A woman has claimed she was asked to leave a city centre hotel after being unable to pay a £1.20 charge, leaving her temporarily stranded in the city at night.
Margaret Jones, 63, had arrived in the city on Thursday evening (January 2) for an overnight stay at the Britannia Hotel on Portland Street. Having travelled from her Lincolnshire hometown, she arrived at the hotel shortly after 9pm.
At the hotel check-in, Margaret, who has mobility issues and memory loss, said she was informed by reception staff that she would be required to pay the £1.20 ‘tourist tax’ on top of her booking upon arrival.
Due to her memory loss, Margaret said she primarily pays for things in cash as she often forgets her card PIN numbers, which can lead to severe panic attacks. As a result, Margaret said she could pay for the City Visitor Charge levy with cash – but alleged she was told she must pay by card.
“I don’t like using my card, normally I carry cash all the time,” Margaret explained to the Manchester Evening News. “I’m reluctant to use my cards because I don’t remember my PIN numbers. I know where I stand with cash, my cards all look the same so I often forget which card I’m using.”
Margaret stayed at the Britannia hotel on Thursday evening (January 2)
(Image: MEN Media)
Unaware of the city tax, which was first implemented by the Manchester Accommodation BID in April 2023, Margaret said she had not expected to pay the extra charge but was not against it. However, she claimed staff at the hotel were ‘unwilling’ to help her pay with a card alternative.
“I gave them £1.50 in cash and they refused it,” she explained. “They told me they don’t take cash, and I explained about my mental impairment, but they didn’t seem to want to listen.”
Margaret, who uses a mobility walker, alleged she was then told by staff that she would need to leave the hotel if she couldn’t pay the levy by card. “I tried to use one of my cards and it wanted my PIN number,” she added.
“They told me that I couldn’t have my room and I couldn’t stay there. They actually turned me away from the building – I was pretty much left stranded in the freezing cold. I didn’t know what to do – I was shaking and crying.”
Margaret claims she then stood outside the hotel for around 15 minutes, before a friend offered to pay the levy via the internet or over the phone. She said this offer was also refused by staff.
Margaret claimed staff at the Britannia Hotel, on Portland Street in the city centre, were unable to take her cash payment
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
“They said it was too late to use the internet to pay for any bookings and they wouldn’t take payment over the phone,” she explained. “I’ve offered cash, payment by phone or the internet, and they wouldn’t accept any of it. They didn’t seem to care.”
Eventually, Margaret said she found a card that would accept a tap payment without requiring a PIN and she was able to pay the fee and granted access to her booking for the night. But she said the experience has left her feeling anxious and embarrassed.
“It’s ludicrous,” she said. “I thought cash was legal tender. I told them I was at another Britannia hotel a few months ago and had no issues and they just said ‘well, different hotels have different rules’. Maybe I’m being too old-fashioned, but surely there’s a way of collecting the fee in cash or something? Not everybody has cards.
“I don’t mind paying the £1.20 city fee but when I’ve already paid for a room and to be told I can’t stay there and turned away in the cold, I think there’s something seriously wrong with that.
“I had no way of getting back to Lincolnshire. If they do this to disabled people, what are they doing to other people? They could see that I had mobility issues and they were prepared to let someone, who paid outright for their room, leave in the freezing cold.
“It just showed to me that they weren’t really geared up for disabled people. Sadly, you get used to things like this happening on a regular basis and I think that’s wrong.”
The M.E.N has approached both Britannia Hotels and Manchester Accommodation BID for further information.