Credit card policy complicates last-minute hotel booking
— -- Question: My complaint is perhaps petty but it happened to my 17-year-old granddaughter and you know how grandmas are. In March, my granddaughter Allison flew with US Airways from Indianapolis to Ft. Myers, Fla., to visit a college. When she stopped in Philadelphia, the airline said her connecting flight was canceled, and she couldn't fly until the following day because of weather. A fellow passenger advised her to get a room at the Philadelphia Airport Marriott.
She called her mother (my daughter), who then called the hotel and reserved a room for her using the family's credit card. When my granddaughter arrived at the hotel, she was asked for the credit card, and of course she didn't have it. The counter clerk told her there was nothing she could do. Eventually, someone suggested that my daughter book the same room with Hotels.com. She did, and the Hotels.com agent was most helpful and kind. However, the original room rate quoted by Marriott was $206, but $307 through Hotels.com.
I would think the Marriott would have had some compassion for my granddaughter traveling by herself and stuck in a strange city. Is there any recourse?
-- Catherine Warwick, Herald, Calif.
Answer:Young adults such as Warwick's granddaughter can fly alone on domestic flights on most airlines without any special procedures. But they can run into trouble if their flights are canceled, and are too young to have their own credit cards or enough cash to pay for a last-minute hotel room.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) doesn't have any regulations for so-called "unaccompanied minors," so airline procedures vary. Most carriers allow kids as young as five to go it alone. Airlines charge a fee, typically $100, and will assist them in case of flight problems.
US Airways policy restricts unaccompanied minors who purchase assistance to nonstop flights only, which wasn't an option for Warwick's granddaughter's route. Families of traveling teens 15-18 who don't require assistance can skip the fee, but these young adults are treated as regular passengers—with no extra help if they get stranded.
After she got stuck in Philadelphia for the night, Warwick's granddaughter got some help from her seatmate, who gave her the telephone number of the hotel. When she tried to check in, however, she ran up against Marriott's policy, which requires guests to provide the credit card used to make the booking. This credit card policy is intended to prevent fraud, according to Marriott representative John Wolf.
Somehow Allison's plight didn't register with the reservations agent when her mother explained that she missed her flight and booked the room for her, since the agent apparently did not explain that she'd need to show the same credit card. Fortunately, they got around the technicality by rebooking through Hotels.com, though the family ended up paying $101 more.
Hotels.com offers a best-price guarantee, but like all such rate-matching gambits, the guarantee has certain requirements. Rooms have to be the same type, and the stay days must match exactly. And this is where young Allison ran into her third technicality of the evening. Hotels.com can only make bookings up until 9:00 p.m. local time at any destination. After the cutoff time, travelers can't book online, but Hotels.com may be able to arrange a room anyway.
"Our customer service team can contact the hotel directly to arrange for an early check-in so that the customer can get access to the room if one is available," says Hotels.com representative Maureen Carrig.
If the hotel approves an early check-in, Hotels.com makes the booking, but for the following day. Therefore Warwick's granddaughter's reservation was, on paper, for the following night, while her rate quote from Marriott was for the night she actually stayed there. Since the dates didn't match, her stay didn't qualify for Hotels.com's price-match guarantee, according to Carrig.
Marriott called Warwick to apologize for the way the matter was handled, says Wolf. As a gesture of goodwill, the hotel sent her daughter a check for $150.
How can you avoid trouble?
• Pick solo kids' flights carefully. If possible, choose nonstop routes. Avoid booking the last flight of the day, which increases the possibility of being marooned en route.
• Read unaccompanied minor flight tips in the DOT pamphlet " When Kids Fly Alone."
• If your hotel stay is charged to someone else's credit card, have the cardholder call the hotel and speak with the reservations manager, then fax a letter authorizing your room charges. Include contact info too.
Linda Burbank first began troubleshooting travelers' complaints for the Consumer Reports Travel Letter. She now writes regularly for Consumers Union publications and is a contributing editor for National Geographic Traveler. E-mail her at travel@usatoday.com. Your question may be used in a future column.