Hotel Refused to Refund Your Cancelled Booking? Letter of Demand (Australia)

You booked a hotel. The room wasn’t what was advertised, the hotel cancelled on you, the property was unsafe or unsanitary, or a major service was missing. You asked for a refund. The hotel pointed at a “non-refundable rate” clause and said no.

That clause is not the end of the story. The Australian Consumer Law (ACL) sits on top of every booking made by an Australian consumer with an Australian-facing hotel or platform.

The legal context

Under sections 60 and 61 of the ACL, accommodation services must be supplied with due care and skill and be reasonably fit for purpose. Section 18 prohibits misleading conduct — including photographs and descriptions that misrepresent the room. When the hotel cancels, downgrades, or supplies a room that is materially different from what you booked, that is a breach. Where the breach is a major failure, you choose the remedy: refund, replacement booking, or compensation for the difference.

Common pushbacks and why they fail

• “You booked a non-refundable rate.” Non-refundable applies to your change of mind, not the hotel’s failure to deliver what you paid for.
• “Book through the OTA, not us.” Both the hotel and the platform can be liable; you can pursue either.
• “The photos are illustrative only.” Misleading representations breach section 18 regardless of disclaimers.
• “You should have raised it at check-in.” Helpful, but not a legal precondition to a later refund claim.

The Letter of Demand approach

A Letter of Demand cites the specific ACL provisions, identifies the booking, evidences the failure (photos, dated complaints, comparable listings) and demands a refund within 14 days. It also names the next step — Fair Trading, then your state tribunal — which is where most hotels prefer not to end up.

What Claim Done delivers

• Booking reference, dates, room type and rate paid
• The specific failure — cancellation, misrepresentation, unsafe condition
• Citation of ACL sections 18, 60 and 61 as relevant
• The refund amount claimed
• A 14-day deadline and named escalation path
• Sent on professional letterhead, flat $49

What to expect after

If the hotel ignores the letter, the next moves are a complaint to your state Fair Trading body and a small claims application in the relevant tribunal. Where the booking was through an OTA, the same letter can be served on the platform; many will refund rather than be named in tribunal proceedings.