Responsibility of the Hotelier for the belongings of the guests
It is an obligation of the hotels to let the guest know what their policy of responsibility is for the loss of any object or property of the guest, the terms in which they would be responsible and the cases in which they must respond. The guest at the time of arriving at the hotel must be aware of these policies, otherwise it could be detrimental to the hotel itself.
According to common law, a manager or a hotel will be responsible for the loss or damage of the property of its guests for the full value unless the loss was caused by an act of nature, by an act of third parties or by fault of the same guests. Today this general rule still applies, but states have modified the rule to limit the hotel’s liability should the hotel meet the legal requirements of their state.
There are several situations in which the hotels will not be responsible, as long as they are external to the hotel or as long as they comply with the rules of notification to the guest, such as informational posters, or contracts signed during the reservation. Although there are many States or Cities where the regulations indicate that a simple informational poster does not exempt the hotel from responsibility, it will always be important to have it.
Here we exemplify some cases in which the hotel must respond for the loss of the guests’ personal belongings:
- Valuables or belongings were stolen by a hotel employee or staff: Liability here is direct, as the hotel is largely liable for acts committed by its employees.
- The hotel did not exercise reasonable care while the property of the guests was in its custody: An assumption could be those cases where the hotel asks the guest to safeguard their belongings in safes, but does not maintain adequate security for them.
- The hotel did not provide adequate security and / or locks in the hotel room in correct operation: This is something that often happens a lot when hotels do not have smart locks that can be strictly encoded for the guest. In the cases of normal locks that could be easily breached.
- The hotel did not comply with the legal requirements given to them by the state.
- Criminal acts of a third party that he knew about and did not provide adequate security measures to prevent the event.
Now, after knowing the situations in which the hotels would be responsible, it is important to also know those in which the guest could not claim the hotelier.
- Acts of God or force majeure: This refers to some social or natural event that can trigger a disaster that cannot be controlled by the hotel. For example, hotels are not responsible for your belongings if an act of nature or a fire destroys the property. An exception in many states is that hotels will be liable for criminal acts committed by third parties on hotel guests under specific circumstances.
- Things lost by the guest: If the guest has not given the property to the hotel in custody, and does not know where or when it has been lost, the hotel will not be responsible for that loss.
- Comodatos: a comodato (not to be confused with a deposit) occurs when a guest leaves personal items under the care of someone other than the hotel’s members or representatives, in which case, the hotel will not be responsible. That is why the hotel must indicate to the guest at the time of entry each and every one of the rules to follow regarding personal property. If the guest does not follow the same, the theft or loss of their belongings will not be their responsibility, once the guest’s negligence is proven.
In these cases, from Chekin we advise you that to avoid any bitter situation in the future, consider during your reservation processes, the consignment of a contract in which each and every one of the hotel rules are stipulated, and that the guest signs them At the time of making your reservation, this will give you the expression of your will or acceptance of what you propose.
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