Have you ever attended a wedding and stayed at the hotel only to find out that the hotel did not live up to your expectations? If your one of those guest who always leaves a review then of course you would comment on your experience. Obviously companies don’t like negative reviews but in my option if the place was up to par then the amount of negative reviews would be minimal. Recently a very popular hotel in New York made a bold move by fining wedding parties and their guests $500 for each negative review that they post about their stay. Insane right?!
The hotel had a statement on their website, but it has since been taken down. It said something like:
Please know that despite the fact that wedding couples love our venue, your friends and families may not…If you have booked us for a wedding or other type of event anywhere in the region and given us a deposit of any kind for guests to stay here there will be a $500 fine that will be deducted from your deposit for every negative review placed on any internet site by anyone in your party and/or attending your wedding or event. If you stay here to attend a wedding anywhere in the area and leave us a negative review on any Internet site, you agree to a $500 fine for each negative review.
The hotel’s strategy of maintaining a pristine online review presence has backfired, as their Yelp page has been flooded with negative reviews. The improper use of Yelp and other online review sites has hindered the company from taking constructive criticism from its’ guests to improve the quality of their hotel.
For brides looking to hire a vendor with similar clauses in its’ contract, it is important to remember that these threats cannot be fulfilled, as the contract can be nullified under the Doctrine of Reasonable Expectations and Unconscionable Terms, as made precedent by The People of the State of New York vs. Network Associates in 2003. If a venue has such strict and outrageous clauses you may want to steer clear of them. While on the note of what a vendor try’s to enforce, if a venue tells you that you can only hire from a specific vendor list such as florist A or B, photographer A or B, DJ, etc please note they cannot force you to hire any vendor. You have the freedom to hire the vendors of your choice. Don’t let a venue twist your arm by telling you that you must or can only hire the vendors they work with.
This nameless hotel has since taken down all statements posted onto their website and Facebook and refuse to release any statements on the matter.
Brides make sure you read your contracts for any venue/vendor! Ask questions if you do not understand any verbiage in the venue’s contract.
Wedding Carnivals 