Income and expenses are recognised on an accrual basis, i.e. when the control of goods and services they represent has been transferred, irrespective of the moment when the monetary or financial flows deriving from them arise.

More specifically, income is calculated at the fair value of the consideration to be received and represents the amounts to be collected for the goods and services delivered within the ordinary framework of operations, subtracting any discounts and taxes.

Sale of rooms and other related services
Income from the sale of rooms and other related services is recognised daily based on the services provided by each hotel, including customers who are still staying at the hotel at the close of each day. In this respect, the Group recognises the income when the service is considered to be provided and, therefore, fulfils the obligation for performance assumed on check-in. Due to this, for example, in the case of an accommodation service that
covers several nights, the income is recognised on a daily basis for each one of the overnight stays.

The consideration received is distributed among the contracted services. These include direct services such as room, food, drink and other consumption, and others related to banquets, events and the rental of spaces. Therefore, the obligations are completely separate and they are recorded at the time they occur.

In the case of the sale of several services together, such as, for example, an accommodation service with one for breakfast, the Group, when it makes the offer, sets the price for each one of the obligations assumed, for which reason at the time the services is considered to be provided the income is recorded at the price set beforehand. Solely in the case of promotions where the service is provided “free-of-charge” with the other one, the Group applies a methodology where the consideration is divided using a ratio calculated by hotel based on the costs of the service at that hotel plus an additional margin.

Provision of services
The Group recognizes the income from its hotel management contracts in the year in which the services are provided, based on the evolution of the variables that determines this income and which are mainly the total income and the gross operating profit of each hotel managed by the Group.

Loyalty programme
With regarding to the accounting treatment of the “NH Rewards” customer loyalty programme, we consider that if awarding points gives a significant right to the customer, then it effectively pays the company for future goods or services in advance, and the company should recognise the income from ordinary activities when the points are redeemed or when they expire.

Therefore, when the significant right is generated, the Group records a provision for the estimated equivalent value, partly lowering the income from the sale coupled with the issue of the right. When points are redeemed the income from the transaction is recorded and the provision is derecognised

The estimated value of the significant right is calculated, showing the discount the customer would receive when exercising the option (one Euro for each point the customer has collected) and taking the two following aspects into account:

  • any discount the customer may receive without exercising the option; and
  • the probability that the option will be exercised

The amount of the provision relating to the loyalty programme is recorded in current liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet.