Can a hotelier, in Scotland, charge you double if he thinks you have smoked in your bedroom and can he take the extra charge directly from your debit card without permission?

[acquirius]

[ojread2]

He would need to pay for cleaning the room to get rid of the smell so I would say yes, he can - he told you he was going to charge you extra didn't he?

[chelle7272]

Yes that's why hotels take your details, so if there is any damage they can charge it to you

[welshlibranr]

It seems quite unfair to charge you double because he 'thinks' you smoked in your room, you don't say whether or not you were told of this when you booked the room, if so, then you probably agreed to his terms! Still, I would look into the legality of this practice, after all, if the person next door smoked in their room the smell could drift through into yours too, then he'd be able to charge double twice!!...............nice little earner!!............

[society]

You said "if he thinks you have smoked in your bedroom ", did you smoke in your bedroom?

[acquirius]

I did not smoke in my room. However, I do not want the knee jerk reaction of anti smoking people. The question was is his motives legal in Scotland. He did not see4 me smoking if I did.

[Davethedog]

If you didn't smoke in your bedroom, he is guilty of theft report him to the police.

However it is illegal to smoke in hotels now unless the room is specificaly stated to be a smoking room.

To quote; "While smokefree legislation will not guarantee that people will get a smokefree hotel room, the regulations require hotel proprietors to specifically designate the hotel rooms that are not smokefree and ensure that hotel rooms for smoking are clearly marked."

http://uk.answers.yah...20080122032015AAwxP2m

If you didn't why did he asume you did?

[redcrx]

he doesnt have to have seen you do it, if you did, to charge you

[bednobs]

you say "he did not see me smoking, if i did" but you also say you did not - which one was it?

[annie0000]

If you are a smoker but did not smoke in the room, maybe he just smelled the smoke from you and your belongings. I am not trying to be anti smoker here, but most smokers have no idea how strongly their clothes and property actually smells to a non smoker. He may have simply been mistaken.

[acquirius]

I did not smoke in my room. I smoked outside my room, in the open air, the window being open, 7 hours prior to being asked to leave. I know smoke clings to clothes but the question remains can he take money without your permission. There were no signs in the hotel to say that people would be charged double, nor a fine amount which would be imposed. Does anyone know if this is a legal procedure in Scotland. I live in Scotland, so no daft remarks please!

[redcrx]

"I did not smoke in my room. I smoked outside my room, in the open air, the window being open"

do you mean that you hung out of the window?

a hotel can take money to pay for any damage caused by you or guests under your reservation. Smoking in a non-smoking room is damage.

[redcrx]

this is a copy of the T&Cs on a hoteliers site
"You must not smoke in any of our hotels or interfere with our fire detection system. If you do so, we will terminate your Booking without refund and require you to leave the hotel immediately. You authorise us to charge you any costs we incur if you smoke or cause damage in our hotel including costs for specialist cleaning (to make the room fit for sale as a non smoking environment) and the cost of the room for any time period it is unusable. You authorise us to charge this amount to the payment card used in your Booking. We will send you (at the address on the Booking) a breakdown of these charges within 10 working days. We may refuse to accept bookings from you in future. "

were there no T&Cs when you booked?

[redcrx]

and another who will charge without notifying the card holder

"In the event of damage being caused we reserve the right to apply charges, without further authorisation, to the customers credit/debit card as necessary. Those who smoke in smoke-free areas will be subject to an additional charge of £100. "

[acquirius]

Thanks redcrx, something sensible. I believe the booking was made over the phone where my companion divulged their debit card details. There was no terms and conditions on their website and none I could see in the hotel, nor was there any notice of penalties which would be imposed.

[redcrx]

i think really that you need to continue to argue this if you did not smoke in the room (or even hanging out of window)
If you did then its only fair that damage is paid for. Thay cant really make it known what they can charge for damages as there are so many different types. You can hardly expect the to set a list like a menu out - smoking £100, Lost TV remote £20, smashed TV £500 etc etc can you.

It really comes down to whether you smoked in the room or not.

[acquirius]

Bottom line, I smoked outside my room, in the open air, standing beside my open window, not hanging out, standing on the ground. His word against mine. I thank you for your answers.

[redcrx]

then argue it, cancel the payment

[ojread2]

Being in Scotland wont have any bearing on it either
Like I said at the beginning, he will have to pay for the room to be cleaned so the smell will go - that includes curtains, bedding, mattress (possibly) as well as the carpet