Kim Anderson had been looking forward to a girls’ weekend in Florida for months. So when a December ice storm paralyzed travel in Chicago, her mother and teenaged daughters were disappointed, to say the least.
“This is not how we envisioned our vacation going,” Anderson recalled. “I have never seen O’Hare like that before.”
After 11 hours at the airport, Anderson decided to move her misery across the street to the Hilton Chicago O’Hare Airport Hotel. Her mom had stayed there the night before for $179. When Anderson called to check rates, she said the price had gone up around $50 a night, which, she thought was reasonable, all things considered.
But by the time they walked across the street, it had gone up even more.
“The gentleman at the desk said it’ll be $499, and I said ok, wait, I’m not asking for the penthouse. I just want a regular room. And he said that is the rate for a regular room,” Anderson said. “I understand the principle of supply and demand but to me, that felt like extreme price gouging to go from $179 to $499 in one day.”
In a number of states, Anderson would be correct. In New York, for example, merchants – including hotels – are prohibited from taking unfair advantage of consumers by raising rates to an unconscionably excessive price during disruptive events, including storms. But in Illinois, there is no similar law.
For its part, the O’Hare Hilton told NBC 5 Responds that the Andersons could have gone to a lower-priced hotel. A Hilton spokesperson justified the rate increase on a high occupancy rate and related costs during the ice storm. In states where hotels are prohibited from spiking prices during a storm, Hilton Worldwide says it follows all applicable laws.
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“To me, they were really missing the point,” Anderson said. “I’m not talking about bad shower pressure or pillows. I’m talking about price gouging and taking advantage of consumers.”
Here is the full statement from Hilton:
Hilton Worldwide always seeks to offer our guests a fair rate based on remaining inventory. We expect our hotels to abide by all applicable laws, rules and regulations. In our owned and managed properties, we often go above and beyond applicable laws in extraordinary circumstances, such as hurricanes and other natural disasters, to ensure that the safety & security of guests take precedence over other considerations inclusive of rate or profit.