The fraternity of consumer-focused columnists is fond of writing about “Travelers’ Rights.” But we really don’t. We write about airline passenger rights. Here in the United States, they’re extensive. They’re even broader in Europe. They’re backed by government, and they call for recourse if the airlines fail to provide. Like my brethren, I'll continue to cover developments.
Hotel Rights
Still, no federal or state laws specify performance standards or compensation requirements for hotels. Typically, local laws require hotels to provide adequate security, safety, and compliance with disability regulations. Other rights are limited to contract law. Although a reservation is a valid contract, even with no deposit, neither the law nor the contract states what a hotel will do if you arrive and find that no room is available. Industry custom is to “walk” you to another hotel that is at least as good and pay for the first night, but that’s a custom that is often ignored and not enforced anywhere.Cruise Rights
I once noted that the shortest book in the world is “Cruise Passengers’ Rights.” The big cruise lines’ trade association publishes a comprehensive passenger “Bill of Rights” that they incorporate into their contracts. But this “bill” has no teeth: Nothing in it specifies what a cruise line must do when it fails to meet any of the specified commitments—refunds, replacement, whatever. Your only recourse is to maritime law, which is not consumer-friendly.Tour Package Rights
Government rules require some tour operators to deposit payments into escrow accounts to protect consumers against operator failure. Beyond that, your only rights are contractual. Again, the contracts almost never include compensation if an operator fails to deliver.Car Rental Rights
It’s all contractual: If you show up at the counter with a firm reservation and there’s no car available, the agent is supposed to find you a car from another company. But supposed to doesn’t carry much weight. As in most other cases, there are no laws and no specified compensation. I recall arriving at Kona International Airport with my firm reservation and no cars only to find a dozen others in the same fix—and a smiling rental agent telling us we would get our cars as soon as the prior renters returned them. Sitting around a for couple hours in an airport rental car office: Welcome to Hawaii!The Takeaway
If your rights are determined solely by contractual requirements, it’s “lots of luck.” If you show up at an overbooked hotel with a confirmed reservation, you have a “right” to a room, but that doesn’t actually get you a room. If you show up at an airport needing a wheelchair, but there’s nobody available to push it, you don’t get the assistance, even when mandated by law. In the long term, the problem is that federal agencies have no authority over rental car companies and hotels. Any help must come from the states, and I haven’t seen any hurry for action there.Whenever you face a situation in which you’re likely to miss a plane, cruise departure, or whatever else, having a “right” or a regulation on your side doesn’t solve your problem. Instead, your alternatives are either to accept whatever delay or inconvenience might result and maybe claim compensation later on or improvise your own solution. Equally clear is that although a creative improvisation isn’t always feasible, a practical improvisation almost always beats the “suffer now, complain later” alternative. You can still complain later.
