Front Office Manager and the Law

1. Front Office Manager and the Law Chapter 13

2. The FOM and the Law • Overview of legal obligations: • Common Laws: Laws that have evolved from historical custom in the Middle Ages in England and that form the foundation for many contemporary laws in the United States. • Civil Laws: Laws that have evolved from the Roman Empire and that are primarily established by governmental edict or legislation.

3. The FOM and the Law • Lawsuit: A legal action in a court of law based upon a complaint that a person or company (hotel) failed to perform a required duty and that failure resulted in harm to the person filing the complaint. • Litigation: The process of suing someone for damages caused by a wrongful act.

4. The FOM and the Law • Damages: The amount of losses or costs assessed to the individual or company that was found to be liable for a wrongful act. • Compensatory Damages: The monetary amount intended to compensate injured parties for actual losses or damage they have incurred such as for medical bills and lost wages. • Punitive Damages: The monetary amount assessed to punish liable parties and serve as an example to the liable party as well as others not to commit the wrongful act in the future.

5. The FOM and the Law • Duty of Care: An obligation imposed by law that requires a specific standard of conduct. • Standard of Care: The level of performance that is determined to be reasonably acceptable by the industry to fulfill a duty of care. • Reasonable Care: A legal concept that identifies the amount of care a reasonably prudent person would exercise in a specific situation.

6. Front Office Contractsand Guest Accommodations • Contract basics: • Express contract • Implied contract Offer: An element in a legal contract that indicates what one entity is willing to do and what that entity expects in return. Consideration: An element in a legal contract that relates to money, property, or a promise exchanged for the promise made in a contract. Acceptance: An agreement by the second party in a contract to the terms and conditions of the offer.

7. Front Office Contractsand Guest Accommodations • Accommodating guests: • Persons that hotels do/do not have the right to refuse room rental • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessible: A guest room that is designed to accommodate persons with disabilities by removing barriers that otherwise limit or prevent them from obtaining the services that are offered.

8. The Front Desk and Legal Concerns: Guest Safety • FOMs must determine the types of guest safety-related situations that are most likely to occur and then develop policies and procedures to address them. • Training efforts to help assure that staff members know what they should and should not do if these problems occur should be planned and implemented. • If the duties and standards of care applicable to safety and security are not consistently maintained by employees who act responsibly, overt legal and financial implications are likely.

9. The Front Desk and Other Legal Concerns • Guest privacy: • Court Order: A legal decision made by a court that requires that something be done (or not be done). • Subpoena: A command by a court that a witness appear and testify before it. • Reasonable Cause: A knowledge of facts that, while not the same as direct knowledge, would cause a reasonable person knowing the same facts to reasonably conclude the same thing. • Search Warrant: A written order issued by a judge that directs a law enforcement officer to search a specified place for 1+ specified item(s) of evidence.

10. The Front Desk and Other Legal Concerns • Guest removal: • Guest (Hotel): A person who rents a guest room for a short time period with no intention of becoming a permanent resident. • Tenant (Hotel): A person who rents a hotel guest room for an extended time period with the intent of establishing a permanent residency. • Reasons for removal include: • Non-payment • Violation of policies • Illness/other health conditions • Overstay guests

11. The Front Desk and Other Legal Concerns • Safeguarding guest property: • Detained Property: Personal property of a guest that is held by a hotel until payment is made for the purchase of lawful products/services. • Lien: The legal right of one party to retain or sell the property of another as security for or payment of a lawful claim of charges.

12. The Front Desk and Other Legal Concerns • Safeguarding guest property: • Mislaid Property: Personal property that has been purposefully placed somewhere but is then forgotten about by the rightful owner. • Lost Property: Personal property that has been unintentionally placed somewhere and is then forgotten about by the rightful owner. • Abandoned Property: Property that is given up by someone who does not intend to reclaim it.

13. The Front Desk and Other Legal Concerns • Managing guest non-payments • Skip (Non-paying Hotel Guest): The term used to refer to a hotel guest who vacates a guest room without paying the bill incurred for its rental and for other charges made to the room. • Trespass: Unlawful entry into or possession of another party’s property.

14. The Front Desk and Other Legal Concerns • Occupant illnesses and deaths in guest rooms: • Emergency procedures • Guest property • Contacting family