‘You can’t stay here': Karen demands refund for hotel room she never booked, front desk clerk refuses, Karen changes her game plan

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    Font - "You don't have a reservation; you can't stay here."
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    Font - Posted by u/Adzi_TheLast 2 days ago No room? But I paid my deposit... Long This tale comes from when I was working Night Audit in a busy hotel, on the outskirts of a small city, about 8 years ago.
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    Font - It's a sold-out night, I have one room left with one check-in, marked with a late arrival flag so we know the guest is arriving after 2am and late shift have already spoken to the guest. Overbooking off, and our local ring- round also verifies that the area is sold out too. This is going to be a perfect fill so I'm happy and my night porter is cracking on with the rounds.
  • 04
    Font - It's 2:15am and I'm just about to run the night audit when in walks "Karen”. She states her name, slaps down a credit card and asks to be checked in quickly. Immediately alarm bells are ringing as it's not the name of the last arrival I have on the list. I ask her the normal questions; 1. Is the reservation booked under another name? 2. Do you have your booking confirmation to hand?
  • 05
    Font - She looks at me as if I'd suddenly grown an extra head, asks if I'm stupid and pushes her credit card further towards me across the desk. Me: I'm really sorry madam but I don't have a record of your reservation for tonight and the hotel is sold out. If you don't have a confirmation number to hand I can't check you in as I don't see a verified reservation for you.
  • 06
    Font - Karen: I have a booking, it's been made months ago and I paid a deposit. I just want to be checked in. Me: OK. Let me run your card and see if I can find any payments - was this the card you prepaid the booking on? Karen: rolls her eyes
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    Font - Me: Runs card. Sorry Madam but I'm not finding any payments associated with this card for previous or upcoming reservations. Are you sure you booking is for this hotel as there are two other hotels of the same brand with similar names in the city. Karen: I always stay here. The reception manager knows me and takes care of my bookings personally.
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    Font - Me: Madam, I am the FOM, and I believe this is the first time I am making your acquaintance. And when I pull your information up I'm not seeing any data which means you haven't had a reservation with us in the past three years. Are you sure you have booked this specific location?
  • 09
    Font - This interaction is continued back and forth for almost 25 minutes and her attitude is nonchalant with the occasional eye rolls, huffs and puffs. She's texting the entire time. By this time I've accessed the chains dreadful central reservations system and searched other local properties res list
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    Font - which are showing she doesn't have bookings there. The last arrival has also turned up with her kid in tow, and is sat on our lobby sofa watching the entertainment. I've already paged my porter to discreetly check-in the waiting guest so not as to antagonise Karen who is scarily quiet, and I'm just waiting for her to explode.
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    Font - Finally, she slams her entire tiny purse on the counter and exclaims my stupidity. She claims to have paid a 50% deposit, that the reception manager always handles her reservations personally and that I'm a complete and total mc on. By this point the other guest comes back down for a smoke and is laughing watching this crazy person just loose her sh it. I let her meltdown entirely and when she's run
  • 12
    Font - out of steam I suggest that I can book her a room at the only available hotel in a 20 mile radius however as she doesn't have a valid booking with me; she would need to pay the rate at the hotel direct and then contact us with her proof of booking and I assured her that she will get a free refund and a comp week booking with spa
  • 13
    Font - treatments if she has the proof of reservation, and I'm wrong. Off she eventually toddles to the waiting BMW that's been idling the entire time she's been here, I make the reservation for her at the new hotel and write out a brief handover log.
  • 14
    Font - In walks the late arrival guest who's been smoking and enjoying the free entertainment, she slaps down a brand new 20-pack of Marlboros, winks at me and says looks like you need these, pats me on the arm and heads off to bed.
  • 15
    Font - I was off for the next two days, came back and caught up with the GM; apparently she never arrived at the booked out hotel, didn't come back to us and no one knows who she is. It still baffles me to this day what her game plan was and where she went...
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    Font - bigexplosion 2 days ago Haha she finally remembered where she was supposed to go. 351 Reply Share thebluewitch 2 days ago She got out to the car and the person waiting for her immediately said "I told you so." 160 Reply Share
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    Font - angelmakr9 +1 . 2 days ago - We were traveling in Barcelona and showed up to check-in to our hotel only to find out they had 2 locations and ours was no where near our current location. It wasn't so bad except for the 30 minute bus ride with our luggage.
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    Font - You can bet the next time I booked accommodations in a foreign country I double checked its location compared to the airport location. Lesson learned and no front desk employees suffered the wrath of a Karen because I knew it was my own stupidity. 115 Reply Share
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    Font - SkwrlTail +3. 2 days ago Is the 50% deposit paid "months in advance" policy for your hotel? Way I see it, we have the following options: 1. She was lying and trying to B.S. her way into a room with a 50% discount "but I already paid!"
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    Font - 2. She had contacted a completely different hotel, though not appearing in the corporate extranet makes that less likely. 3. She was delusional, and had somehow become convinced that she made a reservation.
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    Font - 4. She got scammed by something she thought was a reservation system. The insistence that she "knows the manager" and "stays here all the time" would seem to counter that though.
  • 22
    Font - I'm going to go with 1. She's found out that every hotel in town is booked solid, and is trying to cram her way in. She's one of those people who are sure that hotels aren't really sold out and will totally have couple of rooms to put "important" guests in... 65 Reply Share
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    Font - redditorial_comment +1. 2 days ago i think she was trying for a nights stay with a 50% discount 70 Reply Share Adzi_TheLast OP 2 days ago But surely if you're going to try and blag it, as soon as you hear sold out do you double down and commit for a solid half hour, or just leave? 66 Reply Share

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