Ma'am, you forgot something.

[Carina16]

Just a short little tale from the other day.

Check out is 11, but we don't require them to actually drop their keys at the desk. So noon rolls around and the maids are working and I get a call from the girl in laundry. One of the maids said there was a lady still sleeping in a room. Okay, no big deal. Normally I call, they wake up and scramble to leave the room. This time there is no answer. So, I have the maid and laundry girl go and bang on the door. At some point during this time, the lady got up and latched the chain on the door.

There is still no sign of movement. So I get my maintenance guy. I've seen him have to bang on doors. It sounds like some one just ran a car through the building. He goes around and bangs on the door, yelling at the lady as well. Still nothing. At this point we are not sure what is going on and beginning to wonder if maybe she died off or something. We call the police. They come out along with the EMT's. She finally gets up and leaves. No charges are filed because it is the thinking of the cop that she is just a deep sleeper.

After all the excitement is over I go with the maid just to check on the room. This is when I found the cause of all the problems. She was just sleeping off a crack binge. I moved the pillow on the bed and laying right there was her half full crack pipe.

This is why I hate renting to locals.

[Merriweather]

Just a short little tale from the other day.


This is why I hate renting to locals.

Eww, so sorry you have to deal with things like that.

Let me just say, I SO appreciate hotels & staff who are willing to put up with crap like that, rather than have a policy of "no locals", which I have seen.
I've had to use local hotels so many times over the years - every time hubby got new orders, we'd have to have the movers in to take all our belongings that wouldn't fit in the car (for domestic moves) or in our suitcases (for overseas moves), and by the time they were done we needed a place to stay before setting off for the next place, with only our old address to give. Then there was the time the AC quit during a 100+ degree heat wave, or when the pipes froze, or when..... you get the picture. On behalf of all of us who really do need a place to stay locally now and then, thank you. (And hopefully your hotel is willing to put a ban on specific locals).

[Moosenogger]

I'm a little surprised that the officers didn't notice the signs of her coming down from a crack high. :/

[wagegoth]

I'm a little surprised that the officers didn't notice the signs of her coming down from a crack high. :/

If they're anything like our local sheriff's department, they aren't going to bother. Unless you do something blatant or just piss them off, they don't care.

[blas]

I'm always grateful to those who will rent to locals, on account of the fact that some landlords/property management companies around here are royal jerks about re-paving parking lots and cutting down trees, and a lot of my fellow night shifters (with no family or friends nearby) have had to rent a room for a day or two so they can sleep.

[thansal]

So, rather a tangent:

What do hotels do when they discover illicit substances in rooms after the guest has left?

[EricKei]

So, rather a tangent:

What do hotels do when they discover illicit substances in rooms after the guest has left?

I was thinking this as well. Are you allowed to call the cops back over to witness the scene (the presence of the drugs) and then turn the customer's info over to them?

Also, did the cop actually enter her room?

[emax4]

Something I thought of, do hotel/motel workers reserve the right to refuse service to patrons who appear under the influence of drugs or alcohol? I understand from a corporate perspective that they want money, and/or that everyone deserves a chance. Still, the lowly desk attendant might be able to spot an high or inebriated patron and think, "uh, this one's gonna be trouble tonight.."

[Carina16]

Yes, the police did go in her room but they did not see the drugs as she had them hid. Now, we probably could have called the police back and given them the drugs and her info as they are very hard against drug users here, but from the hotel's stand point it would have been more trouble than it was worth. She will not be allowed to stay here again.

Normally if the guest has already left, we just toss the stuff we find. Now, if they stay more than one night and the maids see drugs, needles, etc. we will call the police right then and have them arrested. I had a drug problem in my early 20's so I'm pretty good at spotting them. Also, anyone that is suspected of using drugs, the maids are not allowed to clean the room until I have checked the room. I had a scared a couple years ago of getting poked with a needle when I went to make the bed in the room. I don't want to take the chances of one of the maids having to go through that.

As for refusing service, I don't know about other hotels, but at mine we do have the right to turn people away if something doesn't feel right. Now we do try to give everyone at least one chance. All the desk clerks are on several meds for different things, myself included. We understand that just because someone if acting a little off doesn't always mean drugs. That being said, my hotel has a history in the past of being THE place for druggie to deal out of. I'm trying to get the place cleaned up, so guests only get one chance. They screw up, they are gone. No refund, no nothing. Since I started here in June, the do not rent list has gone from 2 to over 100. I currently have 2 court cases pending against locals through the hotel. One for skipping out and leaving $150 bill and the other for passing bad checks.

[bhskittykatt]

Our motel is similar. If there's drug accessories in the room, unless there's a lot, we just destroy and dispose of them. Needles get put into sharps, crack pipes are bagged, busted, and tossed, etc. Guest goes on the ban list.

Now, if actual drugs are found, the police suddenly become much more interested. Personal amounts of weed we'll just flush since they aren't very interested in that, but pretty much everything else gets turned over.

As for turning people away...we also try and give them one chance. Corporate really only wants us banning people based on past experience. We have no problem checking them in and immediately calling our favorite detective, though. And we have no problem putting them in a room where we can easily keep an eye on them, and if any of their friends on our ban list show up, we bust the registered guest for fronting.

[XCashier]

Since I started here in June, the do not rent list has gone from 2 to over 100.

Question: are there any identifiers to banned guests aside from name? Say, if John Smith gets banned, then someone else who just happens to be named John Smith calls to rent a room, can you tell that the new guy is not the banned John Smith?

I'm sure this is a very stupid question to you, but I've never worked in a hotel, and was just wondering about that.

[bhskittykatt]

Question: are there any identifiers to banned guests aside from name? Say, if John Smith gets banned, then someone else who just happens to be named John Smith calls to rent a room, can you tell that the new guy is not the banned John Smith?

I'm sure this is a very stupid question to you, but I've never worked in a hotel, and was just wondering about that.

Can't speak for the OP, but at my motel we have all the guest's ID in there. So, their address, DL or passport number, and DOB. On more than one occasion, I've had a "John Smith" who's shared a name with someone on the DNR, but was not the same person.