The issue is not about what is legal, it is about what is honorable. Unfortunately, honor is in short supply in all segments of society today.
BJC
One thing you might try is contacting your credit card company if you used one to book the room. I had one hotel that didn't have a room when I had booked one (it was a convention situation). Got AMEX involved and things resolved themselves pretty quickly.
I would like to hear your legal arguments why this is not a contract. NOT YOUR OPINION!-your legal arguments only. Contract law is private law, it has absolutely nothing to do with "illegal".
I said it before here, I'll say it again, the OP entered into a legally binding contract. When does a hotel booking become a legally binding contract? and when does a booking become relied upon and it becomes a commitment?
Over one thousand years of common law jurisprudence and contract case law have established the following 4 requirements under which a contract is to be formed. They are:
-An offer is made by one party
-Acceptance is made the other party
-Consideration(money payment)
-An intention by both parties to be legally bound.
The OP and the hotel meet all 4 requirements.
Furthermore, there is no requirement that a contract must be in writing which of course means a contract can be made over the phone or online.
You might say aha!! no money was paid but you'd be wrong. The judicial case law says that "consideration" is satisfied if a credit card is given at the time of the booking(which is always needed to be done) as the providing of a credit card is deemed to be "a promise to pay".
Floatsflyer, AKA Professor Charles Kingsfield
Last edited by Floatsflyer; 12-28-2016 at 02:40 PM.
I never said it had to be in writing. A traditional hotel reservation doesn't bind you to pay, so there is no consideration, and hence it is not a contract. However, most hotel reservations do bind the person to some extent (if they don't cancel) but they are also usually have outs for the Hotel, so even if this were a contract, the agreed terms allows them to do this.
The motel and the local Chamber of Commerce have chimed in - the long answer in unimportant, the short version is "Have a nice day and don't let that door strike yer buttocks on the way out." The best they offered was to reduce the new daily rate from a bit over $200 to $180 a night. I declined the opportunity to pay over three times the original quoted rate.
I am NOT shocked that the Super 8 Appleton joins the majority of local inns in raising their rates during AirVenture to near usury numbers. When a low end place like Motel 6 is getting $200+ a night I reckon anything goes.
Caveat Emptor
I don't like the price gouging, but I would like government intervention into the free market even less.
BJC
I absolutely agree - EVERY merchant has the right to set whatever price they like for their goods and services, and we all get to vote with our wallets. but they have to honor those prices and not change them down the road retroactively. There are LOADS of motels and inns within 30 miles of Oshkosh that have always been no option for my annual visits because of the terrifically high published rates. And they are all booked solid.
Why oh why wasn't I borne rich instead of so good lookin'? lol