MAITLAND, Fla. – A Maitland woman, who spent hundreds to secure a hotel room for a trip to Mississippi, was denied a refund after the hotel caught fire and shut down.
Celia Myres said she had planned the trip to Hernando, Mississippi in February to attend her godson’s wedding.
She secured her reservation at the Hampton Inn using Priceline.
“I guess a week or two before, I got calls from my godson’s dad and aunt saying, ‘Oh my gosh, did you get the notice? The hotel burned down.’” She said. “I was like, ‘No, I didn’t get any information from anybody.’”
The fire on Feb. 26 was big enough to make the local news.
According to WREG-TV, flames consumed the roof and it took crews from several fire departments to put them out.
The hotel was evacuated and remains shut down.
Myres requested a refund.
“I called the hotel, and I couldn’t get the hotel,” she said. “I go back to Priceline, and I played that game for several phone calls.”
She said she eventually received an email.
“Unfortunately, we have been informed by our hotel partner that a refund will not be granted due to the cancellation policy that was provided and agreed upon at the time of booking,” the email read. “We value you as a customer and apologize that we are not able to offer your desired resolution at this time.”
News 6 contacted Priceline and asked them what they plan to do to fix this immediately.
Christina from Priceline responded and escalated Myres’ case to their customer care team for investigation.
“Just a couple days ago, I got a phone call, which I had not gotten from Priceline, that said, ‘Oh, by the way, we are refunding your money,” Myres told News 6. “You got my results and got my money back.”
She had this message for her credit card company.
“I don’t feel very valued after 30-something years. I’m not that important to you, and I’m not valued, but I’m certainly valued by Channel 6.”
Remember, a hotel reservation is basically a contract between you and the hotel or the third party, which was Priceline in this case.
It will pay in the long run to read the terms and conditions in the fine print just in case something comes up to change your plans.
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