the group’s president and CEO, Rosanna Maietta, said in an announcement that it had “led the charge in establishing a federal standard to supply travelers with consistent, upfront pricing that can bring much-needed clarity to the marketplace.”
She added, “We strongly consider that all consumers deserve transparency within the booking process, irrespective of where they decide to book their stays.”
There are a couple of ways travelers can avoid paying resort fees, in accordance with Nerdwallet.
“Once you book rooms on points, some resorts still tack on resort fees, which you will need to pay in money on top of the points rate,” reads the web site.
Travelers who have hotel elite status are sometimes exempt.
Nerdwallet suggests using hotel points to avoid the fee.
