Marriott Fines Guest for Vaping

[Baldr]

She said herself that she isn't disputing the charge with the credit card company because the hotel told her not to.

That's why I say she's a willing accomplice. I can't feel bad for her because she's just playing along, doing what the hotel tells her. If she doesn't mind the hotel stealing her $250, then why should I worry about it?

"The answer to that is the Hotel has told me".

That's the issue. She's willing to let the hotel do whatever they want. The hotel told her, so it's all done, and she's just going to pay up.

 

[ScottinSoCal]

This is funny, in a black-comedy kind of way, because I just spent several days the the Mariott Marina Del Rey, and used my ProVari the whole time I was there. I used it in my room, and right outside the hotel while waiting for things to clear up so I could get my car. I sat it on the counter at the check-in desk while I checked in and out. No one said a word about it.

 

[tgcrna]

This incident makes me a little ashamed of being a North Carolinian!

 

[mostlyclassics]

The Marriott Corporation is now yet another major company on my personal boycott list.

If my only options are staying at a Marriott or pitching a tent in the forest, I'll pitch the tent.

 

[Bovinia]

So they have a "no smoking" policy. Do they have a policy against Snus? Chew? Any other type of tobacco product? I don't see how they can consider vaping the same as smoking. What a shame this lady doesn't want to fight this extortion charge

 

[swedishfish]

She said herself that she isn't disputing the charge with the credit card company because the hotel told her not to.

That's why I say she's a willing accomplice. I can't feel bad for her because she's just playing along, doing what the hotel tells her. If she doesn't mind the hotel stealing her $250, then why should I worry about it?

"The answer to that is the Hotel has told me".

That's the issue. She's willing to let the hotel do whatever they want. The hotel told her, so it's all done, and she's just going to pay up.

True. But I'm cheap and you'd have heard me in Dallas if someone tried to tack a $250 charge on my bill. I'm having hissy fits with Netflix over being charged an extra $10.

I'm not as honest as this woman is I guess. I'd have denied I was smoking (because I was vaping). Said maybe the maid was sniffing too many cleaning fumes because she didn't smell smoke from my room. Tell them to prove it.

 

[AttyPops]

Assuming it was just vaping, this is not justified in the case of e-juice vapor, since vaping is not smoke and is in fact smoke-free, IMO.

OTOH, let's say your brother-in-law owns a hotel room-restoration service, and you work at as a manager in a hotel. You get a kick-back for every room referred to their business (maybe under the table). Everyone makes money (except the poor victim/guest). Sure, you'd target e-cigs too. lol. Not saying it's so, but think about it. One hand washes the other in this case. Even if it's internal, it keeps additional staff employed. You'd only need to sock a couple/three guests per week to keep an extra cleaning staff person paid.

I'd definitely want a detailed, itemized list of everything that goes into that $250 with cost breakdown and who performs the service (hotel or outside services). And if it went to court, I'd want a detailed list of all customers over the last year that were socked with this.

 

[mooreted]

Wow, I would have reversed the charges that day and screw what the motel says. The rule is a no smoking rule, vaping is not smoking therefore the smoking rule was not broken. Let the lawyers define the word "smoking" over the next 10 years while you try to get money out of me. Your ignorance is not my problem.

I am definitely hiding my supplies here at the hotel.

 

[Green Mtn Vpr]

This is beginning to hopefully sound like the ignorance of, a scam by, or the selective agenda on an individual managers part...at least based on the many other Marriott responses and experiences related. I am truly hoping that is the case, combined with a guests complacency to be taken advantage of. What I cant quite figure is the higher levels at Marriott not interceding when sought...

I am a frequent traveler and have had many great experiences with Marriott, although I would/will not hesitate for a second to no longer use them and would make every effort possible to share my boycott if this is the treatment I can expect as a 'vaper'. This is quite simply discrimination. I am NOT A SMOKER and will not accept being treated as one. Unless they intend to regulate every customer scent and restrict/fine things like the truly offensive perfume/cologne that some people seem to have bathed in, then any vaping related restriction or charge is nothing more than discrimination. How about body odor? Or using the bathroom? I doubt there is a single person here that has not walked the hall of a hotel and had to endure the nastiness emanating from the bathroom of one of the rooms? Are they going to write policy, restrict, and charge those folks? I seriously doubt it.

Vaping does not burn tobacco, or anything else for that matter, so it is not smoking. The vapor aroma is zero to mild, is not harmful, and does not linger...and even if the aroma was able to reach others and was disliked, please Marriott, explain to me how it is any different from, or even comes close to, the personal infringement of any of my previous examples?!

Again, lets hope this proves to be an ignorant manager and not an ignorant company. I am glad to see the many who are willing to get involved to find out and to stand united, regardless of whether the guest is willing to stand up for herself or not. I will be sending inquiries myself to the Marriott email addresses so kindly provided and exercising every bit of influence I have if it turns out to be Marriott and not just an employee. Never underestimate the reach we can have together.

 

[mooreted]

We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.

--Benjamin Franklin

 

[Baldr]

I agree with people saying "If that's how it is, I won't do business with them". However, I rarely stay at hotels, and tend to use low end hotels when I do, so they aren't really losing any business from me.

Funny how very few seem to feel the same about Paypal, despite Paypal saying that they won't do business with companies that sell vaping supplies.

 

[mooreted]

Actually, I haven't done business with PayPal for a long time and probably never will again.

 

[mavrik]

MAN this gripes me! That poor woman. I sure wish I lived in this city so I could go to that Marriott and raise some hell. We ALL know that there is no way there was ANY lingering odor from vaping! How could housekeeping even smell this woman's "smoke" from the hallway since there IS NO SMOKE !!!! How irritating. How irrational! How cool if we all boycotted the Marriott's in our respective areas!

it would be cooler to meet with every vaper you know and all go to the marriot and sit in the lounge and vape until they call the police lol, also, contact local news before you go, it would be monumental!

 

[Ande]

Well, you can't make people fight what they don't want to fight. She's got a hell of a case, though.

As I understand the story (which doesn't make a lot of sense):

She didn't smoke, she vaped.

The maid didn't smell smoke in the hallway, she lied.

The hotel manager, after the fact, spouted some semi-coherent nonsense about "if you can't do it on a plane, you can't do it in our hotel." The problem with that is, airlines publicize their policies. In flight magazines on several airlines say that you cannot use ecigs on flights. I disagree with the policy, but if I vape and get into trouble, I have been warned. This woman was only told AFTER THE FACT that the policy excludes vaping, and she was fined.

If she wanted to fight this, it wouldn't be the hardest fight to win that I ever saw.

The fact that she isn't fighting it smells rather funny. Maybe she's got more money than sense. Maybe she's a ewe. Or maybe there really WAS a real cig somewhere, and the electronic one is a smokescreen? (Excuse me, vapor screen.)

Whatever. IF it were me, they'd have a credit card chargeback already, and if they pursued their money, that might be considered harassment.

But if she doesn't want to play that way, for whatever reason, there's nothing we can do.



Ande

 

[mooreted]

Even though her story does smell a little fishy, I wrote a complaint to Marriot's because I don't want this happening to other vapers, and I continue to write in whenever I see this sort of thing happening. We have to speak up for ourselves, our politicians certainly wont.

 

[SnakeFarm]

Over the years, I've come to believe that having some form of mental disorder is a requirement Marriot employment from the concierge desk up, and they intentionally drive everyone under them insane so they can promote from within. I always feel like they are looking for any excuse to charge me for something.

 

[mooreted]

Well, I am currently at a Hyatt and it has been a good experience so far, but no one mentioned the $20 per night parking so I didn't know about that until I got here. Not that big of a deal but I do wish businesses would just be up-front about everything.

 

[wdave]

Okay DIY'ers. We need a juice that smells like motel room carpet.

 

[kevbow]

Well, you can't make people fight what they don't want to fight. She's got a hell of a case, though.

As I understand the story (which doesn't make a lot of sense):

She didn't smoke, she vaped.

The maid didn't smell smoke in the hallway, she lied.

The hotel manager, after the fact, spouted some semi-coherent nonsense about "if you can't do it on a plane, you can't do it in our hotel." The problem with that is, airlines publicize their policies. In flight magazines on several airlines say that you cannot use ecigs on flights. I disagree with the policy, but if I vape and get into trouble, I have been warned. This woman was only told AFTER THE FACT that the policy excludes vaping, and she was fined.

If she wanted to fight this, it wouldn't be the hardest fight to win that I ever saw.

The fact that she isn't fighting it smells rather funny. Maybe she's got more money than sense. Maybe she's a ewe. Or maybe there really WAS a real cig somewhere, and the electronic one is a smokescreen? (Excuse me, vapor screen.)

Whatever. IF it were me, they'd have a credit card chargeback already, and if they pursued their money, that might be considered harassment.

But if she doesn't want to play that way, for whatever reason, there's nothing we can do.



Ande

I have a feeling we might be hearing her story sometime soon

 

[StotheK]

I have a feeling we might be hearing her story sometime soon

I'm sure that will be interesting