Texas AG Paxton announces $1.25 million Hyatt settlement over hotel pricing claims

By Atlas Watchline Staff · Regulatory · August 20, 2026

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Hyatt Corporation will pay $1.25 million and change how it discloses required hotel fees after a 2023 consumer protection lawsuit.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced a $1.25 million settlement with Hyatt Corporation on Dec. 30, 2025, ending a 2023 lawsuit that accused the hotel company of misleading consumers about room prices.

Paxton’s office said the case was part of its effort to push clearer hotel price listings and curb practices that can make advertised rates look lower than the total amount a guest pays.

According to the research brief, Paxton’s office filed the lawsuit on May 15, 2023, under Texas consumer protection laws and the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The complaint alleged that Hyatt advertised one room rate, then added mandatory fees at checkout, including a resort fee in at least one example. The brief says consumers could see the fee only after clicking a “Show Price Details” button and that the charge appeared in the “Taxes & Fees” section of the payment summary.

The complaint alleged that this layout could lead customers to think the added amount was a government-imposed tax or fee rather than a mandatory hotel charge. It also said the practice made comparison shopping harder and gave Hyatt an unfair edge over hotels that disclosed full prices up front. Paxton’s filing described the conduct as “bait advertising,” according to the brief.

The settlement requires Hyatt to clearly disclose any required fees added to a hotel room’s price. The brief says this was Paxton’s sixth settlement tied to alleged deceptive pricing in online hotel reservations, and it places the case in a broader wave of “junk fee” enforcement in Texas and other states.

The research brief does not include a statement from Hyatt. It says the matter involves allegations in a government enforcement action, and the settlement resolves those claims without further quoted commentary.

Hyatt must comply with the fee-disclosure requirement going forward.

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