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There has been reports in the news that following the financial trouble Thomas Cook is in, some hotels have been refusing to let guests leave unless they pay additional fees. This isn't just a verbal refusal; it includes sending transfer buses away and physical restrictions such as securing the gates and having private security guards physically preventing people from leaving.

Personally, I find this quite terrifying that a business would operate in such a way with apparent impunity.

Should I find myself in a similar situation what action should I take?

RyanfaeScotland
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4 Answers4

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Calling the police might be the way to go in jurisdictions within developed countries, but wouldn't necessarily work in regions where governance is weak. In this case it would be better to pay the fraudulent bill using a credit card and then dispute the transaction once you're safe and sound at home. It's likely that the credit card company will take your side given that the payment was made under the threat of violence.

If the hotel insists you pay in cash and the police won't get involved, your only recourse is to sue the travel agency when you return. Although it might not get you any money back given the bankruptcy.

JonathanReez
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    Paying with a credit card and then disputing at home was my thoughts as well and I imagine that's what a lot of the people in the article did, but I'm interested in your second paragraph, suing the travel agency? Wouldn't it be the hotel you'd have to sue? Sounds expensive though! Final thought - you definitely think paying is the way to go, no outright refusal, no fistiecuffs, no elaborate escape plan? – RyanfaeScotland Sep 24 '19 at 20:11
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    No contacting your embassy? – Mars Sep 25 '19 at 00:36
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    @Mars could be an option, but embassy employees can't do much beyond complaining to local authorities – JonathanReez Sep 25 '19 at 00:39
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    In my head, that's at least a little more compelling for local authorities to actually do something, but I suppose it could also backfire too – Mars Sep 25 '19 at 00:42
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    I would add to the above, along with the definition of "places where governance is weak", that informing the consulate/embassy of your country could be helpful. Maybe not when you are a single-case, but if similar episodes start occurring often. (Update: the article said that the tourists actually called the British embassy and personnel from embassy spoke with hotel representatives) – usr-local-ΕΨΗΕΛΩΝ Sep 25 '19 at 07:03
  • "might not get you any money back" ? I think that's an understatement. – Strawberry Sep 26 '19 at 14:43
  • @JonathanReez Embassy employees can contact their government, which can take actions ranging from political pressure to airstrikes. – StackOverthrow Sep 27 '19 at 18:14
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    @TKK, I'm pretty sure it would have to take a serious amount of problems to start an international incident such as airstrikes. Even being overcharged $2000 wouldn't merit using $50k to $1M weaponry on a country, let alone a hotel. The embassy might decide to send over some Marines to help extract you, but even that would take some very serious allegations by the OP and threats of violence from the hotel for that to happen. – computercarguy Sep 27 '19 at 21:19
  • @computercarguy Yes, that's why I said there's a range of actions they can take. Most likely it would start with an official diplomatic message to the effect of, "tell your idiot hotel managers to let our people go right now or else." – StackOverthrow Sep 30 '19 at 16:10
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Holding guests hostage is illegal, no matter what. If you are held "hostage" and they refuse to let you go you can tell them it is against the law of that country. You can also contact the police secretly or send a quick message secretly saying to get the police. You don't want to be violent as you don't want charges on yourself as well.

Contacting the police openly could result in further conflict, as the owners probably wouldn’t want you doing that.

You can get suggestions from In an emergency, how do I find and share my position? as how to find your position quickly and notify people of any emergencies.

Some counties have AML to automatically send your location:

In some countries, AML (Advanced Mobile Location) will automatically send your location to the emergency services when you call them.

Although in this case police assisted as well as mentioned in this news article, but the situation could escalate to a point where law is enforced:

“They had people by the doors, guarding the doors. Police were on the outside. The staff were manhandling some guests and fighting."

Sometimes you just have to wait it out or avoid such resorts altogether.

Xnero
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  • @RyanfaeScotland Edited my post answering all questions – Xnero Sep 24 '19 at 16:25
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    Avoiding such resorts is hard, when you are already trapped on the inside (SCNR) – Bernhard Döbler Sep 24 '19 at 16:27
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    @BernhardDöbler :) I mean avoiding such resorts which you suspect doing something like this – Xnero Sep 24 '19 at 16:29
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    @BernhardDöbler, yeah I thought the same thing but decided to let it slide since it is just a single line at the end and people always like to add this advice even if it is too late in the question as stated. :) Cheers for the updates Danill, will check them out soon. – RyanfaeScotland Sep 24 '19 at 16:32
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    avoid such resorts altogether How do you know ahead of time which resorts will lock you in? – Johnny Sep 25 '19 at 00:26
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    @Johnny - Well, Les Orangers resort in Tunisia seems a safe bet as one that will! – RyanfaeScotland Sep 25 '19 at 09:07
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    Are you familiar with the relevant laws in all countries in the world? I'm wondering how you can make the blanket statement that it is definitely illegal everywhere. – nasch Sep 25 '19 at 13:51
  • @nasch is abduction lawful in any country? Is holding someone against their will lawful in any country (ofc unless police does it)? Is locking someone up in your home lawful in any country? – XtremeBaumer Sep 25 '19 at 14:02
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    @XtremeBaumer yes, private parties holding someone against their will in private property is perfectly legal in some countries. For example, in many countries if someone is caught in a business establishment or private property doing something illegal (for example murdering someone, stealing, inflicting property damage, breaking and entering, etc), the employees, security staff and/or bystanders are legally entitled to hold that person against their will until authorities arrive. Is this not the case in your country? – GuilleOjeda Sep 25 '19 at 14:25
  • @Blueriver You introduced the reasoning when it would be lawful (done something illegal). Though have the residents done something illigel by renting a room and staying there? I doubt it. – XtremeBaumer Sep 25 '19 at 14:27
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    @XtremeBaumer if the hotel claims they did something illegal like cause property damage (or something illegal in that particular country, like being in possession of a christian Bible or speaking against the government) and the hotel staff act as witnesses, then you doubting the residents did something illegal won't count for much. It will be up to them to prove it in court in the best scenario. It's their word against the hotel's word, and the hotel has a lot more witnesses and doesn't even need to bribe the police (though they certainly could). Do you understand how this works? Will you pay? – GuilleOjeda Sep 25 '19 at 14:56
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    @XtremeBaumer I'm not the one claiming to know all laws everywhere. Are you saying there is no jurisdiction where it is legal for a hotel to detain a customer for refusing to pay the bill? I certainly don't know if that is the case. I don't even know what the law on that topic is in my country. Certainly security guards (not police) detain people suspected of shoplifting, and this seems like a very similar scenario. – nasch Sep 25 '19 at 16:21
  • @nasch my understanding was that the will was already paid to full. At least that is how I interpreted the part with the "additional fees" in the question. If that is not the case, then everything changes – XtremeBaumer Sep 26 '19 at 06:06
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    @XtremeBaumer - That's where the contention lies between the customers and the hotel. My understanding - Customers paid Thomas Cook, Thomas Cook went bust, hotel didn't get paid, hotel tried to charge customers rather than go through the liquidation process with Thomas Cook. I call it 'additional fees' as I believe they have already paid for their rooms so this is in addition to that. A little irrelevant though, you don't have to have stolen something for security to stop you for shoplifting, just be suspected of doing so. But surely the hotel knew the guests weren't due them the money. – RyanfaeScotland Sep 26 '19 at 08:50
  • Anyway, I think if the hotel was acting legally or not would be a big factor in the response you can / should take however I don't think you're going to find a good conclusion to it arguing here in the comments! If you do get to the bottom of it though please come back and let us know, would certainly be interesting to know. – RyanfaeScotland Sep 26 '19 at 08:51
  • Someone running out on their bill could also be considered illegal and warrant being detained by hotel staff. Fees such as movies, room service, minibar, and other "incidentals" can be accrued during the stay, instead of paid upfront like most fees. If a guest tries to leave without paying or makes a loud argument about these bills, it could be justified to keep this guest(s) until the police arrive. Whether the fees are legit or not is something for the courts to decide, so police may continue detaining the guest, potentially even after it's paid if it's a underhanded system. – computercarguy Sep 27 '19 at 21:28
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In this specific situation, the CAA has provided details of what to do at https://thomascook.caa.co.uk/customers/if-you-are-currently-abroad/managing-difficulties-with-your-accommodation/

In short, they advise not to pay anything unless their team specifically advises this in your personal circumstances. Ordinarily the accommodation providers would be expected to accept the CAA's guarantee, which should be far more reliable than Thomas Cook's guarantee that the providers were previously happily accepting.

Whether the contact number provided on that page is adequately staffed is another matter of course.

In general, the advice would be to contact whoever it is that you expect to be paying the hotel on your behalf (e.g. the travel agent who made the arrangements if they're still trading, an insurance provider, or similar, or in this case the CAA), in order to clarify why the hotel isn't accepting their payment or guarantee.

The original documentation providing details of the package, guarantees, insurance, etc. would also certainly have details of relevant emergency assistance numbers, so one can best prepare for unexpected situations like these by ensuring the relevant documentation is printed off and kept to hand.

Steve
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Most hotels nowadays ask for a credit card at the time of check-in for any kind of ancillary charge so such a bait and switch type scheme sounds unlikely from a reputable hotel chain.

As many have suggested, if the charges don't appear legit you can dispute them with your card company.

Tensigh
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  • Most of the problems are for people who booked packet or all in holidays/vacations and those do not routinely get their cards scanned on arrival. – Willeke Sep 28 '19 at 12:42