Mrs. and Mr. O, of Spanish nationality, reserved a room for 5 nights in a hotel at Carcassonne. They paid an amount of 240 Euros when they made the reservation and were programmed to pay the rest of the balance at the end of their stay.
After the second day of their stay they decided they wanted to leave the hotel due to personal reasons. The hotelier told them that if they left at that moment, they had to pay the total amount for the stay unless they could find other people to take their place in their hotel room. Mrs. and Mr. O decided at first to stay at the hotel. But on the fourth day, a French friend told them that if they told the hotelier with 48 hours in advance, they could leave without having to pay the rest of the nights.
Mrs. and Mr. O decided to leave the hotel thinking that if they would tell the hotelier with enough time in advance they would not have to pay the last night. The hotelier still charged them the total price of the stay, and they now question whether the hotelier really had the right to do this.
To reserve a stay at a hotel in France, one has to pay a deposit amount in advance or give a down payment, and the final amount one has to pay depends on the length of stay*. The hotelier is free to fix the amount of deposit. In case the reservation is cancelled, if you already paid a down payment, the hotelier has the right to charge you damages for the inconvenience caused; these damages amount to the total payment of the stay if the room is not reserved by someone else. On the contrary, if you make the cancellation with enough time for the hotelier to find other clients, the down payment should be given back to you. If you paid a deposit, you will loose it and the amount and the cancellation date do not matter. Some hoteliers will keep in mind the reasons for your cancellation (sickness, death of a family member, etc) or the fact that they will be able to rent the room without difficulty. In this case, they will reimburse you even if nothing obliges them.
In the example of Mrs. and Mr. O, they decided on the fourth day to cancel their last night at the hotel. Because the hotelier was notified too late, he could not rent the room for the last night. Hence, he had the right to ask for the total payment of the stay as compensation.
Good to know: the payments apply to deposits each time that the parties do not clarify that it was a down payment.
*: The rules for cancellation therefore differ between a down payment and a deposit.
After the second day of their stay they decided they wanted to leave the hotel due to personal reasons. The hotelier told them that if they left at that moment, they had to pay the total amount for the stay unless they could find other people to take their place in their hotel room. Mrs. and Mr. O decided at first to stay at the hotel. But on the fourth day, a French friend told them that if they told the hotelier with 48 hours in advance, they could leave without having to pay the rest of the nights.
Mrs. and Mr. O decided to leave the hotel thinking that if they would tell the hotelier with enough time in advance they would not have to pay the last night. The hotelier still charged them the total price of the stay, and they now question whether the hotelier really had the right to do this.
To reserve a stay at a hotel in France, one has to pay a deposit amount in advance or give a down payment, and the final amount one has to pay depends on the length of stay*. The hotelier is free to fix the amount of deposit. In case the reservation is cancelled, if you already paid a down payment, the hotelier has the right to charge you damages for the inconvenience caused; these damages amount to the total payment of the stay if the room is not reserved by someone else. On the contrary, if you make the cancellation with enough time for the hotelier to find other clients, the down payment should be given back to you. If you paid a deposit, you will loose it and the amount and the cancellation date do not matter. Some hoteliers will keep in mind the reasons for your cancellation (sickness, death of a family member, etc) or the fact that they will be able to rent the room without difficulty. In this case, they will reimburse you even if nothing obliges them.
In the example of Mrs. and Mr. O, they decided on the fourth day to cancel their last night at the hotel. Because the hotelier was notified too late, he could not rent the room for the last night. Hence, he had the right to ask for the total payment of the stay as compensation.
Good to know: the payments apply to deposits each time that the parties do not clarify that it was a down payment.
*: The rules for cancellation therefore differ between a down payment and a deposit.
