How to complain to a hotel
When something goes wrong with your stay at a hotel you are within your rights to complain. Here is how best to complain.
Complain at the time of your hotel stay
This is important because there is an onus on the consumer to be reasonable as well as the trader. If the matter were to go further you will need to show that you provided the trader an opportunity to put matters right.Ask to see the manager
Get evidence of problems with your hotel
Take photos, details of names of people you complained to, dates and times and any evidence you can use at a later date if you need to do so.
Know your legal rights regarding your hotels
Consumer Rights Act 2015 The key things regarding hotels here are:
You are entitled to services to be carried out with reasonable skill and care. So if your room isn’t up to scratch or the service you receive is poor then you are entitled to redress. The percentage you should expect will depend on the level of service and how quickly they put matters right.
The place you stay must match the description. So if the brochure/website said the room will have xyz then xyz must be in the room in good working order.
The ultimate guide to complaining when eating out provides detailed information on how to complain in restaurants and cafes etc.
Complain at a later date
If you feel that you didn’t get redress at the time or you were unable to complain in the time then do complain when you get home. This may be to the manager or if a chain go higher. Use ceoemail.com to find the contact details for any CEO.
Complain effectively!
See Top 20 Tips How to complain! for guidance on writing the perfect email/letter
How to complain when your hotel won’t give you a full refund
How to complain when your hotel over books
Your rights when your hotel overbooks your rights and what to do
Complain even if your hotel is not in the UK!
How to complain when booking a service based in the EU booking on a non UK but within EU site
All you need to know about the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements 2018 all your rights to help if a hotel is booked as part of a package
Further help to complain effectively
All you need to know about booking/complaining about holidays/flights provides links to a variety of posts discussing how to prevent problems, successful complaints, your rights when booking and after your holiday etc.
For more templates, advice, information on holidays and most other sectors Get the Book! How To Complain: The ESSENTIAL Consumer Guide to Getting REFUNDS, Redress and RESULTS!
Want to get better at complaining? See 101 Habits of an Effective Complainer
Save yourself time and effort finding the laws and wording a letter of complaint and download a template, fill in your details and get that redress
Purchase downloadable templates to gain redress
