Rückerstattungen wegen rechtswidriger Stornogebühren nach ACL

Definition

NSW Fair Trading explains that accommodation providers may only charge cancellation fees for ‘reasonable costs’ actually incurred, and cannot unfairly penalise guests.[3] If the accommodation fails to meet consumer guarantees (e.g. not as described, unavailable), guests are entitled to cancel without any cancellation fee and receive a refund.[3] Many B&Bs and homestays publish rigid policies such as 100% forfeiture within 14–30 days of arrival, or full loss of all monies if a guest fails to arrive, regardless of whether the room is re‑sold or what actual costs were incurred.[2][4][5][6][8][9][10] These blanket policies risk being considered unfair terms under the ACL, forcing operators to refund fees on complaint or after chargebacks, and in worst cases adjust historic bookings. For a B&B with average nightly rate of AUD 220 and typical policies charging one night or 100% on late cancellations, a conservative 2–3% of bookings resulting in disputed or non‑compliant charges can translate into AUD 5,000–15,000 per year in reversed revenue plus staff time handling disputes. Additional exposure includes potential penalties and enforceable undertakings if systemic non‑compliance is detected.

Why This Matters

The Pitch: Bed-and-Breakfasts and small accommodations in Australia 🇦🇺 waste AUD 5,000–20,000 p.a. on refunds, chargebacks and disputes from non‑compliant cancellation and refund handling. Automation of policy design, documentation and refund decisioning aligned with ACL eliminates this risk.

Affected Stakeholders

Owner-operator, Front office / reservations staff, Finance and accounting, Legal/compliance adviser, Customer service team

Related Business Risks