The key facts
- A hotel has no right to withhold a guest's documents or prevent them from leaving over a damage dispute — Georgy Mokhov, RCT
- A price list does not by itself prove the administration is right: the amount of damage and the guest's involvement must be confirmed
- Courts have previously sided with tourists when the amounts were not substantiated, the expert notes
What the expert said
A hotel has no right to force a guest to pay for disputed damage, withhold their documents, or prevent them from leaving, said Georgy Mokhov, vice-president of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, in an interview with Moscow 24. According to him, if a guest disagrees with the claims, the validity of the demands should be examined in court.
Evidence and dispute practice
A price list for furniture, tableware and appliances does not by itself prove the administration is right: the hotel must confirm the amount of the damage and the guest's involvement in it. Mokhov recalled cases where courts sided with tourists — the amounts claimed were not substantiated in any way, and there was no evidence of the guests' fault. At the same time, he called bad-faith claims relatively rare: more often it really is a matter of damaged items. Abroad, resolving a conflict is more difficult, since hotels are subject to local laws, and enforcing a Russian court ruling on the return of money can be problematic.
How to reduce the risk of a dispute
To reduce the likelihood of a conflict, the specialist advised inspecting the room immediately upon check-in, documenting any damage with photos or videos, and reporting it to the staff. A tour operator is not liable for damage to hotel property, but its representative can help contact the police or consulate in the event of threats or a conflict.
A recent example of a dispute with a hotel
The occasion for the comment was, in particular, the case of tourists from St. Petersburg who complained about the condition of their room at a hotel in Egypt. They paid 360,000 rubles for a package for four people, but found dirty and torn bed linen, stains and loose fixtures in the room, as well as damaged furniture and a broken lock. According to the vacationers, the administration demanded an extra payment for a room change.
