Czech Trade Inspection Authority: Hotel refused to accommodate Romani woman even though it had vacant rooms

The 31 audits concentrating on consumer discrimination also involved monitoring compliance with other legal regulations and inspectors uncovered 12 violations unrelated to discrimination. During the second quarter, the inspectors found two cases of violations of the Consumer Protection Act in which it was proved that the seller discriminated against consumers when providing services or selling products.

In one case, a Romani woman was not accommodated by a hotel even though it had vacant rooms. “The case at issue was about not allowing accommodation in a hotel in a district town in the Ústecký Region. They refused to accommodate a person of Romani origin, a ČOI inspector of Romani origin acted as the customer,” ČOI press spokesperson Jiří Fröhlich told news server Romea.cz, adding that the refusal of accommodation occurred for no apparent reason.

“They had free rooms and accommodated other guests,” added Fröhlich. An administrative proceedings is currently underway in the matter.

“No fine or measure has yet been imposed because we have to respect the administrative rules and allow the opposing party to submit arguments within the deadlines established or to appeal,” Fröhlich said. The other case of discrimination discovered during the second quarter involved a business that was treating its Czech-speaking customers differently from English-speaking ones.

“Inspectors posing as Czech-speaking customers were not allowed into the restaurant, but the English-speaking customers were admitted at the very same time,” said the spokesperson. ČOI also imposed a final fine on FlixBus CZ for CZK 50,000 [EUR 2,000] during the second quarter over a case discovered in the first quarter of 2022 involving discriminatory behavior towards persons living with disabilities.