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Be in the look out....

Summer travelers who don't check out hotel charges before they check in might get an unpleasant surprise at the end of their stay. The hotel industry is finding new ways to slip automatic surcharges, along with other additional fees, onto the bill. They range from $1 or $2 for a room safe to a $40 daily resort fee covering poolside towels, golf courses or tennis courts -- whether you use these amenities or not.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accounting firm that tracks hospitality trends, estimates hotel fees and surcharges will net a record $1.75 billion this year, more than triple the x $500 million they brought in five years ago. The Florida Attorney General's Office is investigating two hotel companies over automatic charges and fee disclosures.

The Attorney General's Office, which started a deceptive-trade practice investigation in 2001 after state employees traveling for business noticed unexpected charges on their bills, settled with three major hotel management companies and owners since 2005, the latest being what was then called Wyndham International.

Wyndham, purchased by LXR Properties in 2005, agreed last year to list automatic charges as rates were quoted upfront and reservations made. The company also will refund a total of $560,000 to hotel guests who stayed at 37 Wyndham Florida properties between May 29, 1998, and July 28, 2006.

Most hotels involved in the settlement were in South Florida, Sanibel, Orlando and the Florida Keys. For more information and to file a claim, call 800-930-0057 or go to Florida Attorney General - Home Page and put the words "Wyndham restitution" in the search field. Claims must be received or postmarked by Oct. 27. While federal law requires guests be notified about add-on fees, experts say how and when that happens will vary between hotels and the type of charge or service.

Automatic surcharges and add-on fees have become more popular as hotels struggle to recoup the in-room phone revenue they lost when more guests started carrying cell phones, said Joseph J. West, dean of the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Florida International University in Miami.

Waiting to tack on charges until right before a booking is made can keep a lower, more attractive base rate in front of hotel shoppers longer, West said. Consumers always can ask for resort and other "automatic" fees to be waived. "Everything at a hotel is negotiable. How negotiable it will be just depends on if it is high or low season, and how many vacant rooms the hotel has