I booked a room at St. Vincent's under the agreement that I would be getting a COMPLETE pet deposit refund back in the amount of $100 if the room sustained no damage from the pet, which it didn't. Before I booked, I was told in an email by one of the (thieving) owners, Dianne, that this was their pet policy. This was confirmed again via telephone with the other owner, Peter, before I checked in. I thought, "great, everyone is on the same page." WRONG. So I checked in and checked out under the same premise that I would be fully reimbursed $100, and my receipt also reflected that my deposit of $100 was FULLY refundable. Since I put the pet deposit on my credit card, I had to wait a bit for the refund to process and reflect in my bank account after I checked out. So, two weeks later I find out that only $70 was put back into my account, not the full $100. Now wait a second, this wasn't the quote previously agreed upon (by both owners!!). When I called the heistel, I mean hostel, (multiple times mind you) to find out what was going on, I was met with a lot of employees who didn't know what was going on with the situation. The incompetent staff took down messages for me, but I was never called back. Some days I would call and no one would pick up at all. After a week of this, I finally got a hold of the manager, Brandy. She told me that it wasn't the owners job to do the bookings in the first place, and that they misquoted me (not my problem!!). She also said that I was lucky to get $70 back! As if they have screwed other people over in the past for the full $100! She said that she talked to the owners and they said that this "was a closed case" and that there is nothing she could do about it. She apologized and said that "every hotel has a non-refundable pet deposit". BLANTANT THIEVERY! I was also never given Dianne's or Peter's phone number like I asked. I also emailed Dianne and Peter at the contact address listed on their website, but never got a response. You would think that the owners (DIANNE AND PETER) would at least own up to their screw-up and compensate me for the remaining money of the deposit, but no. I will never stay here again, and I will make sure my friends don't either.
BOTTOM LINE: NO ACCOUNTABILITY AND NO TRANSPARENCY ON THE OWNER'S PART. INCOMPETENT STAFF AND WORSE OWNERS WHO DON'T MIND RIPPING PEOPLE OFF. AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS!!! THE PLACE WAS SUPER NOISY ON TOP OF IT. THIS PLACE SUCKS.
Just to add, here is the initial email thread when I first booked the room:
reservation
st vincent email
x
tim Cone
12/1/11
to stvreservations
Hi!
I was wondering if I could make a reservation from Wednesday, January 4th - Saturday, January 7th. I am looking for a private room with two beds. There will be 3 people and one small dog. Please let me know if this would work when you get a chance! Thanks!
Dianne Anderson stvreservations@gmail.com
12/2/11
to me
Hi Tim, we do have availability and the rate is $49 Wednesday and Thursday and $59 on Friday and Saturday. We accept pets with a $100 deposit that is fully refundable at the end of your stay. Just phone or e-mail to reserve. We request a one night deposit to guarantee the reservation. Cancellation is 72 hours. Cheers, Dianne
- St Vincents Hotel
- St Vincents New Orleans
- St Vincent Guest House
- St Vincents Guest House
