Help Me Hank: Heartbreak Hotel

Renee figured that taking the kids to Disney World was going to be memorable.

Renee Shelley, Vacationer
"As most excited as they could get, they were."

She also knew the journey down south was going to be a real trip.

Renee Shelley
"I mean the car was just jammed solid with three adults and three kids in a minivan."

But what she did not know, it was also going to be a little scary.

Renee Shelley
"Jeepers, you know we could have been killed."

But it was Mickey, here we come as they left their Tyngsboro home and motored through New Jersey, Virginia and North Carolina: 17 hours later the kids got really cranky, but Renee's husband had a solution.

Renee Shelley
"He said, ‘I think we should just stop and relax, get a room, watch the game and sleep for a few hours.’"

So in rural Georgia, they paid for a motel room, the grownups tuned in football and the kids tuned out.

Renee Shelley
"They were exhausted."

Then, things were quiet until about two hours later.

Renee Shelley
"I heard somebody screaming."

Renee called the front desk -- no answer.

Renee Shelley
"Then the next thing I heard was, ‘well I’ll come back and this time ill take care of it, I have a gun.’"

Red lights, sirens, More noise!

Renee Shelley
"A big boom went off, anything is possible and I was just so scared."

The police arrived and broke up the fracas in a nearby room. One cop gave Bobby a souvenir badge, but Renee had just one idea.

Renee Shelley
"I said I don't care if I have to drive another 17 hours, I just want to get out of there."

But at the reception desk, the clerk was not so receptive.

Renee Shelley
"She told me that she was sorry, she could not give me a refund."

It was too late to argue, so on to Disney. But back at home, Renee called to demand her money back. But as the Disney memories faded and months went by -- no check arrived.

Renee Shelley
"That's when I decided to call you."

So we called down to Georgia and reminded the motel manager the family did not get the safe secure night's stay they'd paid for! And soon after this letter of apology arrived with this refund check tucked inside!

Now the family is paid back for a night they'd rather forget. And the kids can focus on what they'd rather remember…

Hank
"Who did you see in Disney World?"

Kid
"Mickey."

If you're fighting for a refund, sometimes it pays to go straight to the top. It may be that even a midlevel employee doesn’t have the authority to give your money back. So what consumer battle are you fighting maybe I can help.