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AIBU?

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Original poster

Hotel mistake, wibu to tell them I'll correct it after Christmas?

495 replies

Sanshin · 09/12/2017 09:40

Recently went to Vietnam on holiday. Stayed in a 3 star hotel for 3 days at a cost of £90. Lovely hotel, lovely staff.

Whilst there we booked a trip organised by the hotel at a cost of $100.

When we checked out they forgot to charge us for the trip and we never realised as we were rushing around so just settled the bill they presented to us.

A week later I receive a friend request on Facebook from a lady who worked at the hotel. I accepted and she sent a message saying that whilst we were at the hotel we booked a trip that they forgot to charge us for. She goes on to ask if we will now pay for it because if we don't, the staff have to pay for it themselves. It was very polite but almost pleading. I felt really guilty as I know $100 is a hell of a lot of money to these people so I replied straight away and said of course we will pay.

I spoke to DH on the night who wasn't happy because we will now how to pay a currency conversion fee but agreed we would pay. Then as we have been so busy since we got back we forgot.

So she sends another message asking if we can pay now and if we send her the card details we can pay like that. I meant to speak to DH about it again but he's working long hours at the minute and I keep meaning to mention it but when he's here I keep forgetting!

Anyway yesterday she sent another message. However now we can't really afford to pay it until after Christmas. We have £500 left to last us until after Christmas and that $100 will leave us skint. If they'd charged us at the time it wouldn't have been a problem!

As it was there mistake wibu to tell them I'll pay after Christmas?

OP posts:
ZoopDragon · 09/12/2017 12:33

Sounds dodgy!

I think it's fine to pay after Christmas. They made a mistake with your bill. Are you sure it's the hotel who are contacting you? Could the hotel have not noticed the incorrect bill (or written it off as their mistake) but a member of staff is trying to claim the money for herself?

I would unfriend her from FB (or change your settings so she can only view your public profile). Ask the hotel to send you a proper invoice, and pay in your own time.

iBiscuit · 09/12/2017 12:34

As I said upthread, it's easy enough to see who has been where by looking at places' check ins on Facebook.

Op FB checks in at the hotel. She FB checks in on an excursion from the hotel. Hotel has excursion prices available online. Bob's your uncle, scammer has all they need to know to fool at least 1% of people they target.

I'm not saying that's what happened here, but it illustrates that randoms on Facebook can pretend to be anyone they want.

ElvisIsAliveAndLivingInHull · 09/12/2017 12:34

There are some very naive and deluded people on here. Yeah when people are from a poor country, they DO scam people. It happens all the time FFS!

Of course she should not pay via this facebook contact. You would have to be some special kind of stupid to do that. Clearly a scam.

If they didn't ask for the money when the OP booked the trip, or when she checked out, that is VERY suspicious.

No fucking way would I pay this woman asking on facebook. As has been said, scammers do this kind of shit; purposely not charge you, and then try and get your credit card details later.

I would not pay any other way except by paypal directly to the hotel. If they refuse, it's a scam.

Roussette · 09/12/2017 12:36

Why on earth can't the OP google the hotel and get the number? God people are so suspicious on here, maybe google has been overtaken by scammers! Or if it was booked through a booking site, contact them! Or contact the hotel through the booking site!

iBiscuit · 09/12/2017 12:36

Last post was in response to this, sorry:

Yes! Who just happen to know exactly where the OP stayed, and when, and the exact price of a tour she took that she didn’t pay for!

Roussette · 09/12/2017 12:37

Man alive! This is like 'have you stopped the cheque' !!

The OP isn't paying the woman via FB!

HuskyMcClusky · 09/12/2017 12:39

iBiscuit: you are missing the bit where the OP actually didn’t pay for the tour.

HuskyMcClusky · 09/12/2017 12:40

^ making it exponentially less likely that this is an internet random, clearly.

AccidentallyRunToWindsor · 09/12/2017 12:41

No one in the rich western world ever scams do they? Hmm

I dont think anyone has said 'yea crack on love, why not send them your house deeds and first born child whist you are passing on your credit card details to a random Facebook contact' are they? The consensus is that the OP must pay but Pay though an official channel (PayPal isn't accepted widely in Vietnam from my experience)

Roussette · 09/12/2017 12:42

I agree Husky. It's obviously the employee but I wouldn't be paying like that, there's much safer ways like the link I posted above

sweetsomethings · 09/12/2017 12:45

YANU to not Want to pay over Facebook. YABVU to think you don't have the funds to pay for something that you done and that you think you should wait till after Xmas to pay

YellowFlower201 · 09/12/2017 12:47

Yabvvvvvu not to pay this immediately. Obviously not via fb but via the hotel. You should have contacted them when you got back and realised. You're a CF!

crazycatgal · 09/12/2017 12:47

I can't believe how many people on here would just give their bank details to this woman on facebook.

Ring the hotel, get an invoice sent over from the hotel, not this woman, and pay it.

craigglen · 09/12/2017 12:48

The OP has already said that it was a friend request from someone who worked at the hotel and she accepted the request. It's not some random scammer who found details of her holiday on Facebook. I don't think she should give card details to the woman, but the question was whether she could reasonably wait until after Christmas to pay. Absolutely not in my opinion - she knew she'd taken the tour and should contact the hotel immediately to make payment. $100 is a lot of money in Vietnam.

iBiscuit · 09/12/2017 12:50

I missed the bit where the op checked that she had indeed been undercharged.

Many people's response when being informed that they've been undercharged is to assume that they actually have, say "gosh, I'm sorry!" and hand over the money in embarrassment.

Scammers only need a tiny percentage of those they target to behave this way to make their efforts worthwhile.

MiddleClassProblem · 09/12/2017 12:52

I think despite the squabbling about possible scams, pretty much even one is saying the same thing to just contact the hotel and pay now.

Why go on an expensive tour if money is tight? Yes you’ll now need to pay a little extra to convert the curreny but suck it up.

Ellisandra · 09/12/2017 12:53

I want to know why, in a household that can afford holidays to Vietnam, you have to keep running to your husband to talk about £75? Hmm

And you keep forgetting to talk to him about it? WTF?

In our house, it would go like this "oooh, you remember that trip? We never paid! They mailed me today. I spoke to the reception, and I've paid it directly. Told them I'd only pay £70 because I was now picking up a transfer fee."

SandyDenny · 09/12/2017 12:54

How does she know it's person who worked at the hotel?

All she knows at best is that the request is from someone who has the same name as a person who worked at the hotel (who knows the full name of people who work at hotels they stay in anyway? First name and surname? I don't remember ever knowing that)

Some people are very niave about scammers. There are many many ways that this could be a scam even though the OP didn't pay for the trip.

CharlieSierra · 09/12/2017 12:54

I don't understand the angst on this thread. The hotel ( a business) made a mistake with the bill. The business had the OPs contact details, so should contact her, apologise for the error and ask her to settle the outstanding amount. I see no issue whatsoever with her settling in her own reasonable time - say within 30 days. It was entirely their responsibility to get the bill right. No staff member should have attempted to contact her via fb and I wouldn't respond at all to such a request.

CharlieSierra · 09/12/2017 12:57

Many people's response when being informed that they've been undercharged is to assume that they actually have, say "gosh, I'm sorry!" and hand over the money in embarrassment why? Why would anyone be sorry and embarrassed if it wasn't their error?

craigglen · 09/12/2017 12:58

Sandydenny - presumably the OP recognised her face when she asked to be her friend on Facebook?

CauliflowerSqueeze · 09/12/2017 12:59

Hotels don’t contact you on Facebook messenger asking for credit card details.

An invoice is fair.

RoseAndRose · 09/12/2017 12:59

'The OP has already said that it was a friend request from someone who says that they worked at the hotel and she accepted the request. It's not some random scammer who found details of her holiday on Facebook though that's not an indication of reliability as of course scams can be perpetrated by people close to actual events

Roussette · 09/12/2017 13:01

I can't believe how many people on here would just give their bank details to this woman on facebook

Where are these people? In over 200 posts, I've seen maybe one.

Why would anyone be sorry and embarrassed if it wasn't their error?

Because the hotel bill for THREE nights was less than the tour that will have been taken probably the day before so it will have been obvious it wasn't on the bill, and it was a genuine mistake by the hotel.

ElvisIsAliveAndLivingInHull · 09/12/2017 13:03

I don't understand the angst on this thread. The hotel ( a business) made a mistake with the bill. The business had the OPs contact details, so should contact her, apologise for the error and ask her to settle the outstanding amount. I see no issue whatsoever with her settling in her own reasonable time - say within 30 days. It was entirely their responsibility to get the bill right. No staff member should have attempted to contact her via fb and I wouldn't respond at all to such a request.

This ^

This was the hotel's fault 100%. The OP does not even have to pay at all, and she certainly doesn't need to pay unless she gets an official invoice from the hotel.

I wouldn't pay it personally. Fuck the faux outrage from the histrionic pearl clutchers on here!

This has 'scam' written all over it. As I said, some people are very naive.