A year an a half ago, we traveled back east for a wedding and a vacation. This trip was extended from 10 days to 3 months b/c my husband ended up in the hospital. I had a terrible time with this Hotel and Orbitz. After trying to cancel our reservation, Orbitz charged my credit card b/c hotel did not want to authorize cancellation of stay. I sent thame a letter upon returning to Denver. It read:
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Dear Mr. Gates,
I am Mr. X wife, with whom your hotel has corresponded about canceling our reservation back in January. I write asking you to authorize a credit in the amount of $623.26 to Orbitz.
We made reservations for 7 days and although the hotel’s policy is that cancellations or changes made after 6:00 PM local hotel time on the day of arrival are subject to a 100% charge. Your front end manager, Mr. Joshua Forten, did agree to cancel our reservation and charge us for a one night stay.
More than that, though, Virginia law states that “Where impossibility of performance is due to … to death or illness of one who by the terms of the contract was to do an act requiring his personal performance … the promisor will be excused ...” 1 M.J., CONTRACTS, § 69.
First, the purpose of the trip was to attend a wedding in North Carolina then visit D.C. before heading home. However, my husband was diagnosed with pneumonia at an Urgent Care Clinic in N.C. on January 3rd. In the evening of that day, around 6:00 P.M., I called the hotel to state we would not be staying that evening but that we would call the next day. We stayed in Fredericksburg with family instead, hoping that the illness would pass. I called the next day, January 4th, and tried to cancel with hotel. Ms. Greshuma, supervisor on duty, stated that I would have to cancel with Orbitz, however, Orbitz stated that the hotel will have to authorize the cancellation, and that I should call on Monday, the 5th of January for a refund. On Monday morning, my husband was rushed to the Hospital with irregular heart rhythm. I tried again to cancel on that afternoon. My husband’s hospitalization was a supervening event that had not reasonably been contemplated by us at the time of reservation. It made staying in your hotel impossible. Sure I could have agreed to stay at the hotel, and you could have given me possession of the room, but it so defeated the purpose that your hotel should excuse our performance of the contract and cancelled the reservation.
I have attached the following documentation of my husband’s hospitalization: the diagnosis from the Urgent Care Clinic, the Discharge/final summary of Dr. Y, my husband’s appointed primary care provider while at Hospital, and admission history and physical from Dr. Z, at Rehabilitation Hospital of Fredericksburg. Considering the overwhelming evidence that my husband was truly ill, I request that you authorize a credit in the amount of $623.26 with Orbitz.
These are reasonable demands. If I do not hear from you by May 22, 2009, I will assess what legal recourse we should take against your hotel, and Orbitz.
Very truly
Marla F. Benavides
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After writing the manager of the HI hotel that letter, on May 20th, I received a call saying that they would refund the entire amount ($800.00). Yes, you read it right! The entire amount was refunded, and the hotel room was finally cancelled. It took me five months to resolve this issue. But a thoughtfully written letter with evidence to prove my case went a long way to getting management to see my point of view.
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