Marriott sued by the District of Columbia alleging fraudulent resort fees

• The District of Columbia sued the Marriott International hotel chain on Tuesday, alleging that mandatory resort fees added to hotel bills were misleading and illegal.
• The lawsuit alleges that the hotel chain falsely announced a rate before tackling additional charges over the final room price.
• The lawsuit resulted from an ongoing investigation into the hotel sector opened in 2016 by Attorneys General of 50 states and the District of Columbia.

District Attorney General Karl Racine sued Marriott International on Tuesday, alleging that mandatory resort fees and hotel chain charges were misleading and illegal. This is the first trial to come out of a multi-state investigation in progress in pricing practices in the hotel sector.

The lawsuit alleged that the Bethesda, Maryland-based company had misled customers at least in the past decade by using a "disguised fare" or falsely advertising a rate before sticking to additional hidden fees.

Consumers who compare prices on the Marriott website or on booking sites such as Priceline and Expedia often only discover the total price after starting the booking process, the complaint says. Mr. Racine's office also stated that Marriott often included visitor taxes under the "Taxes and Fees" heading, misleading consumers into thinking that the extra fees were imposed by the government. Fees can also be called "licensing fees" or "destination fees".

According to the complaint, at least 189 Marriott properties around the world charge a fee, which can be up to $ 95 per room per day. According to the complaint, the hotel company generated additional revenue of several hundred million dollars. "Consumers have the right to know exactly what the price of the room is," Racine told CBS MoneyWatch.

Marriott declined to comment on the ongoing litigation, but a spokeswoman said the company would continue discussions with attorneys general of other states.

Attorneys General Team Up

The lawsuit was a direct result of an ongoing investigation into the hotel industry opened in 2016 by attorneys general of the 50 states and the federal district of Columbia. In 2012, the Federal Trade Commission also warned 22 hotels, including Marriott, that their pricing practices violated federal consumer protection laws. The agency released a report in 2017 that said "separate mandatory resort fees from posted rates without first disclosing the total price risk of harming consumers".

The District of Columbia is seeking a court order for Marriott to announce the actual hotel room prices, to reimburse customers in the country of residence, and to pay civil penalties.