Chicago Woes and plea for help

[lilyleia78]

Good news: I'm in Chicago for the Stargate convention! I have autograph and photo op tickets with David Hewlett and Michael Shanks!

Bad news: My dog apparently damaged my hotel's carpet by the door while we were being tourists yesterday and the hotel charged me $700 for it.


She's never done it before and there's a huge hole in the carpet near the bathroom that was there when we got there. I couldn't say whether she did the damage by the door or not honestly. I've stayed with this chain many times and normally the rooms are lovely but this is definitely a bad one. They wouldn't let me back into the room until I signed the credit card slips they'd already run. So now my entire paycheck is gone and the only reason I'm not going home now is that the convention tickets are non refundable. I'll have to pay some bills late and borrow money for food and gas. Anyone have any advice? Should I contact corporate? The BBB? Just deal with it?

Comments

[paian]

I'm so sorry this happened! And I hope you're having a good time at the convention in spite of it.

I say dispute it -- make as much fuss as you can with whoever you can get in touch with and try to get that money refunded. It seems very fishy to me, given your dog's history and especially given the existing damage elsewhere in the carpet (and what looks from the picture like a carpet that is generally in poor condition). Possibly you can also dispute it with your credit-card company. I wish I had better suggestions about who exactly to call and how a situation like this gets resolved, but my vote is not to just let it go. Take lots more pictures before you leave, if you haven't already.

[lilyleia78]

Thanks for the advice. I've taken tons of pictures all over the room and the rest of the hotel as well. The consensus definitely seems to be that it's not a justified charge so I will be calling corporate and complaining to my booking site. The convention has been the bright spot this weekend. Everyone, fans and actors, have been funny and friendly and David Hewlett is super sweet. Thanks again. I'll let you know how it goes.

[discodiva76]

Oh honey....I'm so sorry....


Being over in the UK I have NO idea how you go about fighting this in the US....


What I will say is get the BIGGEST hug off Michael Shanks you can at your photo op.....because he's a wonderful cure for when you are feeling down and upset...that man can make you feel like the only woman in the world with one hug....


Enjoy your moment with him.......sending you lots of love



xoxoxoxox

[lilyleia78]

Thanks for the support. I found David's hug and attention has made me feel lots better, can't wait to get the same from Michael today. Love to you.

[which]

I would take pictures or all the rug wear and damage, and also of the floor under the damage by the door (if there's a significant amount of dirt under the rug, it's unlikely to have accumulated since you checked in).

Then I'd submit the whole thing to the national chain, if for no other reason that you'd be emphasizing the fact that you were rented a sub-standard room to begin with. Holes in the carpet are not acceptable, and neither is holding your room hostage for a new credit which should have been attached to your room fee. I'd be willing to bet the local operators did that so the national chain wouldn't find out what they were doing.

[lilyleia78]

I have taken lots of pictures but I didn't think about under the rug! Thanks for that. The whole thing has tainted my vacation and the whole city for me. We're afraid to leave the dog alone now and can't afford to board her after the charge so my poor mother is trapped in the room so I can enjoy the convention.

[punkpinkpower]

Definitely call corporate. The more you pitch a fit, the more likely they are to do what they can to please you. Plus, hotel feels are seriously over high- 700 dollars for a patch job? It's not like they're going to replace the whole carpet.

As far as "just dealing with it" goes, you can probably get extensions on some of your bills, especially utilities, if you call and tell them you are having a hard time financially and are going to be late on that months payment, a lot of time they will give you an extension or even some credit. With those guys, be as nice as possible- even cry if you can muster it. A lot of times they will give you a "one time only" waive of late fees or other such things, which can really help when it comes to not digging a hole of money you owe.

[lilyleia78]

Thanks! They actually said they were replacing the whole carpet, but the condition of the room makes me doubtful. I've never been late on bills before so hopefully they'll take pity on me. Thanks for the advice and the support.

[babs_bee]

Echoing the others who are saying take it to corporate. That whole business of holding your room hostage--that sounds very very fishy to me. Are you a member of AAA? If so, report it to them too. We've had problems with hotels when traveling and got a lot of satisfaction by filling out reports for them too. You might want to give a call to your credit card company too. They might be able to help. And if the first person can't help you when you call corporate, keep asking for higher ups. As others said too, take pictures of the so-called damage your dog did. Quite frankly your pic doesn't look like dog damage to me--and I've had dogs who did destructive things to my own property. To me it looks like wear and tear you'd see at a door where things frequently get dragged over (like suitcases, etc).

ETA: Did you have to give a pet deposit when you got there? Because that's the whole point of those. I think someone might be trying to skim some money away from corporate.

[lilyleia78]

There's no pet deposit at this branch, that was part of their `pet friendly` appeal. Now, not so much. I did see similar wear in another room and took a picture of that as well. Thanks for the support, it makes me feel like I'm justified and not just whining because I'm broke now.