We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are - or become - political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Do you know if the Visa Reservation Service still says that cancellations must be accepted up to 6pm on the scheduled arrival date (local time) unless a differing cancellation deadline is specified at the time of booking AND where cancellation is required earlier than 6pm the hotel cannot insist on it being more than 24 hours earlier than the default time?
Hotels usually charge cards under a "cardholder not present" system (unless you are actually present when they charge you, then you probably insert the card).
Similar to if you are buying something on the phone and reading out the number.
Sometimes the hotel reservation department may actually physically type your card number into their card machine. I once sat at a hotel bar and watched the receptionist manually charge 10 prepaid bookings that were made in the previous 24 hours. Other hotels do it electronically direct from their booking system.
Hotel staff could easily abuse this and charge your card random amounts then abscond with the money, but they would soon be out of a job and possibly prosecuted, or the hotel would have its ability to accept cards shut down for fraud.
