Title: Iconic Cancelled My Stay, Charged Me Anyway, and Engaged in Conduct That Raises Serious Consumer-Protection Concerns
My experience with Iconic Properties reflects multiple failures that raise significant legal and ethical red flags, including unjust enrichment, misrepresentation, and bad-faith handling of a consumer dispute.
This began with a clerical error in my booking -- one I caught and attempted to correct within the same hour, on the same day. This was not a voluntary cancellation or a change of plans. It was a simple administrative correction to a hotel booking I fully intended to attend (a two-hour drive away).
Iconic's handling of the situation from that moment on was inconsistent, contradictory, and obstructive. I received a rotating pattern of "yes/no/yes/no" responses that made it functionally impossible to resolve anything -- a cat-and-mouse communication pattern that prevented clarity and appeared designed to wear the customer down.
The most critical fact is this:
Iconic Properties cancelled the reservation themselves.
The night before I was scheduled to check in.
In writing.
Not me -- them.
Under standard hospitality practice and basic contractual fairness principles, when a hotel initiates the cancellation, the guest is entitled to a full refund. Iconic acknowledged this at the time and indicated I would be refunded.
Instead, they did the opposite:
They charged me for a reservation they cancelled themselves.
This constitutes unjust enrichment -- benefiting financially from a service they not only failed to provide but actively prevented me from accessing.
Worse, when I appropriately disputed the charge with MasterCard, Iconic engaged in behaviour that raises serious concerns:
They sent me a text message urging me to withdraw my credit-card dispute,
claiming I was "on the list for a refund" and that keeping the dispute open would "delay the process."
This was misleading, manipulative, and directly interfered with a legitimate financial dispute investigation.
Such behaviour may constitute misrepresentation and bad-faith inducement, as the promised refund never materialized.
Further:
Iconic failed to disclose their own cancellation when responding to MasterCard.
They omitted their written promise to refund me.
They failed to acknowledge VRBO's written confirmation that a refund was requested on my behalf.
They contradicted their own documentation while relying on a "no cancellation policy" that does not apply when the hotel itself cancels a guest's stay.
These actions collectively demonstrate:
- Bad-faith handling of a consumer dispute
- Misrepresentation by omission and contradiction
- Unjust enrichment
- Failure to act with reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing
- Breach of the reasonable-expectations doctrine
- Behaviour inconsistent with industry norms and consumer rights
This was not an ordinary mistake or miscommunication.
It reflects a systemic failure in transparency, honesty, and accountability.
I cannot recommend Iconic Properties.
Their conduct was misleading, contradictory, and contrary to principles of fair commerce. Consumers deserve clear communication, good-faith handling of disputes, and protection from practices that shift financial and emotional burdens onto the customer. read more
