Sister just had some guy walk into her hotel room.

[SphincterSaysWhat]

DS is staying in London for work (a Hilton in Croydon I think) and she just rang me, a little shooketh.

She came in after being on site (work) and locked the door behind her and she is sure she put on the bolt thing (will try to add a picture).

Some random guy (a hotel employee) just walked in unaccounted - she was a little way around the corner so poked her head around and said hello. He just left (saying nowt) so she followed him outside to the hallway and he said he was just conducting a "spot check".

I do not like this. She's a single young woman on her own. It makes me think of Lucy Spraggan's awful experience.

I have told her to go down, report it and asked to be put in another room. That way he's on notice and he also hopefully shouldn't know where she's gone.

Any reason a hotel employee would do this?

I've stayed in hotels for work for the last 20 odd years I've never had a 'spot check' to my knowledge. That's frightening!

Well, as she said in her message this morning "she's alive"!

She didn't really get an explanation last night as to this "spot check" policy. But they heard her and moved rooms without a fuss.

She's going to ask for a refund as she didn't sleep well (I knew she wouldn't after this) and she's going to move to another hotel (but I've read on this thread it happened there too).

She's also going to order the wedge from Amazon, so thank you for that reccie, guys.

I think she needs to get some answers and then report it up the food chain.

I would also like to find that Tweet because I've looked, and can't. I'm not a prolific tweeter (!) but would like to add her experience to it (she only does insta).

I am saddened and angry at your shared experiences of this. Men should be on a fucking lead.

Our work raised this as a health & safety issue recently after it also happened to a (female) colleague. So do get her to tell work we are required to report incidents so they can be shared and those hotels have a note put against them. She does still need to ensure sadly that she can exit the room quickly in the dark if the fire alarm go off too. It’s reminded me to buy a wedge as I need to go away soon with work.

I understand the need to feel safe and am glad she is but that door set up is an incredibly bad idea and I would recommend that she doesn’t do it again.

if there was an emergency she wouldn’t be getting out.

That's absolutely horrendous. No wonder she couldn't sleep. Thank goodness she's moving on.
Definitely tell work and report everywhere with bad reviews.
I'd even inform the police.

I think it should be reported to the police too.

I've just read about Lucy Spraggan. I had no idea 😞

He could have raped her,
Demand an apology from the manager and write a shit review

@Wolfpa op meant her sister can't open the door without moving the tool box. She'd just move it if there was a fire. Though no doubt as she's staying elsewhere tonight.

If you’re above the fourth floor you’re probably dead anyway tbh. Smoke rises and hotels burn fast - remember they have lots of combustible products on site. Below fourth you likely have time to get out, but above that your chances decreased significantly. And above fourth floor if you jump out the window…also likely dead.

Also just to add that wedges should be specific to the floor surface you are on - some don’t work properly on carpet and some don’t work on Lino/tile/slippery surfaces. A good hard shove and they just fly backwards. And even with the right wedge, if someone is motivated enough…it’s not impossible.

They shouldn't be entering occupied hotel rooms unless they've been asked to sort something or change the towels etc. I'd be annoyed if that happened to me. I'd report it to hotel management.

I stayed in an Airbnb in Vancouver a couple of years back with my two teenage kids. I'd just had a shower and the owner (make) just walked in! Luckily, I was covered up. It was run by a family so I got the impression he wasn't aware anyone was in the property at the time.

It's definitely scary for a female travelling alone.

@Makegoodchoices would you mind private messaging me the hotel name pls? I stay in Teddington very regularly and am now worrying that's my regular hotel.

As a woman who travels for work regularly,
I ask reception staff to write down the room number on card for me and not say it aloud. I will never travel without a my door jam either after a male member of staff at a Hilton let himself into my room at 3am and I woke up to him at the foot of my bed and he said 'you looked lonely I wanted to make sure you didn't need a friend'

I called the police and moved to a different hotel and their cost (Hilton) I pressed charges because he was in the process of getting into my bed when I woke up

@ilovevinyl that's horrific. I'm so sorry you had that experience. Thank goodness he didn't manage to get in. Did anything happen to him?

Hopefully they can look at any CCTV footage to check if it was an employee or not.

Bloody awful.

That is horrific. I am sorry. I know how much that will have affected you for months after and probably years when staying in hotels - I had the same thing happen in my home when I lived in Battersea, a prowler on his hands and knees nearly nose to nose with me when I woke up. Fucking awful.

Yes actually he was arrested at the hotel and had a knife on him so was arrested for possession of a bladed article and then during his questioning admitted his intent was rape so was charged with attempted rape and possession of a bladed article. He pleaded guilty so I didn't have to give evidence and he was sentenced to 4 years and was out in 2.

This was 5 years ago and honestly I never ever travel without criminal identifier spray now (it's legal and stains them red) I also have a door jam and I will put a chair in front of the door too.

What a time to be a woman

I’m so sorry that so many of you have experienced things like this, but also thank you because it reminded me to order my door jammer on same day delivery because I’m going away for work for 2 nights tomorrow. I always get permission from work to book the room for both me and my husband (even though he doesn’t come) just because then I can check in under “Mr & Mrs” and just say he’s joining me later - not foolproof by any means but might put off a rogue employee who is just scanning names on the list, or someone overhearing at reception. I wish it didn’t feel necessary.

Another one who has ordered a door stop after reading this thread!

@SphincterSaysWhat bloody hell that's awful. In your own home! Fucking men are just ugh there are no words!!!

I hope your sister is ok. She needs to ideally report it to police, there will be cctv of the hotel corridor and showing him entering.

This is great advice, also if the receptionist says you're in room 101, immediately ask to be changed rooms as you honestly don't know who
Is listening and ask them to write down the number of your room on the hotel card

Am sure you’ve had lots of advice, but I second your sister contacting her employers and having them escalate this with the Hilton chain - they have a duty of care to employees away on business for them and need to know their staff are safe. I’d hope they would move you to a different hotel after this, but it needs corporate level complaints. Wish I wasn’t reading so many posts in SM about this sort of thing. When I went to uni (30 years ago), my dad bought me a device that you put in the doorway that prevents it being opened from the outside, have attached a link to a modern one. Cheap but effective for women travelling or living alone. Now going to get one for the teens room when we go on holiday in July!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ENTHUR-Traveling-Apartment-Unauthorized-Additional/dp/B085DPKY6H

I know, I had a friend over that night (a female friend) and she slept over in my bed so she was subjected to it too. Weird thing was, we screamed and screamed and he just stood up and kind of looked at us for what seemed like an eternity. And then ambled away. In the meantime, my friend was making to jump out the window (we were first floor in a maisonette). It was so awful. I haven't thought about it for years! But for ages after I was so haunted by it, I felt so unsafe. I left London a few months later.

DSis is going to speak with them properly once she's eaten. I'll let you know how it goes.

I can't find the origin of that tweet earlier in the thread - would like to ask if it's the same Hilton.

I just make sure the room has a lock latch thing so no one can get it I put it on when I enter the room

I can't find that tweet either but this is a Reddit thread about it

www.reddit.com/r/Hilton/s/bbg7KepxT9