Hotel bonds on Credit Card

fitjosh

Hello, I'm looking to hear of other people's experience when checking into a hotel and they take a 'deposit' or 'bond' on your credit card.


So I'm going to be checking into a hotel next week, and I have found out they will take a £200 bond/deposit/pre-auth etc at the check-in.


I'm not too familiar on how these things work, don't stay in hotels that often. Are the hotel in theory taking the money out of the account, so I cannot spend the £200 elsewhere, or as its just pre-auth/bond etc its not infact a 'real sale' so would not show up on the statement or ever 'come out' of the account?


So the bond/deposit/pre-auth that they take, My main concern is I'm thinking this could push me over my card limit? Would MasterCard allow them to hold the £200 if its gonna push me over the card limit? How long does it take for MasterCard to release the funds once I leave the hotel? Or is that dependent on when the hotel release the funds?


Anyone with experience of using credit cards in hotels, and how it all works, I would be interested to hear!!

grumbler

AFAIK it's a sort of 'freezing' £200 without taking it physically from your account. However, your available balance gets smaller by £200 until the money is 'unfrozen', and you must take this into account when spending.

Hooloovoo

fitjosh wrote: »

I'm not too familiar on how these things work, don't stay in hotels that often. Are the hotel in theory taking the money out of the account, so I cannot spend the £200 elsewhere, or as its just pre-auth/bond etc its not infact a 'real sale' so would not show up on the statement or ever 'come out' of the account?

Both. It's not a transaction that will appear on your statement, but it will come off your available balance and be unavailable for you to spend during the hold.

If the hotel correctly release the hold when you checkout then your available balance should go back up immediately.

Sometimes they forget or don't do it right. Then it might take a week or so for the hold to "fall off" and for you to have the balance available again.

GingerBob_3

Hooloovoo wrote: »

Both. It's not a transaction that will appear on your statement, but it will come off your available balance and be unavailable for you to spend during the hold.

If the hotel correctly release the hold when you checkout then your available balance should go back up immediately.

Sometimes they forget or don't do it right. Then it might take a week or so for the hold to "fall off" and for you to have the balance available again.

Yes, that's pretty much how it works. Don't forget that you need the available credit in the first place, and without it - i.e. if the "bond" were to put you over your limit - the hotel would not accept it.

This procedure is very common now. Nearly all hotels do it, but be wary of it. It gives the hotel access to your credit card and most of them treat this as a carte blanche to charge your card what they want, when they want, sometimes long after your departure. If there's the slightest dispute on charges they'll bung it on your card. My advice would be to treat any such transaction as unauthorised and report it to the card company. Also tell the check in staff that you are not authorising them to make any charge on your card at that point, and if they do so it will be considered unauthorised.

Hooloovoo

GingerBob wrote: »

My advice would be to treat any such transaction as unauthorised and report it to the card company. Also tell the check in staff that you are not authorising them to make any charge on your card at that point, and if they do so it will be considered unauthorised.

Sadly, the document you have to sign before they give you the keys will likely contradict all of that.

But you're right, it's a big concern. Similar to the hold rental car companies use and then charge hundreds for invisible damage.

redpete

GingerBob wrote: »

...most of them treat this as a carte blanche to charge your card what they want, when they want, sometimes long after your departure.

I stay in hotels or business on average every other week and have done for some time. Many of the hotels take pre-authorisation on the CC but none of them have ever taken any money on this pre-auth after I've checked out (or in fact ever).

zagfles

Hooloovoo wrote: »

Sadly, the document you have to sign before they give you the keys will likely contradict all of that.

I've never signed any such document, nor been asked to, and I've stayed in a lot of hotels. I sometimes get asked for pre-authorisation but not usually, and they are nearly always OK if you refuse, I just say I'll pay for stuff in cash and not charge to my room (note this is different to reserving the room in advance, where they can charge you for the first night if you don't turn up).

But you're right, it's a big concern. Similar to the hold rental car companies use and then charge hundreds for invisible damage.

Car hire companies are a different kettle of fish... they will nearly always have a term stating they can charge the payment card for any damage etc.

guesswho2000

redpete wrote: »

I stay in hotels or business on average every other week and have done for some time. Many of the hotels take pre-authorisation on the CC but none of them have ever taken any money on this pre-auth after I've checked out (or in fact ever).

I've never had an issue either, at any hotel I've ever stayed in, across all continents, bar Antarctica!

LplateSaver

redpete wrote: »

I stay in hotels or business on average every other week and have done for some time. Many of the hotels take pre-authorisation on the CC but none of them have ever taken any money on this pre-auth after I've checked out (or in fact ever).

They would do if you left without settling the bill/bar bill or damaged the room. That's what they're used for. The staff are often busy too and in that case they might forget to cancel the pre-auth (unfreeze the money), so either pay with same card on checkout (which uses the preauth) or don't be counting on the money for a week...

redpete

LplateSaver wrote: »

They would do if you left without settling the bill/bar bill or damaged the room. That's what they're used for. The staff are often busy too and in that case they might forget to cancel the pre-auth (unfreeze the money), so either pay with same card on checkout (which uses the preauth) or don't be counting on the money for a week...

I realise that but I was replying to someone who said most hotels raise charges for "what they want, when they want". Truth is they don't do it on a whim (generally).

InsideInsurance

LplateSaver wrote: »

They would do if you left without settling the bill/bar bill or damaged the room. That's what they're used for.

So are you suggesting that the poster who says that all hotels make up reasons to bill you for things because they've got you over a barrel by having your card details actually just consistently runs from their bar bill? :huh:

No one was questioning what its for, the discussion was if its abused by hotels.

Certainly my experience is that it isnt, I have had only one occasion where I've been billed an additional amount after checkout and that was over "confusion" about the free bottled water in the room