To expect my friends to pay?

[samppo]

Me and 3 friends are going away for one night next year June.
The hotel room is 2 double beds and is costing £248.
As usual I reserved it on my bank card (using booking.com) 3 months ago.
Today checked my bank and yesterday they've charge my account the full £248.
I've text my friends telling them what's happened and can they all pay there share.
They've all said no this close to Christmas,they have nights out planned and this close to Christmas can't do it.
So basically I've lost £248 ..I can't afford to cover £248.
Aibu here?

Two of the girls are going out tonight ...so clearly not skint.

That’s really cheeky.

I’d expect to have to pay cheaper non-refundable rate on booking.com immediately and in full. I thought that was always the case. I’m surprised they waited so,long to charge you.

I would cancel if possible and say if they want to go you all need to book and pay for your own rooms separately, don't sound like very good friends to be doing this to you unless they didn't know you were booking and how much it would be before hand?

I would cancel the booking and tell the, what you have done, ifthe question your decision I would say like you I can’t afford it this time of year as well.

I've been caught out by this before on booking.com. And for those saying no refund will take money before that isn't true. I've booked on behalf of a big group, we didn't have to pay in advance but did have to pay even when we didn't end up needing all the rooms. Thankfully my mates were no arses and even those who cancelled paid what they owed.

I have the concert tickets too

In that case your future concerns about payment are over - though of course it doesn't help with Christmas

I would have worried that they'd refused to use their cards because they're already spent up and that January would just bring another excuse, but even if they never pay you're covered. If it comes to it, just sell the tickets ...

If your friends really cannot afford to pay you their share of £62 each (which I very much doubt) then I would be threatening to sell on the concert ticket to recoup the cost of the hotel, see how they like them apples.

Have they paid for the tickets?

I think your 'friends' are behaving appallingly. OK, they didn't realise the hotel would do this, but neither did you! And it was their choice of more expensive hotel, and you kindly offered to use your card.

If they can't afford to be unexpectedly £62 down in December, what makes them think you can afford to be £248 down? Twats.

Could it be that they somehow think you're a lot better off than all of them, and can afford it better? Even if that's so, it's completely wrong.

You can a!ways find other people to go to the concert and stay in the hotel.... at least you can threaten to. Remind them that it's Xmas for you too, that you didn't choose the hotel and that they're not behaving as friends do.

When you book the cheaper option on Booking.com you are charged anytime after the booking. Normally a couple of days after booking once your reservation details are sent through to hotel reservations team.
It clearly satates this and will also offer rooms at a book now pay later option which would be way higher.
Booking.com will not be able to cancel this as the hotel will charge full canx fee as agreed when you ticked aggree to terms and conditions on booking the room

Very very unfair of them, I hope they see sense. you should text again, but wait until they are sober and not in Christmas party mode.

If you can't travel it with booking.com then your 3 friends ought pay their share now as you don't have £248 to spare either and the other friend found it and you put it in your card as a favour.
Surely if you put that in text that you can't afford it either and it's unfortunate but they have to pay their share now and all four of you take the strain, as it is unfair otherwise and will totally ruin your Xmas & put you in debt for them! I'd seriously have a wobble about friends dumping me in it like that! Doesn't sound nice of them at all.

Sorry, I meant if you can't "resolve" it not travel it with booking.com

I don't know how close these 'friends ' are, but if you normally exchange gifts at Christmas you certainly should not be spending any more money on them. If they do give you presents just reply that you could not recipricate as you had to cover the costs of their room.

I don't know how close these 'friends ' are, but if you normally exchange gifts at Christmas you certainly should not be spending any more money on them. If they do give you presents just reply that you could not recipricate as you had to cover the costs of their room.

Sorry I don't know why that ^^ came up twice!

I use Booking.com for very night away, they have never charged me this much in advance. The last one I booked was for the 30th Nov and they took the money on the 22nd. This suited me, as I got money on the 18th. It gave me plenty of notice that they would do this and I could have cancelled at any point up until then with no penalty. Are you sure you did not miss emails advising you this was going to happen?

A few people have mentioned selling the tickets or at least threatening to do so and I think this might be the way to go. You won't have any trouble recouping the money that way if you need to and I rather suspect this will push your friends to find that money they owe you.

I would text all 3 friends and tell them you're going to sell off 2 of the Pink tickets immediately if they don't come up with their share of the hotel costs. Your holiday plans are not going to be ruined while they carry on as normal. YOu're in it together, or 2 of them aren't going. Let them battle it out.

It doesn’t help you, but fwiw I don’t think you’re being unreasonable at all. Yes it’s a shit situation but if it happened to one of my friends, after we all agreed the hotel and agreed it was best to book now, I would absolutely pay it because I’d view it as a shit situation that we were all in, not a situation my friend was in that wasn’t anything to do with me. If they can afford nights out they can afford £10 a week for 6 weeks, or £20 a week for 3 weeks.

Call your bank now.
Get them to stop the payment..
Explain the hotel were in the wrong.

They did this to me once, payment was due the week before the booking, but they took it two months before - you can ask them to return the payment then take it later.

Have your "friends" paid for their tickets? If not, I'd be tempted to tell them you need to sell the tickets on to cover the cost of the hotel fee as you can't absorb that much on your card over Xmas.

Just something to bear in mind- if you sell the tickets on a secondary selling site, it’s generally part of their t and c’s that no payment is made to you until after the event. It’s to protect the buyers from dodgy tickets. So if you make this threat and they call you on it, you could be out of pocket for longer (presuming your friends pay you at some point soon) and end up messing up your own trip.

They are shit friends.

Tell them that this has put you over drawn and is costing you money each day.
If you cancel the hotel room then your chances of getting another are slim.

Who paid for the tickets?