Hotel threatening to sue us for bad review

[Itsalongwayto]

Unashamedly posting in AIBU for traffic. We stayed in a truly dreadful place over the August BH weekend. I wrote to the owner afterwards expressing our displeasure and with a long list of complaints including unsecure blind pulls, a trampoline with no safety net, water features with no warning, general filth and 1980s decor (I expect more at £300/night). Additionally one of the curtain poles fell down on my head. He wrote back ignoring most of my points but stating that he was disappointed that I hadn’t said thank you to them for fixing the curtain pole so quickly . I submitted a review on reevoo and Tripadvisor, neither of which have been published yet......but he has emailed threatening to sue us if we don’t take our review down (I’m assuming he has been sent a preview). We have photographs of everything except the awful smell.
I’m assuming it’s safe to just ignore and block? I’m not taking my review down.

I might just post the letter threatening to sue you....with a comment saying that you've taken your review down due to this.

I thought this place rang a bell, I thought it was the hotel inspector but I had seen it on another show.

This is where I find out I have the wrong place completely 😂

The hotel has been on at least one show, google tells me.

The owner isn't particularly popular locally by the looks of it.

I read the OP and thought she is exaggerating. 80s decor, well that's subjective and sounds extreme in any case. Signs, not important. Seen plenty of rivers, ponds, cliff drops even!, with absolutely no signs. The claims of 'filth' which is a loaded term made me think, really?

Then I fast-forwarded to the photos. They certainly strengthen some claims. I would say the most outrageous thing is the rotten roof of the swimming pool (not mentioned in OP) followed by the dirty indoor fountain. The 80s decor is not interesting, but the peeling and possibly mouldy wallpaper is. The other criticisms I believe are overblown or non-existent claims. The 'filth' outside was left mid-job, no doubt to be cleared soon. Who knows, perhaps covid has impacted staffing levels and these jobs are not being done as quickly. The gym is overcrowded, sure, as they often are in these places.

OP, I think if you focused on the few most outrageous things you would make a stronger case. Be fair in your criticism. Even if your tripadvisor review stays up, most people will ignore it if it seems overblown. The company could see fit to sue if they thought your criticisms are unfair and defamatory. In fact, there was a case a few years ago. You are publishing your words in the public domain. Sure you can get sued if it can be proved your comments are defamatory.

I really wish people were more aware of this when they leave damming reviews. The business isn't just the owner. It supports many jobs, cleaning, kitchen, laundry, and all those surrounding local businesses that pick up sales. When I read unreasonable reviews, I think of all those people they are slamming with it.

@AllWashedOut. Are you the owner of the hotel.

Hello! I worked at TripAdvisor for seven years in the content/review department. First of all, keep all evidence that the owner is trying to "sue" you. This is called bullying and will counted against him. Secondly, owner don't get previews of reviews on TA so he's doing it preemptively.

Problem with this is it could be any hotel, I can't find it from your description. Durrant House Hotel? If it isn't that then it feels pointless you saying all this and not naming it.
Also how can you look up any hotel and not read reviews?
Don't get me wrong, it looks utter shite, especially at £300 per night. But can't you just name and shame?

That's not the hotel, MiaowMix.

Why would OP name it? She's asking for advice about what to do about a threat to sue her for a review. It would only make things worse to name it on here.

Don’t think you can be sued for a subjective opinion. Trip advisor wouldn’t last long if that were the case?
If you’re certain you’re being reasonable, ignore him.
Sounds bloody awful, if that helps. For £300 per night I’d expect someone to draw the curtains when they turned the bed down,

Glad I found this thread, I am about to check the kids blinds and make sure they can't mess with them.

If anyone is interested in watching a show about disgusting hotels then check out Dan Bell Another Dirty Room on YouTube.

@Awwlookatmybabyspider No, just dislike some people's attitude to poor service. This name-and-shame culture is unpleasant, and has consequences, far beyond the people they think they're targeting. Fine, I see a 1 star hotel, people have the right to criticise (see Pontins reviews, urgh). But what is unacceptable is exaggeration. This could be construed as defamatory, unlawful in this country. OP has made some valid criticism of the hotel. Stick to the valid criticism, give a 1 star review and move on. Don't feel like you need to stick the knife in. If the manager is threatening you, keep all correspondence and go to the police.

I had something similar - I wrote a review on Trustpilot, the CEO of the company emailed me threatening to sue after ignoring all of my previous emails trying to complain. I refused as if your review is factually correct they won't get anywhere.

Interestingly, I updated my Trustpilot review to include the threatening emails, and when he reported my review to Trustpilot they actually emailed me asking for all of the correspondence so they could investigate him, as they do not tolerate people being threatened into removing their reviews.

I'm kind of trying to illustrate that without naming, people speculate and surely that's worse.
Anyway I can't find it!
If it was as bad as op says she should leave a bad review, but some of the issues (river, trampoline) are negligible.

You paid £300 a night! It's a dump.

@MiaowMix

I'm kind of trying to illustrate that without naming, people speculate and surely that's worse. Anyway I can't find it! If it was as bad as op says she should leave a bad review, but some of the issues (river, trampoline) are negligible.

I think people speculating by naming hotels on here is a bit odd when it's not relevant to the question the OP has asked. I can imagine it's irritating that some people have found it and others can't though!

To clarify, I think it completely wrong to bully someone to take down a bad review. I do think it's okay for a business to contact the customer to negotiate a better outcome however. These 'outraged from tubridge wells' types though rarely accept honest apologies (friend runs a restaurant business), which I find sad. It's like they need to vent - publicly - to get that sense of revenge. Unacceptable, I say.

Cut & Paste & Add the threats to a second review... - they are bluffing/trying to bully you

Some of the things you mentioned I can understand that the owner is annoyed about - if there's a river there is a river, trampolines don't have to be fenced and the decor being dated, well tough but the cleanliness, dangerous blind cords, damaged ceiling etc are legitimate complaints. Having incorrect images on the website you booked is potentially fraud. He's bluffing, he can't sue unless you have written something libellous

I've worked out where it is.

I'm assuming the rates had been massively jacked up for the Bank Holiday? Or you were staying in the largest S/C accommodation? As the prices don't seem to be anywhere near that.

I take the view that any guest should be able to leave an honest review based on their experience, and it is completely wrong that anyone should be threatened for doing so.

That said, even on the hotel's own website it's clearly quite tired and dated, so I am not sure that's something I'd feel I could complain about. I don't feel the photos on there when compared to what's on Trip Advisor or Google are particularly disingenuous. It's also an old building so some peeling paint and damp patches are kind of to be expected. It wouldn't have been the sort of place I'd have considered from the off especially not at that price - just based on the website - but I guess it's easy to be wise after the event.

@Extracurricularfatigue- you are a google sleuth! It has been on TV.
For those trying to guess....google Hotels in north devon with indoor pools- it’s not Saunton sands, the Barnstaple or a campsite.

@AllWashedOut. I wrote a lengthy private email. His response was dismissive. He implied normally he would offer A free return visit, but that there wouldn’t be any point. He said he was upset that I hadn’t thanked them for fixing the curtain pole that fell on my head . He didn’t ask if I was ok. Even if he had written ‘I’m really sorry you didn’t enjoy your time with us, others do’ would have been good. A partial refund would have been better. But I’m not bowing to threats, by a man that has called previous guests ‘nasty’ in his responses.

@Itsalongwayto ah, I only got the google result once I'd found it on TA.

Stand firm. If he hasn't already seen your review, and was simply going off you expressing discontent with your stay, it does make me wonder how many other people have been put off reviewing this place with threats like this.

Things like not telling people with small children about open water, or trampolines that are not as safe as they could be, are not about what's legal or necessary. They are about the experience of visiting and staying there, and valid to mention if someone else might be interested. The hotel owner doesn't get to dictate what matters to you. I see he's dismissed a previous complaint about the trampoline being without a net as 'political correctness' which illustrates that this perhaps isn't somewhere to visit if child safety is a priority for you - so it's useful to know if thinking of booking. I'm sure he'd be equally happy not to have those guests staying.

Fairly easy to spot on TripAdvisor - the photos of the pool are a give away. There are some pretty comparable reviews on Booking.com as well. Have to say that looking at the official photos and the reviews/scores overall (even making allowances for people going off on one for whatever reason) I wouldn't have touched it with a bargepole.

A google of the owner is enlightening - he has fingers in many pies and has litigated in the past.

As long as you haven't written anything untruthful then there is nothing he can do. But some owners can get very abusive if you criticize their baby (hotel/cafe etc.)

I gave a mildly critical 3-star review for a local cafe, and the owner wrote a very abusive reply and banned me. She is known for this, however!

Yes, Expedia has reviews of this place much more in keeping with what op is saying. Tbf there’s nothing stopping anyone TA making up their own reviews. I’m not saying that’s what has happened here but it’s something that always makes me a little dubious using it.

I think OPs photos back up the filth end of things and if I’m honest, the state of the tennis court is just ridiculous.