To ask How long is it reasonable to wait before it’s CF?

[2beesornot2beesthatisthehoney]

Cheeky fuckery.
We were planning a weekend away and I booked 2 rooms in hotel. Paid upfront. One person had to drop out leaving a spare room. Another couple we are friends with, and also invited to event too , took the room instead.

Morning after, politely told them cost and how they could reimburse. Few embarrassed shuffles

One week later polite reminder email sent. Bit of a short PA reply but implied they were aware of need to reimburse.
Still nothing.

Fuming inside. AIBU

Had you told them the cost and agreed it with them before they stayed in the room?

Did they realise that they would have to pay for the room, or did they think that as they were being invited as substitutes they wouldn't have to pay?

HAve you been away yet?

Did you tell them before inviting them that there would be a cost? Or did you assume they'd know?

Did they know they would be paying for the room? Or is there a chance it was phrased along the lines of 'so and so can't make it now, do you want to take their room?', and they assumed it had already been paid for and you just didn't want it to go to waste?

It sounds like the other couple didn’t realise they were expected to pay and accepted the room as a freebie and are now dodging a bill they didn’t expect. Surely the cost was discussed and agreed beforehand?!

Has the weekend away been yet? If not cancel their room if they don't pay up by a certain date

Sorry just re-read to OP, can see the weekend has happened already. I would pick up the phone and call and ask them, it's easy for them to ignore messages

Yeah I have a feeling that you might not have discussed this until the morning after when it was too late. Is that the case?

Did you tell them it would cost beforehand or did they assume it would be free?

DH did communication beforehand not me. The cost wasn’t discussed but he said it was written in way that he expected them to pay for the room.
Surely though if you plan to go away and stay over you don’t expect free accommodation?

As others have said, there is a big difference between 'I have a room going spare if you want it' and 'I have paid for a room, would you like to buy it off me, I paid x but you can have it for y as it wont get used otherwise'. Maybe you weren't clear and they got the wrong end of the stick

It really wouldn’t occur to me that it would be a freebie. Logic would tell them that somebody must have paid for it.

Keep asking. Being more and more blunt!

Depends how it was worded, I think some wires may have been crossed and they assumed you were letting them have the room for nothing because the other person had dropped out. Sounds like it was a shock to them the next morning when you asked for the money.

I am wishing DH had been clearer. I did ask him to state cost in initial email but he is reticent about that sort of thing. DH friend has previous form for CF long time ago so I was a little wary.

What adult in the UK expects to have their hotel room paid for?
Not to have settled the bill with you within 24 hours is extreme CFery.
You are going to have to ring - texting is too easy to ignore.

How did your husband actually word the 'invite'?

Have you been?

So has the weekend away already happened, or is it some time in the future - it's not clear from the OP. I'm assuming it has happened if you're requesting money, as you usually only have to give a credit card number to secure a hotel room, unless it's one of those advance payment/non-refundable rates.

Yep I think we need to see your husband's wording to know for sure

I haven’t seen communication back and forth beforehand but DH said that there was an expectation that they would pay for their room.

Weekend away has happened.

It does sound as if your DH wasn't clear enough, but they have now had a week of knowing the costs and if they can't afford it they should have told you so you could take someone else with you, assuming it hasn't happened yet.
What was the first couples reason for cancelling?

But did he give the couple the expectation that they would pay?

I did ask him to state cost in initial email but he is reticent about that sort of thing.

So there’s every chance they thought they were being offered the room for free to prevent it going to waste.