Originally Posted by HR_Traveler

I don't agree.

It's certainly true that succeeding in a dispute for a charge where you failed to arrive is almost impossible, but this is different. Both the confirmation screen and email on the Marriott site are clear that you are providing your card to guarantee your arrival and they both outline the specific charge in the event that you fail to arrive or cancel. Neither however speak to any other costs nor the policy regarding charges for smoking in non-smoking rooms.

When you provide your card in your profile there is no language on that screen or in the terms/condition which are referenced which give the hotel permission to make charges to the card at their discretion, or on their policy regarding smoking and potential penalties.

A guest only agrees to the hotels policies when they check-in and therefore the agreement is with the person who signs at check-in not with the person who books the room. Booking a room for others is a very common practice, the room booker does not sign on to police the guests once they arrive, they only commit to paying for the room if the guest fails to arrive.

Finally; the issue of the certificate being non-transferable is separate and irrelevant to this issue. At most the hotel may have cause to charge for the room and refuse retroactively to accept the certificate. Even this would be a stretch given that they have already accepted it, and therefore agreed to ignore those terms.

The hotel was wrong to believe that they had authorisation to use the card provided at booking for any other reason than to hold the room and a dispute should be successful since this penalty charge did not form part of that agreement.