RFT Federal Tax $8 at Holly, MI KOA

[TeJay]

Hi Folks,
I received a phone call from the head of operations at the Holly, MI KOA. The misinformation that we received was referred to as insufficient or lack of proper training for their office personnel. We were offered a free night of camping for our troubles.
I guess we all learned some lessons. Question your bill if there are items that are not clear. If the explanation you get still raises questions ask to speak to somebody up the ladder. I don't believe we ever talked to anybody other than campground workers. We were treated well and except for the confusing RFT charge we really had no complaints concerning the campground or our 3-night stay.

Thanks,
TeJay

[NLOVNIT]

Wow, a phone call. Ya got someone's attention. Still would like to know what the letters RFT stand for, according to them, since the letters still show up on the reservation on the website.

Lori-

[BillJinOR]

So I get that it's not a tax and it's just part of the nights stay .. No more than it was before just an amount " broken out " for their accounting .
It still doesn't answer what the heck does RFT stand fir in their "break out" ......we all want to know !!

[2Labs]

Originally Posted by BillJinOR

So I get that it's not a tax and it's just part of the nights stay .. No more than it was before just an amount " broken out " for their accounting .
It still doesn't answer what the heck does RFT stand fir in their "break out" ......we all want to know !!

hhmm this could get as fun as the closed WalMart camping thread

RFT .. redundant franchise tax?

Since the public information on KOA franchising seems to indicate a 10% franchise fee on each night in a booked campsite and the OP stated a $37 fee *before* RFT which would be $3.70/night

redundant ..ok maybe 10% X 2 .. so 3.70 X 2 = just under $8.00 per night .. rounded up for ease of accounting

Maybe the extra $3.70 / $4.00 goes into the "kitty" for this KOA ??

yeah I know, the DW says I should go to bed now ...

[2Labs]

and hey .. if you want to be part of a franchise, whether it be KOA, Dunkin Donuts, McDonalds .. whatever, you ARE going to pay a percentage of revenues to the franchise organization for their knowledge and their "proven" business plan.

[2Labs]

maybe the owners name is Robert?

RFT = Robert's Fun Time


... yes I am being .... pulled away from my computer and being put to bed

[2Labs]

or as I am being scolded while being pulled away from my desk ...

could be Rachael's Fun Time too ...

campgrounds aren't only owned by men

[Dunner]

2LABS, you are just begging for a knot on the head.

[TeJay]

Hi,
As I was speaking to the lady that called me yesterday my DW was referring from the sidelines trying to keep me civil. When I questioned the letters RFT I was told that it was a R_____ Fund Tax. The first word just didn't stick in my head. Which means that it was probably some meaningless descriptor designed to not be informative or to be remembered. The word could have been recreational but I believe that would have stuck with me.

Bottom line is it is an additional fee charged by KOA as a franchise fee shared with corporate KOA, the campground and maybe the state. I read the KOA book on how to get a franchise and do understand the 10% allowable fee. She did say that some of that fee is to pay a state tax but didn't really know exactly the breakdown of the amounts or percentages. Because she was not really offering a complete explanation in my mind it simply means that it is another way of making a few extra bucks and then pass it off as a required charge to pay some fees or taxes.

We will not be traveling much over the next month or two. I've got to get the kitchen cabinets, ceiling, tile floor etc, etc finished before the holidays. We started this project the day after Xmas last year and it's still a work in progress.

If there are others out there that will be staying at some KOA's ask what those letters mean and the purpose for the charge. Maybe somebody will offer a better explanation than I have gotten and if we get another 6-10 explanations we may have a better idea.

TeJay

[NLOVNIT]

This morning, I did a random sampling of about a dozen KOA site's reservation fees (picked locations all across the country). None of them had an "RFT" charge breakout on the reservations page (the one you get to before you put in your credit card info). I'll check some others....maybe eventually I'll find a similar named fee.

However, if I include that fee in the Holly KOA's rather low daily site fee, they come in line with other KOA's singular daily site fee (depending on location - those nearer cities or in popular destination areas were even higher).

Lori-

[CampDaven]

So this was, after all, much ado about nothing.
But it did serve as a fine basis for the KOA bashers. ;-)

[NLOVNIT]

Much ado about nothing? I don't think so. I'm not bashing KOA's. I just want to hear the explaination of a charge a member was told was a Federal Tax. At the very least, this thread has served to educate us to review our bills (& website reservation confirmations) & to question charges we don't understand.

I, for one, work hard for my money & want to know where it's going. Others might not care, happily not question & pay whatever they're presented. That's just not me.

Lori-

[CampDaven]

If the rate on my bill is as shown on their website, minus my discount, plus appropriate sales tax, I would not wonder what "RTF" means.

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by CampDaven

If the rate on my bill is as shown on their website, minus my discount, plus appropriate sales tax, I would not wonder what "RTF" means.

Resort Tax Fee???

i know that some koa's charge a ''resort'' fee.