Pre-Authorisation Hold - Hotel and Ulster Bank

Paully D

Hello all,

I have posted this in Consumer Issues but thought it would be worth getting opinion here too.

I have a query and unsure where to turn after going back and forth for a while so thought I'd post here to get your thoughts.

I stayed in a hotel abroad 2 weeks ago. Upon check-in, they took a pre-authorisation of the full amount of the stay and upon check-out the next day they took the same amount. They said upon check-out that they released the pre-authorisation and that I'd have it back within a number of days.

I left it a week but still nothing so contacted my bank (Ulster Bank) this day last week to see if they could help. Got speaking to a rep who said that they can see the money is still on hold, so to contact the hotel again but if not that after 10 days the hold is released anyway and money sent back to my available balance.

I then contacted the hotel who said again that they have released the pre-authorsatiom upon check-out and that the issue is with my bank and the money will be back with me when they sort it from their end.

10 days passed and still nothing so I rang the bank again this morning. They told me again that they can see the money is still on hold but that after 15 days the money is either taken by the hotel or released back into my available balance!

A number of lessons have been learned from myself here going forward, but in the meantime, is there anything I can do in order to get my money back into my available balance as soon as possible?

The hotel and bank are washing their hands of it and blaming each other, and I'm being told different timelines from the bank every time I speak to someone else. In the meantime, there's a substantial amount of money in my account unavailable to me and bills are mounting up.

Thanks guys.

elperello

Forget about the hotel.
The bank are responsible for your account.
Escalate until you get someone who knows what they are about.

daheff

Paully D wrote: »

Hello all,



10 days passed and still nothing so I rang the bank again this morning. They told me again that they can see the money is still on hold but that after 15 days the money is either taken by the hotel or released back into my available balance!
.

so are you at the 15 day mark and no money returned?

Offside

Exact same thing has happened to me with UB - hotel and bank blaming each other. I'm on about 6 working days since it happened now. How long did it eventually take for your hold to come off?

Paully D

Offside wrote: »

Exact same thing has happened to me with UB - hotel and bank blaming each other. I'm on about 6 working days since it happened now. How long did it eventually take for your hold to come off?

Sorry for the delay in responding mate.

It came back to my available balance after 12 working days. It was a tough couple of weeks without it.

My issue wasn't so much that the hotel took the pre-authorisation, that was in their terms and conditions so had the right to do so, more so that there was so much inconsistency regarding when I would get it back. It's much easier to plan when you know you'll definitely have it back in X amount of days. Two different Ulster Bank employees telling me two different stories isn't great.

In the end, I actually ended up getting the most help from live chat on the Ulster Bank site. A very helpful bloke was able to tell me exactly when it would be back and was accurate. Maybe try that route for some clarification?

Offside

Paully D wrote: »

Sorry for the delay in responding mate.

It came back to my available balance after 12 working days. It was a tough couple of weeks without it.

My issue wasn't so much that the hotel took the pre-authorisation, that was in their terms and conditions so had the right to do so, more so that there was so much inconsistency regarding when I would get it back. It's much easier to plan when you know you'll definitely have it back in X amount of days. Two different Ulster Bank employees telling me two different stories isn't great.

In the end, I actually ended up getting the most help from live chat on the Ulster Bank site. A very helpful bloke was able to tell me exactly when it would be back and was accurate. Maybe try that route for some clarification?

Thanks, most of it finally appeared back on Thursday with the rest on Friday. Glad to finally have funds back! Lesson learned.

Sofiztikated

Did you use your credit or debit card?

Debit cards hold the preauth for ages, while credit cards then to be shorter.

And it's usually your own bank that holds the show up, having dealt with this situation many times.

Galadriel

Sofiztikated wrote: »

Did you use your credit or debit card?

Debit cards hold the preauth for ages, while credit cards then to be shorter.

And it's usually your own bank that holds the show up, having dealt with this situation many times.

It's happened to me a few times so I only use my credit card now so if it happens again it's not money gone from my bank account.

The most annoying part is that they ALWAYS blame each other, it's ridiculous.

Tenigate

Preauthorisations are meant to be released quickly after checkout. I guess if the hotel released it immediately, it should then take a further 5 working days before the funds are available.

I stayed in a hotel in galway a few years ago as part of a group trip. I put one room's preauth on my credit card. The other guy was going to use his debit card, but the receptionist said it takes over 2 weeks to release the pre-auth on a debit card, and instead billed the guy the pre-auth amount, and refunded it 2 days later upon checkout.
The disadvantage of doing it this way is if the hotel went bust, he'd struggle to get his money back. The advantage is that the money went back to his card straight away.
It does seem to be an issue with banks in general rather than the hotel. My suggestion is to get a credit card with a half decent limit if you want to do things like book hotels, rent cars, etc.

elperello

Tenigate wrote: »

Preauthorisations are meant to be released quickly after checkout. I guess if the hotel released it immediately, it should then take a further 5 working days before the funds are available.

I stayed in a hotel in galway a few years ago as part of a group trip. I put one room's preauth on my credit card. The other guy was going to use his debit card, but the receptionist said it takes over 2 weeks to release the pre-auth on a debit card, and instead billed the guy the pre-auth amount, and refunded it 2 days later upon checkout.
The disadvantage of doing it this way is if the hotel went bust, he'd struggle to get his money back. The advantage is that the money went back to his card straight away.
It does seem to be an issue with banks in general rather than the hotel. My suggestion is to get a credit card with a half decent limit if you want to do things like book hotels, rent cars, etc.

Good idea.
If you have a good salary get a card with the highest limit you can get.
You never know when you will need it.
You will however need to exercise self control.

GerardKeating

elperello wrote: »

Forget about the hotel.
The bank are responsible for your account.
Escalate until you get someone who knows what they are about.

Yes, but remember two banks are involved, the bank that issued the card to the OP, and the bank that acquires the transactions for the hotel.

elperello

GerardKeating wrote: »

Yes, but remember two banks are involved, the bank that issued the card to the OP, and the bank that acquires the transactions for the hotel.

Yes you are right and that's why I said forget about the hotel.

The bank you have a business relationship with is where you need to apply the pressure. No good dealing with junior staff (no disrespect to them), you need to escalate until you get satisfaction.

GerardKeating

elperello wrote: »

Yes you are right and that's why I said forget about the hotel.

The bank you have a business relationship with is where you need to apply the pressure. No good dealing with junior staff (no disrespect to them), you need to escalate until you get satisfaction.

Unless the issue is with the hotel bank...

They way this is meant to work, is that a "Transaction Identification Number" (or "Trace Identification Number" in MasterCard terminology) is generated when the transaction is authorized. This makes it easier to link the completed transaction with the original authorization. This was mandated by the card schemes to have been in place since 1st April 2014.

But sometimes it does not work 100% as with the OP's issue.

Tenigate

elperello wrote: »

. No good dealing with junior staff (no disrespect to them), you need to escalate until you get satisfaction.

Or.. just recognise that the preauth system has never been perfect and manage your finances a bit better

ozanam

what not just pay at the start of the stay if you have the money.