Candlewood Suites review: Being charged 5 days before I arrived at my stay

So as a Platinum elite member I booked a room a month in advance for my niece graduation and Allentown Pennsylvania. The Friday before I was scheduled to stay at the candlewood suites in Bethlehem I realized that my credit card had been charged for my entire stay. On the IHG app it does say that I may be charged a deposit but not the full stay. I felt like they were being money hungry and trying to charge ahead of your stay for my room, so that if you did not want to stay there anymore. I canceled my room cuz I felt uncomfortable at this point in time which was the Saturday before my stay which happens to be Tuesday June 13th graduation is on the 14th. I then emailed the front desk letting them know that I would not be attending their location because they charged me 5 days in advance for no reason at all I can understand a 48 hour I can understand the 24 hour I can understand me five days before I get to your hotel it rubbed me the wrong way the front desk did emailed me back stating that because of my elite charge or special charge that I could not get my other $150 back so they was keeping the entire $300 of my deposit which I had never agreed to I never agree for them to charge my card at all I keep my car on I HG app for any hotel that I choose this is very problematic I am always on the road for my job I stay at candlewood suites all across the country for me to be a Platinum elite member this is ridiculous. I could even see being charged a one-night stay as an inconvenience even though I canceled 72 hours before but to be charged a whole state and I'm not even going to stay there because I don't like the customer service that I was receiving for being charged too early it's beyond me. If I don't get this resolved I probably will never stay at another candlewood suites again because this is not how customers should be treated.

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