Is this Normal?
Discussion
Family member recently stayed in a top hotel in London while on business. When they arrived home they realised they had left one of their device chargers in their room. Apparently it wasn't a regular Apple charger but some overpriced new fangled wireless thingy.
No worries they thought and phoned the hotel who said they had found it and would keep it safe. Family member thought since they'd spent a considerable sum over a few nights in their establishment they would charge a few quid postage and send it over.
Then today one of the managers phoned to say they couldn't send it as they had added a service charge on top of the postage costs and wouldn't return it until it was paid.
A service charge of between £30-£50 to pop something in an envelope and add it to the outgoing mail?
Is this normal?
No worries they thought and phoned the hotel who said they had found it and would keep it safe. Family member thought since they'd spent a considerable sum over a few nights in their establishment they would charge a few quid postage and send it over.
Then today one of the managers phoned to say they couldn't send it as they had added a service charge on top of the postage costs and wouldn't return it until it was paid.
A service charge of between £30-£50 to pop something in an envelope and add it to the outgoing mail?
Is this normal?
dash23 said:
Was the service charge listed in the terms and conditions the customer signed or agreed to at the time of booking? If so, you’ll have to pay up. If not, you *might* have a case.
A case for...what? Nothing has been spent, nothing has been charged, nothing has been done. He has an offer to send an item back with a charge on top to compensate the hotel for time spent, materials etc. He is at liberty to say no. He's also at liberty to go and pick it up.Back to the original point, it's a bit s
tty of the hotel I agree but if he's a one-time customer then your family member has little leverage. If however they're a repeat customer, platinum tier loyalty member or somesuch then a quick email to head office may well be in order.
I left/lost a watch in a hotel a couple of years ago.
But I didn't actually know where I'd lost/left it.
It turned up posted to me in an envelope several weeks later, with no note or anything.
The only clue was the post mark over the stamp on the envelope.
I managed to find a list of post office branches/numbers and worked out which hotel it had been.
I phoned to thank them for sending it to me, and they apologised for taking so long to send it!
(It was a sub £100 Citizen watch, and a village hotel in the Highlands.)
But I didn't actually know where I'd lost/left it.
It turned up posted to me in an envelope several weeks later, with no note or anything.
The only clue was the post mark over the stamp on the envelope.
I managed to find a list of post office branches/numbers and worked out which hotel it had been.
I phoned to thank them for sending it to me, and they apologised for taking so long to send it!
(It was a sub £100 Citizen watch, and a village hotel in the Highlands.)
I suspect the hotel gets this multiple times a week, if not a day. It's probably a PITA for them, they have to deal with the customer by phone/email, then find the correct packaging, arrange a courier etc etc. All takes time and money, I expect they need to recoup the expense or put customers off requesting returns if it's not viable.
I can understand the hotel doing this. So many people leave chargers, that if you forget yours then most have a cupboard crammed with ones people have left behind that they'll let you have. Their charge seems a bit steep, but you can take it or leave it.
I used to stay in a lot of hotels, and generally had the best customer service in expensive independent hotels. One hotel I used to frequent in Paris, the maid accidentally broke an almost empty bottle of expensive after shave. I came back to the room to a note explaining the mishap and a brand new full bottle of the same fragrance that was twice the size of the original. I doubt that would have happened in any equally expensive chain hotel.
I used to stay in a lot of hotels, and generally had the best customer service in expensive independent hotels. One hotel I used to frequent in Paris, the maid accidentally broke an almost empty bottle of expensive after shave. I came back to the room to a note explaining the mishap and a brand new full bottle of the same fragrance that was twice the size of the original. I doubt that would have happened in any equally expensive chain hotel.
Raygun said:
Get your charger back and then make sure their skinflint ways are plastered over TripAdvisor.
Great idea, slander a hotel chain because the guy left his charger in the room and doesn't want to pay extra to return it...A hotel isn't a postal service. The time an employee spends packaging and posting the item is time not spent on their normal job role which they are paid to do. The cost has to come from somewhere, so it makes sense in their T & C that they would charge for this, otherwise it's at the company's expense.
If the guy is for example a platinum member or something and spends a fortune then fair enough, a good will gesture would be nice.
HantsRat said:
Raygun said:
Get your charger back and then make sure their skinflint ways are plastered over TripAdvisor.
Or remember your charger next time and avoid any charges. A lot simpler 
J2daG1990 said:
Great idea, slander a hotel chain because the guy left his charger in the room and doesn't want to pay extra to return it...
A hotel isn't a postal service. The time an employee spends packaging and posting the item is time not spent on their normal job role which they are paid to do. The cost has to come from somewhere, so it makes sense in their T & C that they would charge for this, otherwise it's at the company's expense.
If the guy is for example a platinum member or something and spends a fortune then fair enough, a good will gesture would be nice.
The OP said the person was happy to pay a reasonable sum. (c£10)A hotel isn't a postal service. The time an employee spends packaging and posting the item is time not spent on their normal job role which they are paid to do. The cost has to come from somewhere, so it makes sense in their T & C that they would charge for this, otherwise it's at the company's expense.
If the guy is for example a platinum member or something and spends a fortune then fair enough, a good will gesture would be nice.
I dont think £30-50 is a reasonable sum for an envelope and postage. Do you?
Raygun said:
Not really is it. If this hotel intends to operate on the basis of ripping people off like this it shows what sort of outfit it is. Some London hotels attitude is terrible compared to their foreign counterparts and they need to be reined in. No better place to start than giving them a bad rep on TripAdvisor.
What's the point in a spiteful 'toys out pram' trip advisor review based on something that could've been avoided by the customer? I left a shirt in a hotel in Budapest they sent this back to me but had to pay postage and a small admin fee which was fine. I was an inconvenience, a staff member had to find the shirt, package it up, store it and arrange a courier to send back to me . Small things yes but their time is not free and would've been avoided if I simply remembered to pack it in the first place.
I really don't get this blame someone else culture.
Edited by HantsRat on Thursday 6th September 10:19
It's truly st customer service. They make a tiny additional percentage of cash at the expense of creating bad feeling. I'd stick it in a review. Takes a few seconds to do so. The transparency helps potential customers make better informed decisions, which creates the incentive for the hotel to do better, etc, etc ... market forces, innit?
t customer service. They make a tiny additional percentage of cash at the expense of creating bad feeling. I'd stick it in a review. Takes a few seconds to do so. The transparency helps potential customers make better informed decisions, which creates the incentive for the hotel to do better, etc, etc ... market forces, innit?pavarotti1980 said:
The OP said the person was happy to pay a reasonable sum. (c£10)
I dont think £30-50 is a reasonable sum for an envelope and postage. Do you?
I don't know. If the hotel is taking the view that if the charger is damaged in transit the owner might try to claim for a new one off them then they may have a policy of packing properly, bubble wrap, box and then sending signed for and insured. Do this and add on time to do it and 20% VAT then £30 would be perfectly reasonable.I dont think £30-50 is a reasonable sum for an envelope and postage. Do you?
I paid £30 carriage on a sheet of 3mm veneer, had to be packaged between two sheets of mdf, cardboard and taped then sent by courier as a special parcel. The veneer was less than the carriage.
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