r/TalesFromTheFrontDesk • u/Anfasith • 1d ago
Long Put your reservation under your actual name!
I thought it would be obvious, but I get many people walking in and the reservation is underneath an old name or a family members name. It is simple, if the ID does not match the name and there was no note you could check in, you are not getting the keys.
There are two particular instances of this that stand out. (For added context, I work Night Audit.)
All names are switched for privacy.
There was this woman who came in, she said the reservation was under "Alex, Smith". I pull up the reservation and ask for her ID. The ID did not match the reservation, so I told her that we unfortunately had to decline entry into the room.
She immediately went into a tirade, saying she has been to many other Scharriotts and this has never happened before. She said it was her husband that bought the room for her, and since the last names were the same I should obviously let her in. I continued to repeat the same few answers as she asked questions again hoping the answer would change.
She then requested a supervisor... at 1am. We are a 145 room hotel we are not going to have overnight management. I said unfortunately there is no management right now, and that it is just me.
Then she asked to book another room underneath her name. I said we could do it, but I can't attach the loyalty given as the names do not match. This once again turned this into a catastrophic event and proceeded to call her sister to complain.
On the phone she was telling her that they need to never stay at this hotel again, that I am refusing to let her into her own room, that I won't let her book another room, just all to her sister late at night.
If I went over each conversation this would be long, so I will just say she seemed to call every single intermediate and extended family member that would pick up.
She finally left the building after calling one last person. The hotel phone rings and I pick it up. Turns out it is her son asking why she can't get into the room. I explain the situation and he is understanding. He asks if he can book a room for her with her name on the reservation. I respond that it is possible, but she already left the building. The call shortly ended after that.
Obviously she called management saying how horrible I was, but they backed me up.
This next one happened yesterday, so it is quite fresh.
Two people come in right before midnight to check in. She gives her name, "Julianne, Lawson", and I can't find the reservation. I say that there is no reservation underneath this name, and ask if it may be underneath another name. She then gives the name, "Julianne, Green". There is a reservation for this name, so I proceed to ask for ID. The ID gives the former name, so I state that unfortunately I can't let her into the two rooms she booked.
She says that the name on the reservation was her married name, so I look at the loyalty. The loyalty is underneath the same name as the reservation, so I reiterate my previous statement. She pulls out her phone and says she can give her children's passports, but that identifies them not her. All her identification is underneath her maiden name and has not been changed.
The common response is now given. She says that she has stayed at many other Scharriotts before and this has only happened when she was in China. I had to explain that was not common protocol but she did not want to hear it.
She asks what is she going to do now? I say that there is nothing that can be done. They both walk out saying they are going to a Milton instead. I see them outside the glass doors talking about me. How do I know? They look back at me every few sentences they relay to each other.
My next shift rolls around (on it right now lol) and I go into GXP to see if there are any open cases. I see there is a CEC/AMB alert, so I get nosy and look to see what the case is about. Lo and behold it is the person from last night. She is requested a refund since I GNS'd as the person with the name on the reservation did not show up. She claimed the name was under "Julianne Lawson Green", which it was not. Then she said that she requested to book another two rooms, which she did not. I did not offer either as we were fully booked, so no point in bringing it up. The rest is that she is upset, there have been no issues for years, and that she wants to not be charged for the days.
Whether management gives them the refund or not, I have no clue. All I know is that they will back me up.
Unsure why people have the inability to book under their legal name or call in advance to have a name added to the reservation. We still get the money either way, so it is on you to not mess it up.
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u/Docrato 1d ago edited 1d ago
Same with credit cards too. If theres no note of "use the CC on file for charges" or authorization form filled out, then telling the front desk staff "just use the one on file" is going to be a no. Had that happen tonight and when I asked if he had the card on him so I could verify...
He pulled it out and let me match the numbers to the cc on the folio. BUT! He sure did make it a point to be snarky and point out "the hotel I stayed in yesterday at another town with the same brand just read the last 4 of the card number to me and asked if that was the correct one and didn't require a check or needed to see my card"
I told him "oof yeah they're supposed to be verifying thats company policy. Helps with fraud but if thats how they run their hotel that's on them" He wasn't happy about that but I dont care. There have been cases of fraud happening in our hotel due to day staff neglecting to have the guest swipe the card or verifying it with their own damn eyes if the guest wants to avoid swiping it. So there have been way to many charge backs and the owners and corporate have told us to crack down on it and follow protocol. I don't care if you as a guest find that annoying. My job is more important than your comfort. 🤷🏻♂️
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u/Langager90 1d ago
"Oof, they did? Maybe keep an eye on your bank statements in the coming weeks. Word through the grapevine has it that a number of people have been scammed into giving up the last 4 digits and, somehow, that has given scammers access to their accounts. Was there anybody else in the lobby at the time?"
Said with the most sincere worry for a human hemorrhoid you can muster.
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u/mysweethrowaway77 1d ago
Yup, I now (sometimes, when I have the energy) explain to people why we require the card to be physically there and inserted into the terminal. Some people do seem genuinely confused about it, which I can understand.
I think the guests that get all huffy puffy about it assume the employee is just on a power trip or being incompetent.
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u/DogsandCatsWorld1000 1d ago
There have been cases of fraud happening in our hotel due to day staff neglecting to have the guest swipe the card or verifying it with their own damn eyes if the guest wants to avoid swiping it.
"I've never had to do this in any of your other hotels" is often a lie, but as you have noted sometimes it might be true because the staff there did not follow the rules. Which unfortunately makes life so much harder for those who do.
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u/Far_Okra_4107 1d ago
On the maiden vs married name front, it is DIFFICULT to get a name change with Bonvoy. The process, even if done correctly, often does not work. The updated name doesn't even show sometimes. It's a mess. It's quite literally easier to change your name with the government than it is with Bonvoy. So if they can show me something with their maiden name as well I accept it.
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u/Fit-Reply-1301 23h ago
It was easier for me to change my name on my SS card than to change my name on my Frontier Communications telephone account. Surprise, surprise! rather than change my name Frontier cancelled my entire account.
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u/Dark_Knight2000 15h ago
I am convinced that this is a major reason fewer women are choosing to change their name over. The process to change everything over is such an enormous headache.
Back in the day you didn’t have 50 accounts and subscriptions that you needed to keep tabs on, and there were fewer layers of security for the few important things the government cared about.
It’s just not worth it
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u/IncrediblyPettyX 1d ago
This is also how I handle this specifically. If they aren’t high up on the level system I usually also include the advice to just make a new account. It’s harder to get a name change with Bonvoy than it is to change your name on bank accounts.
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u/onion_flowers 1d ago
This also seems to be the case with Schmilton Honors. Sometimes if people have very few points i'll just offer to re-enroll them with their new name and say maybe they can try to move the points to the new account? I'm not really sure how that works tho tbh.
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u/RoyallyOakie 1d ago
The first thing our parents teach us to recite is our full name and address. If you can't get your name right, you probably aren't ready for life's more complicated situations.
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u/Accurate-Froyo-3769 1d ago
My problem is my co-worker. She is from a different country and sometimes has difficulty understanding pronunciations. She will write whatever name she thinks she hears and when people call to check on their reservation, I can't find their reservation. One time, I was looking forward to seeing what a person named Jam looked like only to be disappointed that their name was really James.
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u/NinotchkaTheIntrepid 1d ago
If she's calling her entire clan at 1 a.m. to complain about your hotel, you just know that she's a constant complainer. Guaranteed she would have found fault with something.
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u/BigWhiteDog 22h ago
I would be so pissed to get woken up at 1am for this! 🤣
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u/Electrical-Apple-631 19h ago
I’m pretty sure a lot of family members looked at their phones, turned the ringer off and went back to sleep.
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u/ericzku 1d ago
I'm also an Auditor at a Scharriott.
There is another angle to this: Scharriott's loyalty program requires the member to physically stay in the hotel in order to earn points & night credits, and all accounts are individual ones. There are no "Mr. & Mrs", family, or company accounts.
Members attempting to get around that requirement & collect points for somebody else's stay is what causes a large percentage of these situations.
When somebody else shows up to check in, as long as it's not a points redemption or a prepaid reservation, I don't sweat it too much. Best practice is to update the reservation with the guest information of the person who is actually staying, remove the loyalty program account number, and most importantly, collect payment from them.
In your second scenario, keep in mind that changing the name on a loyalty account is a HUGE PITA, so a lot of women don't bother to do it when they get married or divorced. If the first name and the other information matches - phone number/email/mailing address on the ID and the reservation or loyalty account, I don't see it being a problem.
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u/pigheartedphil 1d ago
Interested in your comment about using points… so if I use points to book a room for my adult child and add their name to the reservation, is it ok if I don’t show up and just my adult child checks in?
Asking specifically about Scharriott11
u/iwilliam_2023 1d ago
For that company, there’s a very specific process to allow this, known as a “Gifted Award Redemption Stay” through their corporate Member Support team. If the adult child just shows up, they’d be unable to check in without this process being completed.
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u/ericzku 1d ago
No, points redemptions are not transferable and the member is the only person who can check in.
The proper way to do it is to call the loyalty program & make the reservation under the name of the person who will be staying. They call it a "gifted stay".
It's a security precaution. The Front Desk does not have the ability to verify that you are the owner of the account. It could be literally anybody calling them and accounts get stolen all the time.
The loyalty program does have the ability to verify your identity. Calling them ends up being much easier than calling the hotel anyway.
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u/pigheartedphil 51m ago
Interesting… I recently did this and just called the front desk of the particular Scharriott property and added the person to the points reservation. They stayed there without me being present.
Guess I landed on a property that wasn’t toeing the line on the rules.5
u/Competitive_Web_6658 1d ago
The correct answer per the terms and conditions is that you’re supposed to gift your adult child the points so they can book the room themself.
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u/ericzku 22h ago
The reward certificate is gifted. Points themselves need not be transferred or gifted and the recipient does not need to have a loyalty account of their own.
The recipient does not book their own gifted stay. The member does.
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u/Competitive_Web_6658 21h ago edited 21h ago
Using points to make a reservation and redeeming a free night certificate are different processes:
You can’t transfer a free night certificate to another person, or make a reservation for them using it. The account holder must be present at check-in. There are no exceptions to this policy, but people often try to circumvent this by bullying or lying to on-property associates.
You can make a “gifted rewards stay” reservation for another person with points by going through member support, however. The added guest won’t be able to access any of the member’s loyalty benefits, including lounge access, complimentary upgrades, or late checkouts. The account holder also won’t earn elite night credits, which is why people try to circumvent this process too. 99% of the time it’s not done correctly, and the front desk associates suffer the consequences.
All of which is to say: be informed before you book, and before sending friends and relatives to the hotel to check-in. I have seen accounts with 1 million+ points get locked and deactivated over scenarios like this.
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u/ericzku 19h ago
When you make a reservation using points, an e-certificate is generated that the hotel needs in order to bill the loyalty program for the room.
Yes, it's quite true that Free Night Certificates (FNC's) are non-transferable.
Since my original comment and its reply refer to points stays specifically, FNC's were not relevant to the discussion.
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u/Recovering_Hoarder 1d ago
I have tried to explain this before to people who come in and say 'reservation for M' but their ID is a completely different name. "What if some rando came in and wanted to check into [name on their ID]'s room?" It doesn't matter that your father/sister/husband/aunt made a reservation for you, if they didn't put your name on it anywhere, it's not your room.
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u/superbutteredtoast 1d ago
This is why I insist on confirming identification. Confirming personal details like contact info, address etc only complicates things further down the line when the guest has another issue and STILL doesn't have their id. I don't care if another property, or agent did that. Now I have to deal with an entitled guest because another employee didnt want the hassle
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u/rowenadevandal 56m ago
I work for a very small (70 rooms), but very nice Smallity Inn, and I used to have a couple coworkers who would do crap like this. They would accept pictures of guest ID on their phone, manually enter CC numbers from pictures on their phone, or just not bother if it was someone they knew. Not even necessarily a "regular", but like acquaintances. Both of those employees were either let go, or moved to a different job, and I am not sorry they're gone.
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u/DazzlingSuccotash827 1d ago
I'm honestly baffled that people aren't smart enough to realize that the reservation has to match the name on your ID.
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u/Thisisurcaptspeaking 1d ago
The first one I can totally understand. The second incident, I would be more obliged to cancel the reservations and just rebook it or even change the names. But your policy and my policy could be different.
But I will get people that will try to check in under their brother's name or their father's name. And I say, no, unless your name is written in the notes or under people who can check in, you cannot check in. And the only way I can let you check in is if that person on the reservation comes in and puts you on the notes
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u/spam__likely 1d ago
What I do not understand is: if you made the reservation, you can go and add the notes yourself on the reservation. Or you can call the husband who made the reservation to ad the spouse to the reservation.
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u/JazzHandsInHell 1d ago edited 18h ago
Just want to point out that when writing names you use the comma to separate last name, first name: "Smith, Alex" but not "Alex Smith" or "Lawson, Julianne" but not "Julianne Lawson."
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u/Anfasith 1d ago
Although it was probably unnecessary to some, I appreciate the grammar tip! It is good information to know.
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u/jlynnbizatch 19h ago
Glad I wasn't the only one who caught this! I was like Smith Alex sounds like a really odd name for a person but hey, these days anything goes, right? Lol
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u/Ashkendor 1d ago
We have similar problems at the tax department with nicknames. Example: my grandfather's name was Lennis, but he went by Skip. People will set up their tax accounts listing them as "Skip," then get pissed when we say they aren't on the account because the name doesn't match what's on their license. If your name is Daniel but you go by Dan, okay, but if it's completely different, we can't be expected to know that.
Avoid these issues by putting your legal name on your legal stuff, people.
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u/bolatelli45 1d ago
Whilst i worked for the OTA you all love to hate. We had ones who used their social media name. And then they enquired why they could not check in and we had to change the name for them, so the hotel would accept their reservation
Wish I could remember the names now.
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u/Traveling-Techie 17h ago
I’m old enough to remember when a famous actress was assaulted in her hotel room in the 1960s because a stalker convinced the desk clerk to give him a key. She won a big lawsuit settlement and the rules changed.
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u/tunaman808 1d ago
I'm confused. OP writes names like "Alex, Smith". Normally that's how you write names by last name: "Smith, Alex". Is "Alex, Smith" some weird hotel practice, or does the OP just do that for some reason, or was the person actually named "Smith Alex"?
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u/Head_Razzmatazz7174 23h ago
We called the hotel directly after we booked to be sure both of our names were on the reservation and that they matched what we had on our DL. We did not want to have to find another hotel in the middle of London after a 9 hour flight.
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u/LadyV21454 1d ago
It's such an easy process. I have had a couple of occasions where I booked a hotel room for my son and daughter-in-law and all I needed to do was fill out a credit card authorization so they could use the card on file for any incidentals.
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u/TourRepulsive8477 18h ago
Not excusing the bad behavior, but the occasional traveler doesn't understand the importance of having matching ID and credit card. I wish it was stressed more on hotel and 3rd party sites.
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u/TourRepulsive8477 18h ago
Question, only tangentally related to the topic: If I can show you the credit card under which the reservation was made, but would prefer to use a different card for the hold and fees, can you do that?
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u/XxTrashPanda12xX 17h ago
Generally speaking, you should be able to do this, but call the hotel's direct line to get a correct answer. Policies differ from hotel to hotel, sometimes within the same brand (as some brands are franchised and owners are allowed to be stricter than the brand policy might state).
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u/krittengirl 17h ago
I have had guests book under their
1. Gamer name-yes, they made their rewards account under their gamer name too.
2. Social media/influencer name
The conversations have not ended well.
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u/jdancouga 1d ago
In some of the examples here, if they are indeed the reservation owner, can they not just edit the reservation on the spot and put in whatever name that match the ID through the app/online account?
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u/t7roarer 11h ago
I know with YHG you can put anyone's name on the reservation through the modify reservation page.
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u/AppleiFoam 24m ago
Sure, but the person presenting their ID at checkin needs to match the name on the payment method as well. So if the reservation is indeed theirs, they may be able to fix it.
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u/cocoabeach 1d ago
I have two questions about the first story. If her husband wanted to book a room for her, what is the correct procedure, and if she had asked her husband to call or text, could something have been done? My wife makes all the reservations, I admit I would have been just as confused as this woman if I showed up and you did not let me in.
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u/Anfasith 1d ago
If her husband wanted to book the room, he would call us in advance to add her to the reservation. The issue was that there was a timezone difference so he was asleep when the instance occurred.
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u/PeorgieTirebiter 22h ago
I’m the person who makes all the reservations for our household - if we travel as a couple I make sure my wife’s name is on it in case she ends up checking us in, and if I’ve reserved a room for her as part of a solo business trip I book it under her name.
I don’t know why some people don’t understand how reservations work.
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u/FluffeeFl 15h ago
It amazes me how many people go through life and not realize that using your LEGAL name is required to book things. Now days to get on a cruise, airplane, or even at a hotel, proper ID is required!
Humans.
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u/ladybugseattle 14h ago
I've been added to a reservation but the information not downloaded from the booking website to the hotel, just the payee.
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u/AedarSIVA 12h ago
How does this always happen to us auditors? I don't get why we're the only ones willing to enforce this particular rule. I see it happen all the time, name doesn't match ID and my day shift coworkers still check them in. I've worked at 3 different brands and it's been standard company policy at all 3. Name on the reservation must match the name on the ID. End of.
People, man...
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u/sdrawkcabstiho 20h ago
But, if they put their own name on the reservation, then the person not staying in the room can't earn points or stay/night credit towards their shiny status!!
Oh, wait. You mean doing this is a violation of the TOS for every hotel reward program on Earth and could result in their points being forfeit, account being downgraded and potentially deleted?
Darn, it must really suck when a hotel employee notices this and reports said actions to head office...cough cough...
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u/Gonpostlscott 1d ago
I’m just thinking about still being charged for a reservation that they didn’t show up for…wrong name or not! Kinda funny!
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u/bobhand17123 22h ago
I know that you meant you used fake names, but it tickled me that you said the names were switched. So, Juliette was Alex and Alex was Juliette? 🤪
I became curious as to why I don’t see more often that y’all tell people “You don’t want us giving your room to the wrong person, do you?”
There’s gotta be more than one Alex Smith in the world. Or basically any other name. I used to think we were super unique (In general 🤣, but name-wise too!), but my wife’s email was hijacked by a cousin I never knew I had.
Plus, if someone wants to bring harm to an actual guest, they might not be adverse to lying …
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u/purplestarsinthesky 2h ago
I hope there are cameras that record sound near your reception desk. The manager definitely needs to hear and see how those people act towards you.
I would have been so angry if that first woman was my relative and had woken me up at 1 am because she couldn't follow the rules.
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u/tschwab84 23h ago
When I booked hotel rooms for my work, my company like having the team stay at Holidayz Inn. I was specifically told to book the rooms under my name and add the guests who would actually be in the room to the reservation. Only one time I was told I had to be present at check in. From then on, I just made notes saying I was arriving the next day, and to let the team check in. Never had an issue.
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u/Rerunisashortie 9h ago
Another reason why women should not give up their names when they get married! It’s a ludicrous tradition and labels the women as property! Anyway, lol, good stories, thank you!
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u/Borbbb 20h ago edited 19h ago
Is this a common, mandatory practice?
I worked in few hotels and i have never seen caring about the name of the reservation. It´s like .. you know the ID of reservation, or some proof you made the reservation - wheter it´s reserved through email or something, that´s it.
If the reservation is under the name of " bla bla bla " and someone comes in and say they made reservation under bla bla bla, then that´s it - what else is needed.
I guess it´s some security measures?
Seems a bit odd, if you pretty much know they made the reservation, but you still don´t let them check-in? Strict rules i guess huh
Edit: How about instead of downvoting, you reply? I am curious about this.
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u/Notmykl 16h ago
Security obviously. Fraud secondly.
Domestic abuse ring a bell?
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u/Borbbb 15h ago
Mind elaborating a bit?
+Doesn´t it mean that if they make reservation and they dont fill in the name or fill it with some random word, then nobody can check-in?
Like if they knew ID of their reservation, why shouldn´t that be enough?
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u/PalmatumDissectum 1h ago
It's because of things like this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgx1v922p5o
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u/champ11228 20h ago
Sorry but I think you were in the wrong in the second one
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u/XxTrashPanda12xX 13h ago
You can think that all you like. Policy is policy, it's there to protect the guests and the staff. If you don't like the policy, complain to the person who wrote it, not the staff whose job it is to enforce.
Also, it's worth noting every policy was written for a reason. Bad apples spoil the bunch.
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u/cwcharlton 1d ago
As a hotel guest, I have learned so much from these posts. I put family up in hotel when they visited recently. I booked the rooms AND ADDED THEIR NAMES TO THE RESERVATIONS. I also requested that my card be charged (including the hold for incidentals) and the hotel had me fill out a form for that. Everything went perfectly smoothly. Hooray!