Crime of defrauding an innkeeper?

Question

I heard if you dine and dash (not pay for your meal at a restaurant)

the crime is called defrauding an innkeeper but why is it called that?

(I think I heard its same crime even if did'nt pay the fare with a taxi driver

(wouldn't you think that crime would be called theft of services? and not

defrauding an innkeeper?

Answer 1

Defrauding an innkeeper is an old, old term and is usually not the exact description used today - even for running out of your hotel bill.

It became associated with restaurants because "inns", historically, were places where food and lodging were found in the same place for one price.

Answer 2

If you spend the night at a motel, and skip out without paying the bill, it's also defrauding the innkeeper.