Attracted by the words "unlimited stay a year", "stay one night back to the book" and other high-end popular hotels in the recommendation article, Chengdu citizen Pingping (pseudonym) bought a homestay membership card for 1298 yuan.
Related refund promise
But at the time of booking, Pingping found out that the hotel she likes will not have a room until March next year, and she needs to pay a deposit of 2500 yuan per room night. "So much margin is called to this platform, what if (the platform) runs away?"
Pingping felt that she had fallen into a trap and asked the platform to refund the card. however……
I was tempted at first
40+ high-end homestays in 25 cities only spend 1298 yuan a year
"There are 40+ high-end homestays in 25 cities across the country without limit to staying willful, covering a lot of scenic spots." "One room for 4 nights or 2 rooms for 2 nights can be booked each time"... In mid-August, Pingping accidentally saw a WeChat tweet In this article, the article introduces an annual guest house membership card with unlimited stays in one year. As long as you pay 1298 yuan to purchase the card to become a member, you can enjoy the right to stay at will within one year.
The merchant’s tweet introduced that in 25 cities across the country, including Chengdu, Xi’an, Haikou, Kunming, and Lijiang, more than 40 high-end homestays can be casually lived in, and most of them are located near the scenic spots.
Pingping was a little moved, and what made her decide to buy was the new August hotel announced in the tweet. There happened to be two hotels that Pingping had always liked. On August 15th, Pingping bought a homestay membership annual card, thinking about her trip in September and October.
The online person was dumbfounded
Have to wait until next March
Pay 2500 yuan deposit every night
At 8 o'clock in the evening on August 23, it was the launch time of Pingping Zhongyi Hotel. After she and her friend clicked to enter, they found that they had recently finished booking. After entering the "free booking" link, I found that this hotel will not have any room available until after March next year. If you go on weekends, you have to wait until May next year.
In addition, the room deposit is as high as 2500 yuan per room night, far exceeding the deposit amount of the hotel on other platforms. "I have to pay 5000 yuan for two nights, and according to its regulations, the deposit will be returned after I check in and check out. , Which means that the 5,000 yuan will be put in their company for more than half a year.” She clicked on another favorite hotel, which also won’t be available until February next year.
"I asked, saying that the number of members for the annual membership card of the homestay is large, and there are many people who snatch it, so it is necessary to work hard." Pingping was very angry, thinking that the company deliberately sold high-end and popular hotels to attract customers, but it was basically The inability to meet the needs of consumers for booking rooms is a pit for consumers.
The two sides are in dispute:
Consumers: If the room is not booked, refund!
Platform side: Reject! Sufficient housing
"If I knew that these two hotels had only 2 rooms for everyone to grab, I wouldn't buy a card." Pingping said, "My request now is for a refund."
This hotel has only 2 listings per day on the platform. Can consumers see this situation? In this regard, Chen Long, the operation director of Chengdu Xiangzhu Technology Network Co., Ltd., said, "On the company's mini program, click on a hotel or homestay, and then click on'hotel introduction' after entering, there will be the number of rooms."
Currently, the platform has refused Pingping's request for refund.
The reporter saw on the tweet on the page for ordering a homestay card: There are three channels for users to refund: one is that there is no room to book on the platform within 30 days after the membership card is activated; the other is that there is no room for check-in after the booking is successful; It is a price increase and mandatory consumption during holidays.
"Our platform rooms are as high as 90,000 nights throughout the year, which can fully meet the needs of members." Chen Long said that in this situation, Pingping only focuses on a single hotel, and the platform emphasizes all the listings on the platform. In September and October, the listings in Hongyuan, Ya'an and other places on the platform are very sufficient.” He admitted that consumers who are targeting a single hotel are actually not suitable for buying this card.
■ Lawyer analysis
Please carefully read the card instructions before purchasing the card
Lawyer Jiang Luxian of Sichuan Taihetai Law Firm stated that when consumers purchase the annual membership card of a homestay member, they have entered into a contractual relationship with the platform, agreed to become a member and follow the membership rules. However, due to the low price of this type of annual card itself, the bookable hotels include many room types whose value far exceeds the price of the annual card, so read the card instructions carefully before purchasing. Once you agree to become a member, you must abide by the platform usage rules.
As for the deposit issue that the citizen Pingping is worried about, Lawyer Jiang believes that it is similar to the deposit for shared bicycles before. If the supply of housing is much lower than the reservation demand of card users, users will fail to book repeatedly, and they will naturally feel "cheated" by the platform. By then, the user experience will be greatly reduced regardless of whether the deposit is embezzled. If the platform fails to provide hotel reservations as agreed on a certain day, the user has the right to pursue liability for breach of contract, and has the right to request a refund and compensation for losses.
Chen Xiaohu, a lawyer from JunZeJun (Chengdu) Law Firm, believes that as a merchant, when selling a homestay card, consumers should be informed of the card's use rules and precautions, and consumers have the right to know. If the merchant does not clearly inform the consumer of the relevant rights and obligations, and the (consumer) expresses their intentions in violation of their true wishes, the consumer can return the card through the consumer association, litigation, etc.
■ Extended reading
Who is the homestay card suitable for?
In the past two years, many homestay cards have appeared in China. Most of them live for free for 1 year after signing the contract. The price ranges from hundreds to thousands of yuan. The deposit (or security deposit) is paid in advance when booking. There are certain restrictions, such as booking the next one after the previous order has been checked in.
Someone tasted the sweetness and quickly received a refunded deposit (or security deposit) after staying several times. There are also people who cannot book a favorite B&B/hotel, or have not received the deposit (or security deposit) paid for a long time. Therefore, related complaints also occur from time to time.
A netizen who knows how to calculate an account: Take a homestay card that spends 688 yuan for one year as an example, the settlement price for the homestay is at least 150-200 yuan a night, and the bet is that the user can't use it 5 Times. If there are users who live as they advertised, and live 10 times a year 8 times, the platform will lose money.
A good homestay card sounds good at first, but does it actually smell? According to industry analysts, there are the following types of people who are relatively suitable for this card: 1. Retirees; 2. People who are not so selective about homestays and hotels; 3. Freelancers; 4. People with long holidays, such as students; 5. Full-time mom.
Chengdu Commercial Daily-Red Star News reporter Zhang Yingsha He Zheng
Chang Wei Yanxue Chart Network