Deceptive Fees Prompt Class Action Suit Against Atlantis Resort

Deceptive Fees Prompt Class Action Suit Against Atlantis Resort

A class-action lawsuit accuses Kerzner International of engaging in “unfair and deceptive practices” by charging certain fees to guests at its Atlantis resort in the Bahamas, the local Tribune Business reports.

The suit, filed by Jennifer Costa on June 30, seeks to represent guests who stayed at the Atlantis resort, including The Cove and The Reef, from March 28, 2007 onward. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Florida.

At the heart of the Atlantis suit is the “mandatory housekeeping gratuity and utility service fee” that Atlantis guests pay, Tribune Business reports.

Costa claims the “mandatory fee” is deceptive because Kerzner International doesn’t give all of it to either housekeeping staff or to cover utility fees. The suit says:

“By labeling the gratuity and utility charge something that it is not, Kerzner is deceiving consumers into paying more for their hotel room than they bargained.”

Atlantis: We don’t retain the fees

Kerzner International disputes the lawsuit’s allegations.

In a statement to Hotel Check-In, the company says:

“Contrary to the allegations and implications of this lawsuit, Kerzner does not retain as profit any portion of the mandatory housekeeping or utility service fees and we will continue to vigorously defend these allegations.”

The case is currently set for trial in the Florida courts in December.

According to a report by Hospitality Business News, most hotel workers in The Bahamas are covered by a union agreement, and under the agreement, hotels collect a daily gratuity for housekeepers, making it mandatory. Some of the money is set aside in a “common pool” for other hotel employees, the story says.

“The energy surcharge, however,” the piece continues, “is an additional charge added by the hotel at their sole discretion.”

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