Did you tell them that if they didn't show they would be responsible for
one night's payment.

Yes. Over and over, abundantly. With a guaranteed reservation, we'll hold
the suite all night.

The six home Iowa Hawkeye Big Ten football games are our biggest weekends of
the year. Rates go up 30%, and a two night minimum stay is required -- and
we still turn hundreds of people away. It's what gets us through the long,
dead winter ahead.

Just a few weeks ago a woman booked the Red Baron Suite for both nights, and
we pre-authorized the entire weekend's amount on her credit card.
Everything went through VISA just fine, we told her about the 7 day
cancellation policy (on football weekends, we demand a week's notice, so
that we are assured of re-booking the suite in the event of cancellation),
and we mailed her a reminder postcard, outlining what she had agreed to do.

When she didn't show up on Friday night of game weekend, we held the suite
open for her all night long -- turning away dozens of potential guests. I
called her first thing Saturday morning, and received no answer. I left her
a personal message, telling her that we were holding her "guaranteed" suite
for her, and held my breath.

She never showed up again Saturday night.

Ten days later, she called, spitting mad that we had charged her for ONE
night's stay. (I ate the other $150.) She just wouldn't hear of how
wounded WE were, and called me every name in the book. She then picked up
her phone, called her credit card company, disputed the charge -- and they
immediately reversed our charge AND charged us a $15 "processing fee" to
boot.

We are now in the middle of "the paper chase" with VISA -- but I guarantee
we will lose the battle even though we followed standard procedure to the
letter.

There is no honor among thieves, and what she did to us is no different than
if she had stolen a DVD player from her suite. Yet under the new credit
laws, VISA credits her -- and docks us -- no questions asked.

What VISA is now being allowed to do to their vendors under the guise of
"fairness to the customer" is going to destroy the credit card system in
America. (Which may not be a bad thing.) EVERY consumer is going to pay
more because of scumbags like this woman, and actions like hers will become
more widespread as more deadbeats discover this new way to "beat the
system."

By the way -- in case anyone is wondering, we've never been ripped off by a
pilot. Pilots ALWAYS leave clean suites, ALWAYS tip the housekeepers, and
ALWAYS put gas in the courtesy van when they're done.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"