Melbourne family can’t get refund for Surfers Paradise hotel with poo-stained quilt, fire-damaged kitchen

Broken appliances, a missing door, filthy bathroom, pigeon-poo-stained bedding and a kitchen that appeared to have been on fire before they arrived.

It was not the dream holiday the Powell family booked, yet the operator is refusing to refund more than $2000 they paid for the Surfers Paradise unit they claim was too filthy for them to stay in.

Melbourne mum Carol Powell wanted to take her eight-year-old son Tyler, who has a medical condition, to see the sharks being fed at Sea World, so booked and paid online for two weeks at the Beachcomber building in Surfers Paradise.

However, they were not aware the unit they booked was not operated by the Beachcomber Resort management, but by a private owner, the Gold Coast Bulletin reports.

Ms Powell said the unit had smelt putrid, was dirty and had appliances that weren’t working, so she took her family elsewhere while she tried to get a refund.

She was further perplexed by the owner’s response to her complaint — he sent her a series of text messages that appeared to be meant for someone else, followed by an email from his housekeeper who admitted she’d accidentally started — and hurriedly cleaned up — a fire when she wiped the stove just before the family arrived.

“The smell was just — I can’t even describe it — there was no shower screen, around the toilet and the shower was all grimy,” Ms Powell said.

“There were so many stains on the quilt cover we asked the housekeeper about it and she said she’d left the doors open to get rid of the smell and all the pigeons had got in and pooed on it.

“I was just horrified.”

The Office of Fair Trading is investigating the incident which the owner said was “beyond my control”.

“I told her I would get everything fixed up in a day or two’s time,” he said.

“I’m not in a position to refund because of my cancellation policy.

“I told them by the second day everything would be okey dokey.

“I can’t afford to keep my unit vacant for 14 days.”

Private holiday lettings trashing Coast: resort boss

BODY corporates that encourage private unit owners to handle their own holiday lettings are allowing poor managers to trash the city’s tourism reputation, says one resort boss.

Beachcomber Resort manager Greg Kafritsas said a third of his Surfers Paradise business’s units were privately owned and managed — often poorly — and he was frustrated at the bad reputation his business copped as a result.

The owners use online booking services to attract customers who usually don’t realise they haven’t booked with the main resort until after they arrive.

“We get a lot of them — often the owners are overseas,” he said.

“They just mail the keys to people — we have these problems all the time.”

Mr Kafritsas said some customers arrived to find their keys didn’t work or their rooms were already occupied.

“They come to the front counter and we try to help them out but there’s not a lot we can do,” he said.

“People go online and write bad reviews but they’re not even about us.

“They’re giving our tourism a bad name.”

The Office of Fair Trading received 377 complaints about accommodation in the past financial year.

A spokesman said consumer laws required accommodation be “fit for purpose”.

“If it is not, the consumer is entitled to a remedy such as a refund,” he said.

“Consumers who arrive to check-in and find the accommodation unsuitable are advised to immediately notify the accommodation provider.”

Consumers should do so as soon as possible, rather than for example, raising the problem after their first night’s stay.

“If the problem cannot be fixed by, for example, having the room cleaned or moving to a different room, the consumer should request a refund and find accommodation elsewhere.

“If finding alternate accommodation is not feasible, the consumer is entitled to negotiate a reduced room price with the accommodation provider.”

Source : Gold Coast Bulletin   Kathleen Skene  8th September 2015