“We’ve always dealt with it,” the hospitality consultant said. Anthony MelchiorriFormer hotel manager and Travel Channel hostHotel Impossible“That’s one of the reasons we accept credit cards and have people check in with a deposit.”
In recent years, hoteliers have taken steps to combat theft, such as selling in-demand items online, posting signs in rooms indicating what items are available for purchase and using trackable chips in linens and electronic devices.
“Hotels can put in place controls to minimise the risk of theft, but the more controls they have, the more like a prison the hotel becomes.” Sean Hennessy“So it’s a balancing act,” the clinical associate professor in New York University’s Hospitality Program wrote in an email.
Hennessy wrote that most hotel brands have beefed up security and better track and monitor access to rooms, “so hotels are probably experiencing less theft than they used to.”
What’s most stolen in hotels?
Major hotel chains contacted by The Washington Post, including Marriott and Hyatt, did not respond to questions about hotel room theft, and industry experts said there are no publicly available statistics.
But hospitality industry insiders with years of experience shared the items they know will get rid of, including towels, light bulbs, hangers, hair dryers, smart speakers, coffee makers, and of course, bathrobes.
“You don’t have a right to take away a pillow, but people will do that,” said Ronnie Wolf, a former general manager who helped turn around struggling hotels. “You don’t have a right to take away an iron, but people will do that.”
Peter Eckert, Executive Vice President of Operations Davidson Hospitality GroupHe said that radio-controlled clocks, which could be docked with smartphones, were sometimes stolen but are no longer in use. Televisions have also disappeared along with the guests.
“All of these costs are passed on to the customer,” Eckert said, noting that in his experience theft is rare. “When it does become noticeable, we pass the costs on to the customer.”
Wolf said a guest at the South Florida hotel where he worked reported that he didn’t like his room, nor the second or third room he was given. Wolf noticed that Bibles were missing from all three rooms. He checked security cameras in the common areas and found footage of a man throwing the Bible in a trash can.
“I caught him red-handed,” he said. When the man returned to the hotel to complain about the room again, Wolf told the hotel not to invite him back.
Bringing in furniture and electrical appliances
It’s not just your room that’s under attack.
According to Melchiorri, a guest at a New York City hotel claimed to staff in the middle of the night that Melchiorri had given them permission to use new furniture in the lobby for a house party. The guest moved one chair, leading the night manager to complain of wrongdoing, scuppering larger plans.
“We got it back the next day,” Melchiorri said.
Michael Doc TerryThe longtime hotelier and senior lecturer at the University of Central Florida’s School of Hospitality recalled a time when thieves broke into a large convention hotel while he was running it.
“They came in through the front door, grabbed the A/V equipment and [went] “They came out of the hotel right in front of everybody,” he said, noting that they easily could have been legitimate contractors. “Workers come in all the time.”
He once ran a Hollywood-themed hotel whose main lobby bar was decorated with fake Academy Award certificates with the winners’ names and other inscriptions.
“We had people ripping it off the bar after hours,” said Terry, who also runs a hospitality consulting business.
He said the items people take and management’s response will vary depending on the type of hotel, the owner’s investment, risk management approach and housekeeping practices.
Mehmet ErdemA professor of hospitality operations at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said hotels need to keep a careful inventory, double-check for missing items and verify the identity of the thief before charging guests for stolen items or filing police reports.
Melchiorri said if customers bring a single towel or washcloth, they probably won’t be charged.
“But if they take it frequently, we definitely charge a fee,” he said. “Some hotels and management companies are much stricter than others.”
He said guests could dispute the charges and seek a chargeback, which would require hotels to provide some sort of evidence.
“Listen, there are security cameras everywhere now,” he said.
While some towel thieves may get away with a tarnished souvenir, travelers shouldn’t assume they’ll go unpunished: In 2010, Nigerian hotel guests were convicted of stealing two towels. They received three months in jail or a $20 fine, according to ABC News. report at that time.
What hotels expect to lose
Hoteliers expect guests to bring certain items with them. This idea isfriendIt tells the story of the characters Ross Geller and Chandler Bing who raid an inn in search of amenities.
“You have to find the line between stealing and taking something that the hotel owes you,” says Ross. “Like, a hair dryer is a no, no, no. But shampoo and conditioner are a no, no, no.”
Eckert, whose hospitality management company operates 86 hotels and resorts under various brands, said hotels welcome guests to take home small trinkets — a pen with the hotel’s name on it, a tiny sewing kit or a tiny bottle of lotion — as a bit of marketing material, she said.
“They’re all branded and in some ways visible to people,” he said, calling it “a great opportunity to get someone’s attention.”
Some establishments offer locally made body products, with small samples available in your room and larger sizes available for purchase, but to reduce waste, larger bottles of shampoo, conditioner and body wash often replace the disposable products that were previously available to take home.
“From a sustainability perspective, we are making significant changes to our in-room takeaway items to reduce single-use plastics,” Eckert said.
He said theft occurs “in a very small percentage of cases” and noted he had never been involved in any major arguments during his 32-year career in hospitality.
“The thing we charge the most for is the robes,” he says. “This is another opportunity to promote the brand of the hotel or resort we operate.”