Travel Blues

…disgusted of Tunbridge Wells

The case of the two gay men

March 26th, 2010

Q

I read yesterday of the case of the two gay men who were turned away by a guesthouse because they confirmed that they had wanted a double bed and hadn’t tried to deceive or hide the fact they are an established couple.

For many years my female partner and I hid the fact that we were a couple when going on holiday, and frequently booked twin beds to avoid that ‘look’ at reception when they tell you you’ve booked a double bed, expect you to request it be changed to twins, then raise an eyebrow when you say you are fine with the current arrangement. I can tell you, it isn’t nice to be made to feel embarrassed when checking in. The ‘look’ is bad enough but if I had ever been sent away I think I would have felt so humiliated that I don’t think I would ever again have booked a weekend break!

We were both delighted when the anti-discrimination law was passed that would allow us to stop telling fibs and pretending to be different people, scuttling around as if we had something to be ashamed of. So this news was dispiriting in the extreme and to be frank with you, puts me off staying in a B&B.  I would rather opt for an impersonal hotel where the staff are going to be more bothered about their payslip than my so called lifestyle!

A

It did come as a shock to many of us in the hospitality industry to discover that homophobia is still alive and well and wagging its supposed ‘moralistic’ head in 2010 – although perhaps the recent carry-on in the papal residence about the confirmation of women or gay priests should have given us fair warning.

It’s funny how people can always find a convenient hook on which to hang their assumptions.  Somehow Jesus’ warning about hurling the first stone, and Christianity’s insistence on compassion and forgiveness, seem to be overruled when it comes to upholding bigotry. Mary, mother of Jesus, probably faced untold discrimination and assumptions when it was discovered she was pregnant and not yet married to Joseph. There was no room at the inn for her; let’s hope the gay men found a stable or at least somewhere warm to stay overnight (and yes, there is a safety issue here about turning people away who haven’t booked alternate accommodation).

One of the issues is that some owners of B&Bs don’t realise that they are subject to the same legislation as hotels – there is a residual assumption that because they are letting people into their own home, the law doesn’t ‘quite’ apply to them.

The law does apply to all B&Bs and it clearly states that it is illegal to discriminate against guests on the basis of their sexuality (amongst other things).

It would be a sad day indeed if all people who feared they might be discriminated against decided to stay in chain hotels. You deserve the wonderful service that we in the B&B industry can and do deliver every single day. Don’t let one very unfortunate and misguided incident scare you off. We are not bigots – every community might have one bad apple.

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We paid more than other guests!

January 31st, 2010

Q

My husband and I recently booked a weekend away at a nice little B&B in the Cotswolds using one of the online booking agencies (name provided). The tariff was £150 per night for the double ensuite including breakfast which we thought was reasonable given the quality of the place – a really lovely period farmhouse in rolling hills.

We went onto the B&B’s own website the day before we left in order to print out directions. To our amazement we discovered that their weekend rate is actually £130.00 per night – £40 less than we actually paid! When we called to ask for a reimbursement we spoke to a young girl who didn’t seem to really know what she was talking about, but basically told us that we couldn’t have a refund.

My husband was so angry that he refused to go and we’ve ended up losing the full amount that we paid. Surely there’s a law against this sort of thing?

A

I am so sorry that you missed out on what could have been a lovely weekend. There are a couple of points to make here that might help to make sense of what happened.

Firstly, I contacted the B&B and the young girl who didn’t seem to know what she was talking about was a teenage daughter rather than a paid member of staff. It is not uncommon for B&Bs (particularly small ones) not to employ staff but to manage the business between themselves.

Occasionally teenagers pick up the phone, probably hoping it is a call for them, and their telephone manner sometimes leaves something to be desired due to inexperience and a lack of understanding of the importance of customer care. The owners have said they are now going to have a separate line installed to avoid this situation in future.

The differential in rates is easily explained – the booking agency you used charges 15% commission plus 17.5% VAT, which comes to £26.44, which leaves the B&B with £123.56. So the B&B are basically incorporating the commission they have to pay into the price you pay.

There is nothing illegal – at the moment, anyway – about charging different prices for the same guest accommodation. After all, it happens all the time with hikes for weekends and bookings in the high summer season, and with discounts or two-for-one offers for quiet times.

However it is very frustrating indeed to discover that you could have paid substantially less. About as annoying as sitting next to someone on the plane to a package holiday who has paid hundreds of pounds less than you for the same package deal!

There’s only one way to avoid this in future. Go onto the B&B’s website in the first place to check their ‘normal’ rates and perhaps make the booking as well.

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Cutting corners

January 26th, 2010

Q

I recently stayed in a four star B&B and felt that the owners were cutting corners to keep costs down. For instance, the soap in the bathroom was out of its packet and had already been used. There was no light by the side of the bed, so we had to switch off the main light, then return across the room in the dark. There were only two pillows, one each, and despite asking for two more they never arrived. At breakfast we were offered one egg OR bacon! The proprietors were taciturn to the point of curtness. I could go on, but you get the picture.

A

This sounds more like a one or two star establishment. Four stars denotes accommodation that is ‘very good’ – that’s the way the assessor described the rating system to us. (Five star is ‘excellent’, three star is ‘good’, two star is ‘satisfactory’). There are basic standards that a four star B&B must meet that are spelled out in detail in a Quality in Tourism booklet. For instance, there must be fresh soap for each guest, and there should be bedside-operable lighting regardless of the star rating! A four star establishment must make available extra blankets and pillows if asked. Again, all B&Bs should provide a full cooked breakfast (or a very substantial continental) with at least two cooked items on offer. Four star B&B owners are obliged to make guests feel at home with a warm and cheerful welcome, so their attitude just wasn’t good enough. It sounds as though standards have dropped dramatically following this B&B’s initial assessment by an incognito assessor and I suspect they might have subsequently dropped out of the scheme as they would have lost their four star rating had these failings shown up on subsequent visits. I hope you made your feelings known to the establishment!

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Last minute cancellations

January 26th, 2010

Q

I am more than a little miffed as I recently needed to cancel a three-night B&B booking at the last minute due to my daughter going into labour a month early. I was told I wouldn’t get my first night’s deposit back.
I was surprised at the attitude of the accommodation owners, who told me that they had made it clear that they would need at least two weeks’ notice of change or cancellation when I made the booking. They took the first night’s “non-refundable” charge by credit card at that time. I do feel that in the circumstances it was unrealistic of them to expect me to leave my daughter’s side during a labour that was going to be stressful and worrying. I would have thought that customer service should be their prime concern, as they have upset me very much with their intransigence on this, and I certainly wouldn’t consider staying there again and might even put a bad review on Trip Advisor.

A

I am sorry that you are so upset, as anything that involves the health of our nearest and dearest is going to be traumatic to say the least. I do hope that your daughter’s premature birth went well and that all that stress is now well behind you.
Putting aside your understandable anxiety and upset at the time, I would like to ask you to imagine if the tables were turned. Imagine you turned up at the B&B you had booked well in advance only to be turned away and told they couldn’t accommodate you because of personal family reasons which had changed the situation.
This simply wouldn’t do, and the B&B would be in breach of contract, regardless of how understandable their reasons. They are duty bound to find you alternative accommodation of the same standard and at the same price or lower.
Likewise, if you make a firm booking you are also in breach if you refuse to honour the agreement (verbal is just as binding as written). It works both ways.
This is why we always strongly recommend good travel insurance so that you are covered in the event of a change of plan that is beyond your control.
This particular B&B went above and beyond the call of duty with you. They held onto the non-refundable first night’s deposit, but while they could have asked for the second and third nights’ charges according to their terms (that stipulate a minimum of two weeks’ notice) they didn’t.
It is totally understandable that you were unable to honour the booking. Unfortunately under civil law you entered into a binding contract that obliged you to pay.
By the way, only guests who have actually stayed at a guest accommodation can place reviews on Trip Advisor . . . more about Trip Advisor in subsequent problem pages!

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