Reduction for non-working WiFi at hotel?

[robinb]

Hi guys! My DD26 is staying at a tiny house village near Mt Hood for a few weeks. It’s her home base while she works as a ski instructor at the local ski resort. Full payment was required at booking and she booked it on my credit card (she paid me back). She moved in on 12/16 after a bad storm and the entire village had no power and her WiFi was down.

Each tiny house has its own WiFi. It was supposed to be temporary, but they can’t figure out how to get it back going in her tiny house. When she asked why there was no WiFi they said that it's something with the java script not letting devices obtain the IP address when connecting. The smart TV is unusable and she has weekly zoom meetings that she doesn’t want to do in public. She’s had to drive back to 2-hours to her place in Portland to do the zoom calls and she’s eating through our shared cellular data. The cell signal is spotty too, so no zoom on it.

She has been to the front desk multiple times and they have suggested that she connect to one of the other houses or come to the “lodge” to use the front desk internet. The other houses’ WiFi is really not strong enough to use in her house. I don’t think either option is acceptable. They advised WiFi in every house and she doesn’t have it.

I would like to call them and request a reduction of the cost of the tiny house since she is not getting all the amenities promised that all the other guests are getting. She has been without it since 12/16. I’m thinking 20%. Is that a fair amount or would you ask for less or more?

As this is my credit card, I’m also willing to do a partial charge back if they say “no”.

 

[lovesmurfs]

I practice the Aladdin Factor -- you don't get what you don't ask for.

Former hotel front office manager -- It's been a major inconvenience for her, and while the initial act of God wasn't their fault, not getting the service up and running when the others got service back is indeed their fault. And no TV in addition to the WiFi? She really needs to create a stink about it.

I'd start at 25%.

 

[robinb]

I practice the Aladdin Factor -- you don't get what you don't ask for.

Former hotel front office manager -- It's been a major inconvenience for her, and while the initial act of God wasn't their fault, not getting the service up and running when the others got service back is indeed their fault. And no TV in addition to the WiFi? She really needs to create a stink about it.

I'd start at 25%.

I don’t know if they have cable TV but with no internet she can’t watch any streaming channels.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

I agree that it wouldn't hurt to ask for some kind of discount.

 

[LuvOrlando]

I would want them to pay for picking up satellite connectivity as an alternative, not give them an out with a discounted rate. Her location sounds remote, safety might be an issue and that is a lot of boring downtime so being completely cut off might not be great for her well being. Poor girl, can they give her another house?

 

[robinb]

I would want them to pay for picking up satellite connectivity as an alternative, not give them an out with a discounted rate. Her location sounds remote, safety might be an issue and that is a lot of boring downtime so being completely cut off might not be great for her well being. Poor girl, can they give her another house?

All houses were booked around NYE and she’s going to be moving out in a week. I also don’t want them to move her and consider that enough for the 2 1/2 weeks she’s been without.

 

[evilmommie]

You’ll only find out if you ask. Or she should ask, since she was on the contract? Either do it and see what happens!

 

[hardcorestitch]

Speak up indeed! You didn’t get the service you expected… let’s find a solution!

 

[sam_gordon]

Absolutely speak up. But, make sure you have as many facts as possible.
1. What does the contract say about what's provided? Is there any kind of break down on "housing: $x, utilities: $y, wifi: $z"? I doubt it, but it's worth looking into.
2. What is the leasing company offering in exchange for not having the promised service? I would simply ask that question... "I've been without this service for nearly three weeks, what are you doing to make up for it?"
3. What would make YOU (your DD) satisfied? Personally, I don't think a percentage is the way to determine it. I would do some research and find out what surrounding hotels charge daily. Let's say it's $10/day. Then tell them "Hotels in the area charge $10/day for internet, we've been without for 21 days, I think $210 is a fair refund for not having internet."

 

[MICKIMINI]

I believe in the ask for comp, but not a particular amount. This gives you room for negotiation and I find that sometimes their initial offer is more than I would have asked for. I have only had to use this technique a couple times on personal trips and a few times on business trips over 40+ years. With polite persistence and getting to the right person on the phone is imperative. Have your notes with dates, times, particulars and the people you spoke with and what they said (and when) doesn't leave much wiggle room if you are right LOL.

They have had time to remedy the situation. Good luck!

 

[tvguy]

Hi guys! My DD26 is staying at a tiny house village near Mt Hood for a few weeks. It’s her home base while she works as a ski instructor at the local ski resort. Full payment was required at booking and she booked it on my credit card (she paid me back). She moved in on 12/16 after a bad storm and the entire village had no power and her WiFi was down.

Each tiny house has its own WiFi. It was supposed to be temporary, but they can’t figure out how to get it back going in her tiny house. When she asked why there was no WiFi they said that it's something with the java script not letting devices obtain the IP address when connecting. The smart TV is unusable and she has weekly zoom meetings that she doesn’t want to do in public. She’s had to drive back to 2-hours to her place in Portland to do the zoom calls and she’s eating through our shared cellular data. The cell signal is spotty too, so no zoom on it.

She has been to the front desk multiple times and they have suggested that she connect to one of the other houses or come to the “lodge” to use the front desk internet. The other houses’ WiFi is really not strong enough to use in her house. I don’t think either option is acceptable. They advised WiFi in every house and she doesn’t have it.

I would like to call them and request a reduction of the cost of the tiny house since she is not getting all the amenities promised that all the other guests are getting. She has been without it since 12/16. I’m thinking 20%. Is that a fair amount or would you ask for less or more?

As this is my credit card, I’m also willing to do a partial charge back if they say “no”.

Never hurts to ask. We stay at Marriott Bonvoy and the basic Internet is free, the deluxe is $4.95 a day. Not sure what 20% of the rate being paid is, but that maybe a bit excessive, but $5 a day might be reasonable.
People in this day and age sometimes have a hard time believing that cell phone coverage can be unreliable. I have run into that. But to be honest, I did not know you could get a cell phone plan anymore that didn't have unlimited data.

 

[sam_gordon]

But to be honest, I did not know you could get a cell phone plan anymore that didn't have unlimited data.

Even if you have unlimited data, that doesn't mean bandwidth won't get limited once you hit a certain amount.

I agree with your point about 20% though. That seems extreme.

 

[tvguy]

Even if you have unlimited data, that doesn't mean bandwidth won't get limited once you hit a certain amount.

I agree with your point about 20% though. That seems extreme.

If I have been limited, I never detected it. My precious Verizon cell phone plan did throttle you at some point, and we did an 8 day road trip using Google maps the entire time on the phone and were notified we were being throttled, but we sure couldn't detect any difference.

 

[robinb]

Never hurts to ask. We stay at Marriott Bonvoy and the basic Internet is free, the deluxe is $4.95 a day. Not sure what 20% of the rate being paid is, but that maybe a bit excessive, but $5 a day might be reasonable.
People in this day and age sometimes have a hard time believing that cell phone coverage can be unreliable. I have run into that. But to be honest, I did not know you could get a cell phone plan anymore that didn't have unlimited data.

She prepaid for nearly 4 weeks, so in my mind $5 per day ($35 per week) is not reasonable compensation for no internet and no streaming while everyone else has those amenities. WiFi is a necessity these days and this is a huge inconvenience, especially when she has to drive 1-2 hours home to make her private zoom calls. Plus, as @LuvOrlando says, there’s a safely factor too for her to live in a campground where there is no WiFi for her in her cabin/tiny house and spotty cell phone service.

If her cell phone data worked, then I would probably by ok with them paying only $5 per day as compensation. However, she is in a fairly remote area with limited cell coverage. She really only gets good coverage at work at the ski resort.

And yes, my plan does not have unlimited data. We have 8GB combined and it is usually enough for both of us. We pay about $63 all in per month for both of us and since we rarely blow through all of our data it’s not worth paying more for unlimited. We do get throttled after the data is gone and then cellular data is unusable. I’ll then buy some extra data in that case which only happens about once per year.

 

[sam_gordon]

If I have been limited, I never detected it. My precious Verizon cell phone plan did throttle you at some point, and we did an 8 day road trip using Google maps the entire time on the phone and were notified we were being throttled, but we sure couldn't detect any difference.

You'd only notice throttling if you a) hit the cap and b) were doing something that needed high speed... streaming and/or uploading or downloading of files.

 

[mjkacmom]

Never hurts to ask. We stay at Marriott Bonvoy and the basic Internet is free, the deluxe is $4.95 a day. Not sure what 20% of the rate being paid is, but that maybe a bit excessive, but $5 a day might be reasonable.
People in this day and age sometimes have a hard time believing that cell phone coverage can be unreliable. I have run into that. But to be honest, I did not know you could get a cell phone plan anymore that didn't have unlimited data.

My son is moving yo a bigger unit in his apartment complex today, turns out his last one had little to no cell service for a year and a half. He’s hoping the new unit will have service.

 

[tvguy]

She prepaid for nearly 4 weeks, so in my mind $5 per day ($35 per week) is not reasonable compensation for no internet and no streaming while everyone else has those amenities. WiFi is a necessity these days and this is a huge inconvenience, especially when she has to drive 1-2 hours home to make her private zoom calls. Plus, as @LuvOrlando says, there’s a safely factor too for her to live in a campground where there is no WiFi for her in her cabin/tiny house and spotty cell phone service.

If her cell phone data worked, then I would probably by ok with them paying only $5 per day as compensation. However, she is in a fairly remote area with limited cell coverage. She really only gets good coverage at work at the ski resort.

And yes, my plan does not have unlimited data. We have 8GB combined and it is usually enough for both of us. We pay about $63 all in per month for both of us and since we rarely blow through all of our data it’s not worth paying more for unlimited. We do get throttled after the data is gone and then cellular data is unusable. I’ll then buy some extra data in that case which only happens about once per year.

Are there landlines she could use? I'm agree some compensation is in order, and I used $5 a day because it is what one hotel charges for the service. I have watched way too many Judge shows on TV, so what comes to mind is that compensation should be fair, and based on the actual cash value of the service, it should not be a windfall. I have no idea what the dollar value 20% would be , but I have hard time believing it would add up to a windfall.

 

[kdonnel]

But to be honest, I did not know you could get a cell phone plan anymore that didn't have unlimited data.

I am assuming she is eating into the tethering data which is still almost always not unlimited.

 

[NYCgrrl]

Check and see how much it would cost to purchase another type of wi fi for the duration. That and the annoyance factor (5-10%?) seems like a reasonable amount to ask for to me. Good luck and persevere.

 

[Genie+]

HonestlyI don’t think 20% is out of line. Wi-fi in this day and age can almost be considered like a utility, on par with heating/cooling, water, etc. It’s an amenity that makes the accommodation functional. They sold it as part of the package.