Aibu to turn this customer away?

[QuandryQueen]

I've name changed as I'm a regular and this is a work related question and I don't want it linked to my usual account.

I work at a Hotel and what with the Christmas break was the most senior person there yesterday and will be this afternoon and evening. I don't know what decision to make!

A customer reserved a room to arrive today and I noticed yesterday they have put a comment on the booking to say they are bringing their dog. We don't accept dogs except service pets. They booked through a travel agent/Web site rather than direct. I have been off prior to yesterday so not sure if others have seen the note or not. There's nothing in the booking to show that anyone has tried to get in touch with the guest.

I messaged them through the site they booked (a from hotel message not a personal one!), and highlighted where it says on their confirmation that pets are not allowed.

I have no other way of communicating with them. As of yet we have had no response.

What do I do?

1. message again, not knowing if they will see it?
2. if they turn up with the dog turn them away?
3. if they turn up with the dog let them just keep the dog in their room?

They've pre paid and booked a month ago so it's pretty crap that none of us have seen the note before now, but it is well hidden in amongst all the other data on their booking.

What do I do??

Wrong BillSykes at 10.03 she says she was going to check.

I missed less than a page of posts, whilst typing a long reply, on my phone, unable to refresh without losing it all. Hardly the crime of the century.

And now I see you've done the same as me...writing a long reply that gets posted after the OP has updated. Maybe I should start telling you to RTFT

Anyone else having visions of the op passed out from the gin in the foyer while massive dog licks her back to life?

NoelHeadbands

Meh, I don't think other people have been suggesting that the OP contacts the customer as other posters obviously hadn't missed the bit in the OPs OP where she says she can't contact the OP. So, technically, I might have been the first person to suggest she contact the customer. 🤔😉 unless other people didn't read the OPs OP too

BTW isn't it a bit weird that the OP has no way to contact the customer other through the booking company.

I'm a dog owner, and love dogs. If I had gone to the trouble and expense of finding someone to look after my dog so I could come and stay in your hotel in line with the 'no pets' policy, I would be really fucked off to find someone else had been allowed to bring theirs when I wasn't!

It is weird WellKnackered we get minimal info from the booking agent. Once upon a r time we used to get the customers direct email that they got their confirmation sent to. Now we only get to communicate via their website. It's a pita.

I also request not to be in a room next to babies, or lifts, or stairways or coffee machines

And if a last-minute customer arrives with a baby and the only vacant room is the one next to yours? Or you stay more than one night and there is a change of occupant?

If it hasn't happened yet it will one day!

If it's clear in the terms and conditions then you should turn them away. However, it is very bad practise because they've told you they're bringing the dog and nobody at your hotel has had the sense to contact them before they make the journey.

It's your call, I'm afraid you will be making the wrong decision either way. Would you prefer to deal with an angry guest this afternoon as you turn them away, or deal with your angry superiors when they find out that you didn't turn them away?

Personally I'd probably let them stay. It avoids a confrontation today, your bosses may not care. If you turn them away, you will have a confrontation today and maybe your boss will be angry at you for being inflexible!

Snatched.

Her boss has confirmed that she is to accept dGreatDane.

Time for another RTFT me thinks.

I would definitely charge a deep cleaning fee. I work in a hotel and we receive reservations from a 3rd party site. We do have some pet friendly rooms, but they have to be requested at the time of booking. If they book 3rd party, and arrive with a dog they haven't mentioned, the 3rd party site has stated that they are happy for us to turn them away or charge fees for the extra cleaning etc.

The booking has been made, the hotel policy is clear, they have stated they are bringing a dog. You would under these circumstances expect the dog to be a service animal.
If they turn up and it is not, have on hand alternative hotels you have checked with that accept dogs and have vacancies.

They are accepting the dog!

Honestly both are to blame. Of course it's cheeky to announce you're bringing a dog, but the fact the website doesn't mention anything about no pets, and the fact the "additional requests" feature on the booking form is somehow "hidden" from the hotel to the point where it gets overlooked for weeks, both those things are unprofessional.

I recently stayed at a posh hotel that allows dogs. As we exited the lift to make our way down the corridor to our room, we could hear non-stop barking coming from one of the rooms. As we got closer to our room, we realised that we were placed very close to the 'room with a dog'. Once inside our room, we could hear the dog barking.

We went straight back to reception and requested to be moved. The desk clerk smiled through gritted teeth and said the dog had been in the room barking constantly for most of the day and it was making it impossible to place any guests on that floor of the hotel.

Hopefully the dog that will be arriving at your hotel will be well behaved.

At least the manager has made a decision.

If the customer had sent a request to the hotel via the website it comes as an email to us for us to respond to. They didn't send a request, just added.comments into a little box when making the booking- this info doesn't get sent specifically to us for us to deal with; it's just in with the reservation comments when they appear in our system and as I said above look pretty much like gibberish.

If you allow service dogs, then there's no reason to turn this one away under these circumstances. It's common sense.

If people are so allergic to dogs, they should take medication. What if a service dog had stayed in your room before you?

All dogs provide some sort of service to their owners anyway.

there are many different types of assistance dogs (service dogs is an american term). I suggest you google them so you know what kinds of uniform to look for - try the assistance dogs uk website.

I take my assistance dog with me when I stay in hotels - I tend to say 'assistance dog' rather than just dog but depending on that individual's disability they may not be able to make themselves clear or even phone you (if their dog is a hearing dog for the deaf).

Please be aware that assistance dogs come in many sizes and breeds, not just labradors or retrievers.

If the dog does not have a uniform, do not assume it is not an assistance dog. Simply ask politely "is your dog an assistance dog?" if he says yes but the dog has no uniform, ask for the dog's identification card as all registered assistance dogs should have one.

If he has neither uniform nor ID card, it is up to you whether to refuse entry.

I have had hotels making assumptions and refusing me entry despite my dog having uniform and ID, so please remain polite and do a bit of research if you can in advance of his arrival.

greenfolder

"do you have a room for service pets?"

Assistance dogs are allowed in ALL rooms, including restaurants. It is illegal to have a 'set' room. It is not equality to do this.

I've seriously gone off all these booking sites. We recently went to Prague and booked flights and hotel together via a flight operator, but would have got a better rate going direct and better rooms. Lesson learned, and it was a nightmare trying to email the hotel - there was little or no information on the booking confirmation and I had to use the hotel's own website to contact them. Will always book direct from now on. (Incidentally I'd asked for adjoining or nearby rooms for our DDs, it was the 4 of us on a break and that info wasn't passed on even though I'd entered it on the additional information box on the booking site - hotel had no reference, so thank goodness I had contacted them myself).

The desk clerk smiled through gritted teeth and said the dog had been in the room barking constantly for most of the day and it was making it impossible to place any guests on that floor of the hotel.

Poor dog, Earlybird! And what horrible owners to stick it in a strange hotel room while they buggered off.

Of course assistance dogs are allowed in all rooms, but it makes sense to try to use the same room whenever someone with an assistance dog is staying. As the OP has said, if a second person who needed an assistance dog wanted to book in, they would be put in whichever room was vacant.

But if you try to keep one room as the assistance dog bedroom, it means you are much less likely to have pet fur and dander in the other rooms, which makes life easier for guests with allergies.

As long as the room that is allocated to guests with assistance dogs has the same facilities and is the same standard as the other rooms, there is no discrimination, surely?

I posted too soon - I don't think that having a particular bedroom that is allocat d for guests with assistance dogs means that the hotel will not welcome the dog in all the other public areas - so I don't see how it can be illegal - as long as the room is as good as all the others, with the same facilities etc.

Have you cancelled the cheque? Sorry. I had to...this thread is going the same way.

Shamelessly placemarking. I want to know the dogs breed and name. Bloody love them! (wouldn't dream of taking mine to a hotel though)