History quickly repeats itself when it comes to litigation over resort fees. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Hilton this week, alleging resort fees and charges that the company "misleadly charges consumers higher than originally advertised" and that "services allegedly funded by fees are often free or included in the room rate elsewhere." . -holidays.” The most recent lawsuit comes shortly after Paxton similarly sued Hyatt for resort fee practices and settled with Marriott on similar charges. Marriott now includes resort fees in the original nightly room rate on the booking platform. "Rising inflation and worsening economic conditions have made protecting Americans from predatory, illegal corporate practices an even more urgent priority," Paxton said in a prepared statement. “Many major hotel chains, including Hilton, have been cheating their customers for too long. I have warned these companies that their behavior will face consequences, and Texas has taken aggressive action to protect consumers, promote price transparency in the hotel and travel industries, and ensure that companies that violate our laws are held accountable for misleading the public." Texas AG claims that Hilton underestimates the surcharge on the nightly rate and effectively charges guests twice the surcharge first the fare itself, then again the taxes on the fare. It also comes amid increasing political pressure for travel companies to be more transparent about the extra fees. recharge texas The lawsuit uses Hilton Anatole in Dallas as a leading example of how the company implements trickle pricing with resort fees or similar fees that go by different names. The hotel posted a price of $193 per night earlier this month, but then added a “Mandatory Daily Fee” of $27.26, which includes Wi-Fi access, gym access, spa discount, breakfast for kids and two bottles of water in the room. Remember Those with Silver or higher status in the Hilton Honors program already get free water as part of their loyalty status. According to Paxton's lawsuit, Hilton Anatole also claimed a "Texas Salvage Fee" for an unspecified amount. The "Daily Mandatory Fee" alone added more than 14% to the nightly room rate and was $258.46 after adding fees and taxes. for our daily address I would like to subscribe to The Points Guy s and special email promotions. Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See the privacy policy. Had the 1,606-room hotel been sold every night for a year, the Texas AG lawsuit states that the property group would have earned more than $16 million in additional fees. The lawsuit also includes Woodlands Resort, a Curio Collection hotel outside of Houston, and C. Baldwin, a Curio Collection hotel in Houston, as examples of other hotels in the state charging additional fees with names such as "Daily Resort Fee" and "Daily Mandatory". It also highlights. Charge." The lawsuit also accuses Hampton Inn & Suites San Antonio Riverwalk, Hampton Inn & Suites Dallas Downtown, and Homewood Suites by Hilton Dallas Downtown of charging twice, first in fees and then back in tax - a practice that has the potential to cost each hotel more than $100,000 per year. do too much. A Hilton spokesperson said, "While decisions about mandatory fees are made by property-level ownership and management, these fees are always fully disclosed for reservations made through Hilton channels, and we encourage all third-party distribution partners to disclose all fees when advertising our inventory." In a statement to TPG. "We have long been committed to ensuring that all fees charged by hotels in our system are fully disclosed, and we continue to review this matter closely to ensure consistency when viewing our prices in booking channels for consumers." Facility fees are not going away The much-villed resort-fee practice is almost certainly not going away, but they will likely become more transparent. Marriott never admitted guilt in the settlement, and company leaders have always argued that additional fees are noted throughout the booking process. During the booking process, you'll see a blue box indicating ded fee in the Marriott reservation system. Hilton and Hyatt make note of their surcharges during the booking process, but that's not enough in the eyes of the Texas attorney general. The lawsuit also continues by noting that Hilton has charged the fee and has labeled it as going to facilities that are not accessible or even open during the pandemic. “Hilton relies on consumers not noticing or getting too tired during the search process to cancel the transaction,” the lawsuit says. "Although it does eventually disclose fees, eventual disclosure does not eliminate the deception at the first advertised price." While Marriott's new practice of including resort fees at the originally stated rate seemed like a possible industry practice, the company's CEO wasn't ready to speak for its competitors earlier this month. “It's not like these are hidden in some way. We're just further clarifying and enhancing that transparency,” he said on the company's first-quarter earnings call. I am happy for you.” Related reading Gotopnews.com