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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Trip Advisor bad review 'fine' to be refunded by Blackpool hotel | |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| A hotel that "fined" a couple £100 who described it as a "rotten, stinking hovel" will refund the money. | |
| Tony and Jan Jenkinson posted the comments on the Trip Advisor website after spending a night at the Broadway Hotel, for which they paid £36. | Tony and Jan Jenkinson posted the comments on the Trip Advisor website after spending a night at the Broadway Hotel, for which they paid £36. |
| The couple, from Whitehaven, had the £100 charge levied to their credit card two days later. | The couple, from Whitehaven, had the £100 charge levied to their credit card two days later. |
| The Blackpool hotel has now said it will refund the money and vowed to improve the facilities. | |
| It introduced the policy of charging people who wrote bad reviews to prevent "customers from defaming" the business, a spokesman said. | |
| In a statement, the hotel said: "We exercised this policy with Mr and Mrs Jenkinson as we felt extremely upset by their actions and insulting comments towards our staff. | |
| "We agree there is room for improvement at our establishment and we desperately want to turn things around." | |
| The hotel has now cancelled its policy after Blackpool Trading Standards warned it could be illegal. | |
| Broadway bosses accused some "disgruntled customers" of abusing the review capability of TripAdvisor. | |
| "We have found that customers will threaten us with bad reviews simply to gain a discount," the hotel said. | |
| "The Broadway is a three star family run budget hotel and we charge as little as £15 per room per night and make a plea to customers to be more realistic in their reviews. | |
| "We appreciate all feedback and want our customers to review us based on their experiences with us as budget hotel." | |
| Officials believe the hotel may have breached unfair trading practice regulations. | Officials believe the hotel may have breached unfair trading practice regulations. |
| Mrs Jenkinson said: "We knew it was cheap, but you expect it to be clean and you expect it to be habitable - and it wasn't." | Mrs Jenkinson said: "We knew it was cheap, but you expect it to be clean and you expect it to be habitable - and it wasn't." |
| The hotel policy, contained in a booking document, read: "Despite the fact that repeat customers and couples love our hotel, your friends and family may not. | |
| "For every bad review left on any website, the group organiser will be charged a maximum £100 per review." | "For every bad review left on any website, the group organiser will be charged a maximum £100 per review." |
| However Simon Calder, travel Editor for The Independent, said the charge was "completely out of order" and undermined people's "right to give their fair comment". | However Simon Calder, travel Editor for The Independent, said the charge was "completely out of order" and undermined people's "right to give their fair comment". |
| However, it did "highlight the exasperation" many hoteliers have with online review sites, with some customers threatening bad reviews in order to get discounts, he said. | However, it did "highlight the exasperation" many hoteliers have with online review sites, with some customers threatening bad reviews in order to get discounts, he said. |
| Retired van driver Mr Jenkinson, 63, who paid £36 for a double room, said the details of the charge were in the booking documents, but his wife did not have her glasses on and signed without reading the small print. | Retired van driver Mr Jenkinson, 63, who paid £36 for a double room, said the details of the charge were in the booking documents, but his wife did not have her glasses on and signed without reading the small print. |