Hotel being awkward or am AIBU?

[peterrrabbittt]

I was gifted a voucher worth £50 for a hotel back in September last year. It was for a lovely 5 star hotel not far from where I live and it can be used in any part of the hotel e.g the spa, restaurant or towards booking a room. It was valid from September 2019 to February 2020 (although I thought it was March, not sure why I must of just glanced at it and read it wrong. I appreciate it’s completely my fault).

Anyway, I planned on using it last year in November and decided to take a friend. We decided to use it in the restaurant and have a lovely meal as both of us aren’t really fussed on spa treatments. After being told over the phone that we didn’t need to book a table beforehand, we just turned up, however we were given the wrong information. We were told that we would need to either book over the phone or online. Fine, I said I would ring up in a couple of weeks when I received my rota from work and knew when I’d be off.

Unfortunately I became very ill before Christmas with a stomach bug which lasted a couple of weeks so didn’t get a chance to go before then and then I was working a lot of overtime in January as they were very short staffed in work (I know this isn’t the hotels problem). I have no idea what made me do it, but I looked at the voucher yesterday morning and realised it had expired on Friday, literally 2 days ago. I decided to phone up the hotel and explained the situation and asked if they would make an exception given the circumstances. The voucher itself is worth £50 but as it’s quite a nice place we would definitely be spending a lot more on drinks and deserts as it wouldn’t cover the total (I didn’t say this on the phone though). I said I would be happy to come within the next week if they had any bookings available as I didn’t expect them to wait for months for us to use it. The receptionist took all the details and said she would give me a call back as soon as possible. I didn’t hear anything back last night but they’ve finally called me back this afternoon and said they can’t do it unfortunately, didn’t give a reason why.

I just feel like they’ve been purposely awkward. I appreciate it was my fault for reading the small print wrong but given that I’d already tried to use it last year but couldn’t due to their mix up, I thought that they might have made an exception just this once. It just feels like such a waste to me.

AIBU? If so please feel free to tell me that I’m being a spoiled entitled brat!

I can guarantee it was a “computer says no” moment.
Don’t over think it. Email the dead office or manager/owner.

Are they really turning down business in February!!

6 months is very short. I would make a total fuss about this. And tweet it etc if they don’t let you use it.

The whole concepts of gift vouchers is terrible imo. Because most people forget to use them. It’s fucking wonderful free money for them.

IT doesn't sound very Five Star to me - what kind of hotel gives wrong information, then when someone arrives, actually sends them away? In most quality hotels, if this had happened, and you'd arrived saying you'd phoned and been told no booking was needed, they would squeeze you in somehow - that's what customer service is about.

And given the misinformation issue and sending you away (which they should be grovelling in apology about) to then be totally inflexible about the voucher and a few days seems very odd.

Is it really a top quality hotel? It all sounds very amateurish to me.

Definitely put it in writing and ask for a reply in writing. It is often harder for them to simply fob you off when things are in email and hard copy for the record.

So you had six months to use the voucher.

I don’t think they are being cheeky. It’s not their fault you haven’t used it.

I did try to use it last year @Standrewsschool but was turned away due to a mix up, I then became ill and was working a lot so it's been hard to squeeze it in. I also thought (my fault) that the voucher was valid until March so planned to use it at the end of this month.

Maybe it was regifted to you ?
If it was a gift in September and valid for 6 months it should still be valid now

Definitely not regifted @Doilooklikeatourist. The date on the voucher saids 7/9/19 to 7/2/20. Sorry maybe not 6 months then, I'm terrible with numbers

I couldn’t let this go. I have let things like this go, because it’s been my own fault. But this wasn’t you’re fault. You were told explicitly you didn’t need to book to use your voucher,
You took them at their word. They turned you away when you went in? Even though they had told you you didn’t need to book.

So two problems: they should have just honoured being able to use the voucher when you came in for dinner without booking.

They should let you use the voucher now.

YANBU

Fair enough they don't want to keep accepting vouchers 5 years later, but a week after the date? It's ridiculous and wrong. That's theft pure and simple.

The fact that you did try to use it in the correct time tops it up. No decent hotel would turn you down like that. Write, very politely, then name and shame. You would only be accurate anyway

I had a mother and daughter spa day voucher which expired before I realised. It was with the Handpicked Hotels group. I rang their head office, they were charming and simply extended it. We’ve been several times since because of such lovely customer service.

My daughters won a voucher at a school fair for a night out at a hotel (they do a lot of tribute bands with dinner). I called up to book, but they didn’t have any availability. They then offered an alternative date which was beyond the expiry date. This is good customer service

It’s worth emailing the manager and explaining again.

I think they were being very mean. I’ve never not had a voucher extended, if I’ve needed it to be.

Write to the manager and explain. It’s in their best interest to give customer service.

If it’s an independent, there’s no reason why they can’t extend it (part of a chain would be understandable, as expired vouchers would be absorbed by head office). Ask for the GM’s email address, explain you were misinformed back in Nov. Avoid any sob stories as they will hear these all the time (no offence).

I agree with Wombat It doesn't sound very 5 star to me either. Certainly not 5 star customer service.

If they don't honour the gift voucher, especially in view of their crass error and turning you away, I would be pointing this out to them in no uncertain terms.

So many jobs worths on this thread!

Of course technically they can refuse but anyone with an ounce of business sense would know pissing a potential customer off and losing the potential additional spending is bad practise.

It won’t make any difference to the hotel as it’s been paid for.

Because of their misinformation and them subsequently turning you away, they really should extend the voucher.

Vouchers are generally a con though. I read a thread on here where hundreds of people posted stuff about how they'd forgotten vouchers. I certainly have. Because I have forgotten about vouchers myself, I now no longer give vouchers to anyone ever, just cash. Then this shit can't happen.

YANBU. Two months is quite a short time.

It wasn't two months. The OP got it in September and the voucher was valid for 6 months.

I can see both sides. OP hasn't stuck to the terms and conditions of the voucher, which were clear. She wants them to make an exception and says they're diddling themselves out of money as she'd spend more than the voucher's value.

But from the hotels point of view, the voucher has an expiry date for a reason and they probably get dozens of people pleading to make an exception.

In my experience, they normally allow you to extend a voucher, but only if you request this before it has expired.

We are still in February. Why is the voucher out of date? If I received a voucher dated February 2020, would expect it to expire on the last day of the month.

Am I going crazy or did you post this EXACT same AIBU a week or so ago?

5 months seems like a really weird amount of time for a voucher I imagine you thought it expires in March because that would been 6 months? Which seems more reasonable that five months.

I work at an independently owned hotel and our vouchers are only valid for 6 months but I always make sure I tell the purchaser this and obviously the expiry date is printed on the bottom.

I'd don't think you're being a CF, we've had people ask us if we can still honour vouchers that expires 18 months ago but a week or less? That's pretty mean of them tbh especially as they'd given you wrong information in the first place. Definitely contact them again.

I also think 5 months is a short date for a voucher expiry date. Spa vouchers I have recieved have lasted a year. I would also have expected it to last the month of February to make it a round 6 months.

It’s almost like they’re trying to catch people out with a random 5 months...

I’m guessing it was a voucher that had been donated to a school raffle, so the hotel didn’t actually receive any money for it. Hence the six month expiry as well.