Life is simply unfair, don't you think?

[Mr Hero]

No, sir, it's not bullshit.
It's just so unfair that we require a $200 deposit. I'll tell you what's unfair. People smoking in the room and not being able to hold them accountable.

Also, had this little gem earlier in the night.
Caller: Room 205 please.
Me: Sure, what's the name of the guest you're looking for?
(I look up the room and there's no one in there at all)
Caller: Is your GM in?
Me: No she's not. Can I take a message?
Caller: Can you connect me to her voicemail?
(Sensing a scammer, I transfer it to the cordless. After a couple minutes it redirects back to the main phone. I answer.)
Caller: Room 205 please
Me: Sure, what's the name of the guest you're looking for?
*click*

Guess he didn't want to talk to me. Can't help but feel a little betrayed.

And finally
A guest comes in and tries to get a room. CC declines, so I ask for another form of payment. I tell him the total, plus the deposit. He tells me that last time he was here it was ridiculously lower rate. He said it was only a few days ago. I look up his history.and surprise surprise his only reservation was tonight's. Turns out he doesn't want the room anymore.

Again, I feel betrayed.

[eltf177]

What, you're not willing to lower the price by 50% (or even more) to ensure you and your hotel have the pleasure of kowtowing to this guest?

Hang your head in shame!

[sirwired]

I figure the "work my way through the gatekeepers" method of cold sales-calling must be effective, or so many scammers wouldn't do it, but I cannot, for they life of me, figure out why.

[Slave to the Phone]

One of the main parts of my job is calling employers for some sort of verification or other. Its sometimes amazing who answers the phone at times. Today, I talked to the owner of a small business. Not that surprising, the business probably wasn't big enough to have a full time receptionist yet.

I also talked to the CEO of a rather larger (200+ employees) business. That was a great call, she had all the info at her fingertips.

Now, to the scary part...when I make these calls I greet the person who answered and identify myself "Hi theirname, I'm slave from DES and I'm calling to verify employment information, is there anyone available to help me?"

At least 50% of the time, that and someone's name is enough to get me all sorts of financial data. Other employers do add some layers of protection that involve knowing all or part of the social security number or a signed release (and how many people getting said release are actually going to bother to look up a physical signature for comparison.)

Sometimes I get rather worried about how easy it is to get that sort of information. Now that I've alarmed everyone about identify theft, lets move back on to Mr Hero's thread.

Mr Hero, I feel your pain every day.

It seems like every day we go to work with great expectations, open and trusting in the world. Then we talk to the first person in the day who practices willful deceit out of nefarious intent and we are crushed like a newly bloomed rose under a pile of used cow food.

And it happens over and over and over. Its hard to keep believing, so you need to try to focus on that customer you had last month or year who was so polite and understanding and patient over a problem that was out of your control.

Those are the ones to live for.

[Mr Hero]

And it happens over and over and over. Its hard to keep believing, so you need to try to focus on that customer you had last month or year who was so polite and understanding and patient over a problem that was out of your control.

Those are the ones to live for.

This guy has been pretty damn cool.

[taxguykarl]

No, sir, it's not bullshit.
It's just so unfair that we require a $200 deposit.

Only $200. I stayed at a place that required a $500 deposit for locals. When I asked the manager, he said it was to deter destructive parties.

[eltf177]

Only $200. I stayed at a place that required a $500 deposit for locals. When I asked the manager, he said it was to deter destructive parties.

http://www.customerssuck.com/board/s...ead.php?t=8982

An excellent thread by Antisocial_Worker on why many hotels WON'T rent to locals...

[Mr Hero]

We rent to locals. There are legit reasons why. But local or not, you still need $200 for a deposit if you only have cash.

[Monterey Jack]

Those who balk at paying deposits are ones who plan to trash the room.

[Slave to the Phone]

We have cats. My mother who lives a couple of states away is allergic to cats. She comes to visit us a couple of times a year and we put her up in a near by motel. It also happens to be the only motel within 30 miles. The first time I called to make a reservation for her, there was some discussion about accommodations for an elderly lady who would never ask for a handicapped room out of pride, but no discussion as to if we were going to trash the room because we were locals.

Of course, that was 14 years ago. Things have changed quite a lot over the years. The motel been bought by a property owner who lives onsite and cares about his investment. He has remodeled and improved the rooms. They used to be functional and clean, now they also attractive and obviously not cookie cutter rooms.

One of the other changes the owner made was to post signs that stated that the motel no longer accepted cash and didn't rent to people with the 12345 zip code.

Last year when I called to make her reservation, when the clerk heard my zip code, she flatly refused to even look up my name, told me that I was not welcome there and hung up.

I figured that bad things had happened with locals and that she was new, so I drove the 4 miles to the motel and asked for the owner by name. When he arrived, he called me by name and asked if my mom was coming for a visit. I told him that she was but that the last time we were at the diner, we had seen that he had been doing some improvements, so I wanted to see what he had done because I was all nosy and stuff.

He showed off, I complimented and we went back into the office so I could check in. The poor clerk had realized that she had just hung up on me, but I didn't want to say anything about it in front of the owner (who was still telling me about his future plans), so I pretended like it had never happened until the owner left and then I told her that it was OK and asked for stories about why the total ban.

HOLY COW!!! I know that some people are worse than animals, they have very good reasons for hanging up on anyone with this zip code.

[KatherineB]

May I just compliment you on the way you handled that? That clerk would have been expected to be on the receiving end of the mother and father of a scolding, but by what you did, you taught a valuable lesson without embarrassing her and by making yourself look like a wonderful person!

[csquared]

For all we know, she was instructed to hang up on people who have that zip code.

Now that you know what is going on, you can work with it. Something as simple as "My mother is coming in from out of state, and I am making a reservation for her. Whose zip code do you want?".

Oh, and stop by the hotel and tell that clerk to sign up. We want stories!

[Slave to the Phone]

Thanks for the compliment, but I have been working retail long enough to know that you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. I wasn't mad at the clerk, I didn't know if she was instructed to hang up on people with 12345 zip codes or if she was just still reeling from a bad experience.

I haven't seen that clerk since that visit, but I only go into the motel office twice a year. She could have moved on, or she could have just not been working when I was there. I'll stop in next time we go to get breakfast and tell her to share stories. She had some doozies.

I never thought about using Mom's zip code for the check in because it hadn't been an issue for me in the past. That's a good idea for getting past the gatekeeper. I know that there are nice notes in my record because I can see the clerk smile as they read them.

We are welcome guests, I reserve well in advance, I pay with a credit card, I'm there with her when we check in with our ID and my credit card AND she is quiet and tidy and always tips the maid.

(The reason I know the owner by name is because he makes a point to get to know all of his regular customers and he sees me at least once a month at the diner. Don't judge me, there are times when I just NEED breakfast cooked on a diner grill.)

[csquared]

Don't judge me, there are times when I just NEED breakfast cooked on a diner grill.

I will judge you, and I declare that you are righteous!

[Nunavut Pants]

If I judge you for it, it would be for not saving a seat for me!!