THE INTERNET HAS changed all our lives for the better in many ways. However, now that meeting attendees are increasing their use of the various Internet hotel booking sites, some meeting planners are finding themselves in an attrition bind once the meeting is over and the final numbers toted up.
Association Meetings asked Tyra W. Hilliard, J.D., CMP, a meeting industry attorney who is assistant professor of meeting and event management at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., to provide contract wording to help guarantee that your group gets credit for all attendees at the meeting hotel.
“Hotel will use its best efforts to code all Group attendee reservations to the Group block and will ask all persons making reservations to identify whether or not they are with a group prior to finalizing the reservation. Group will encourage attendees to mention the Group name and/or Group reservation code when making reservations.
If Group reasonably believes that all attendees have not been coded to the Group room block for purposes of calculating pick-up, an audit will be conducted to compare Group's attendee list with a list of hotel guests in-house over the meeting dates. Representatives from Hotel and Group will conduct this audit together. Both Hotel and Group agree to protect the confidentiality of the other's proprietary information.
All rooms occupied by Group attendees will be credited to the Group room block for pick-up purposes regardless of the sleeping room rate paid.
(Optional Rate Clause) Hotel will not offer sleeping room rates over the Group meeting dates that are lower than the negotiated Group rate unless the lower rate is available for all Group rooms.”
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Clause and Effect: Food Donations
Americans with Disabilities Act
Clause and Effect: Early Departure Fees
Clause and Effect: Complimentary Room Nights
Clause and Effect: Hotel’s Right to Eject Troublemakers
Clause and Effect: Hotel’s Right to Modify Meeting Space
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Clause and Effect: Establishing Credit
Clause and Effect: Putting Group Charges on the Master Bill
Clause and Effect: Third-Party Commission Clauses
Clause and Effect: Disputing Charges