Fears over tough new star ratings

There is concern in Tasmania's tourism industry about tough new standards for accommodation ratings.

Some hotels, motels and B&Bs are struggling to maintain or boost their ratings, at a time when the industry has little spare cash to spruce up.

Assessors have begun scoping accommodation around the state for the first time since the national star ratings scheme was overhauled last year.

A Hobart guesthouse owner is concerned the group behind the ratings scheme is not doing enough to protect the brand.

Club Tourism, which runs the scheme, says the new standard measures businesses against about 200 criteria.

B&B owner Wayne Parks says business that self-rate their own star value are undermining the independent standard and wants Club Tourism to do more to protect its members.

"They're not promoting the brand, they're not championing the brand and they're not looking after the people that are in fact star-rated," he said.

"A simple explanation, whether it would work or not, would be to define star-rated properties and non star-rated; the non star-rated would not be assigned any rating.

"You've got a number of stars or you have nothing."

Chris Pattas from Club Tourism says about 70 per cent of accommodation providers nationally are in the scheme and they hope to attract more businesses now it has been upgraded.

He says businesses which lose a star will be given two years to make improvements before their ratings changed.

"It allows those businesses who have had some financial difficulty to invest in their properties," he said.

"It's also a reflection of the fact that when you introduce a new scheme which takes into account the very latest in consumer expectations, it takes time for people to adjust and to get the feedback they need from the assessment."

Source: ABC News, 27 August 2012