What is Hotel Attrition?
When a hotel offers a group rate and holds a block of guestrooms for your meeting or event, the hotel will typically require some level of guarantee that those rooms will actually be used.
This is where attrition comes into play.
In your hotel contract, you may see a clause titled “Attrition,” “Performance,” or something similar. This clause outlines how much of your contracted room block your group is required to fill and what may happen financially if you fall short.
How Does Hotel Attrition Work?
A commonly negotiated allowance is 20% cumulative attrition, meaning the group is responsible for utilizing approximately 80% of the total contracted room nights across the program.
For example, if your group contracts 100 total room nights with 20% allowable cumulative attrition, you would generally need to utilize at least 80 room nights before attrition damages could apply.
However, not every hotel calculates attrition this way.
Hotels may offer only 10% allowable attrition, and some contracts calculate performance per night rather than cumulatively. That distinction can make a significant difference.
If your attendees arrive later than expected or depart early, you could meet your overall room-night commitment and still have an attrition issue on an individual night if the contract requires nightly performance.
Why You Need to Read the Clause Carefully
Do not assume that every attrition clause works the same way.
Read the language line by line and pay attention to:
The percentage of allowable attrition
Whether performance is measured cumulatively or per night
When the hotel measures your room-block performance
How attrition damages are calculated
Whether resold rooms are credited toward potential damages
Whether taxes, fees, or other charges are included in the calculation
These details can have a major financial impact if your room block does not perform as anticipated.
Planner Tip
Attrition language is negotiable.
Working with an intermediary partner who understands hotel contracts can help you negotiate more favorable terms, identify potentially costly language before signing, and help mitigate damages if your room block does not perform as expected.
Planning a meeting or event with 10+ rooms on peak? I can assist with hotel sourcing and contract negotiations at no direct cost to your organization in most cases, as hotel commissions typically compensate us for these services.
