Double room booked in Austria and not canceled.
March 1, 2010 | 25,00 EUR | answered by Bernhard Müller
Dear Sir or Madam,
I have booked a double room in a hotel and forgot to cancel it, as we were unable to travel there. Now I received a registered letter with the invoice for the total amount of 594 euros. Do I really have to pay the full amount?
Yours faithfully
Dear questioner,
By booking, you have entered into a contract for the double room.
According to §§ 293, 294 BGB, you are in default of acceptance by not making use of the room.
You must fulfill this contract by paying the total amount of 594 euros.
An exception would be if the hotel made savings because you did not use the hotel room. In that case, you could deduct the amount saved by the hotel from the invoice amount according to the principles of unjust enrichment §§ 812 ff BGB.
You could also deduct income that the hotel has made by re-renting the room or not made by negligently failing to re-rent it.
You would have to prove this.
In your case, I do not see any costs that the hotel should have saved by you not using the room.
Also, the hotel would not have had the opportunity to rent the room out differently. On the contrary, they would have waited until the end to see if you would still come. The hotel was entitled to do so.
Because of the lack of cancellation, no one could have known that you would not come.
Therefore, you must pay the full amount.
Yours sincerely,
Bernhard Müller lawyer
