leonidas

Lesson for them is that if you want to joke, joke overtly so that everyone realizes that it's a joke. The policy did seem dubious to me. Maybe suddenly in this craptstorm they are claiming it a joke.

FCfree

Assuming this was real, it is totally unenforceable. Imagine this ... you hold an event at the location. One of your guests posts something negative. How can YOU be held responsible for what they post?

I would dispute any $500 charge on my credit card so fast. Let them try to collect it.

BearX220

Annie's Baking Company, east coast division.

CGRA

Welcome to the end of democracy...

MojaveFlyer

I submitted a review on Trip Advisor and they did turned it down. I was honest that I had not stayed there but said that I thought TA readers should know about this issue. So you're going to see different reviews on Yelp and TA.

missydarlin

It was a stupid joke, and they are paying for it with bad publicity ... but to whom are they supposed to apologize? It doesn't appear that anyone was actually fined or attempted to be fined.

diburning

As a regular Yelper, I've found the filter to be a hit or miss although it's accurate most of the time. It simply filters out the reviews where it is obvious that the establishment is trying to increase their rating with a shill review, or if someone simply registered to complain and then would never be seen or heard from again (as most 1-post-count Flyertalkers do on the airline forums here)

Democracy is what our government claims to be. Businesses are not democratic although you can vote with your wallet.

leonidas

It was not a joke. They attempted to fine someone in Nov 2013, much before all this came to light.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/union-street...-c19Nmxt4r9X9w

MojaveFlyer

And now the news media have picked it up in their usual feeding frenzy and the story is all over the place. Spin control? oops.

CMK10

I have little sympathy for them. The "haha, just kidding" excuse is as bad as "I was drunk". As the above linked review shows it's unlikely they were kidding and even if this was a joke, it was a really stupidly thought out one. This is 2014, everyone knows that news sites and websites like Buzzfeed, Happy Place, Reddit etc. love stuff like this and the consequences of making such a "joke" can only be negative.

As my Mom always said, don't say anything you wouldn't want on the front page of the New York Times

astroflyer

They mayor of my current city frequently uses the "I was in my drunken stupor" excuses. Perhaps management happened to find themselves with a drug dealer and cocaine at the same time?

Seriously though, I don't get it. It is not possible to bully or cajole your way to a good review. There is only one correct response to a negative review:
Reach out the guest, figure out what wrong, and apologize. Then either try to find a way to make it right for that guest and/or use it as a learning experience to improve things going forward.

diburning

I agree with this. If you look at their current cancellation policy, it's completely ridiculous, and such a fine would be in line with their "demanding" policies.

IanFromHKG

Not so fast... If it is part of your contract, you would have to demonstrate it was penal in nature and didn't represent a reasonable pre-estimate of loss - and for a hospitality business, I could easily see a negative review costing a business $500. Oh, and if you look at the current terms at http://www.unionstreetguesthouse.com...weddings.shtml, you will see that if you dispute charges, they say they will hang on to your deposit until it is resolved.

^ only more so. I have absolutely no sympathy for them at all

I agree - see the link I posted above.

bhrubin

If a review is honest about what happened, it is protected free speech. Anyone trying to collect a fine as a result would have that thrown out in any court of law in the USA. Anyone trying to collect a fine as a result of someone ELSE's review would be laughed out of any court in the USA.

The fact that there is a review indicating that this property has done this previously suggests that their "it was kidding/a joke" is most likely an ex post facto attempt to revise history after the story got some publicity.

This property is getting exactly what it deserves. Its poor service got it bad reviews. Its reaction to the poor reviews was horrible, and it now is in the limelight as it deserves. Going out of business is a proper end to a bad business.

joshwex90

Doubt a chargeback would help if it's in an agreement you sign with them. AG wouldn't be much help as what's the violation?