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Read MoreHow to make check out at the hotel?
When it comes to check out time, hotel employee needs to complete the payment and set a hotel bill. Therefore is it good to be aware of what to expect during hotel check out and how to make it. However, do you need to check out at the front office at all?
Check out hotel – worth to know
Standard check out time at the hotel is around 11-12. It means that the guest needs to leave a room before that time. Otherwise, he/she can be charged an extra payment. If the guest would like to stay longer, it is possible to ask for a late check out.
When the guest leaves a room he/she may come to the reception to set the bill. There is no need to comming to the front office if the bill was setted before and the guest did not use any extra paid hotel amenities. As well in case, the room was pre-paid.
There are a few conditions when a guest should come and check out at the front office:
- The guest needs to get a hotel bill receipt or company invoice – it is good to make it personally not ask via e-mail after leaving the hotel. If the hotel did not have information about the invoice before setting the bill, it will be made for a guest’s name. Sometimes it may be impossible to change the invoice details later.
- The guest had an open bill for extra services – in this case, the guest needs to make sure that all extra services are paid and that the bill is correct.
- The room was not pre-paid or the bill was not set during the ckeck in – guest have to come and pay at the reception.
It is always good to make sure about the bill when checking out. Many hotels pre-authorize the payment card or take cash deposit during check in, so it may seem useless to come and set a bill at the front office. However, it is good to be sure that everything is correct.
Some hotel chains have the possibility of check out online (see more details here).
Check out and setting a hotel bill receipt – how to do it?
When the guest wants to check out he/she should prepare:
- room keys to give them back, but if the room card is left inside the room there should be no
problem. Housekeeping will take it 😉 - payment card or cash,
- invoice details if needed.
To make a hotel check out guest should come to the reception, say the room number, and leave the keys. Then receptionist will ask for the payment method and confirm the overall hotel bill. Guest will be asked about the use of extra services and minibar to make sure it is going to be paid.
If the guest left a cash or payment card deposit during check in (see more here), there are two ways of payment. Firstly guest can be charged from the cash which was left or complete the payment from the card which was pre-authorized. The second scenario is when the guest would like to have a cash deposit back / release the blockade from the payment card, and then pay in a different way (another payment card, cash instead card, or card instead cash).
The last thing to do is to print the hotel bill receipt. Guest may choose if the receipt should be in his / her name or the company’s name. If the guest would like to have an invoice, the receptionist will ask for company details. It is good to have the company’s business card, then it will be easier for the receptionist to write details correctly. Guest will save time for repeating the name, address e.t.c as well avoid the need to make an invoice correction.
Check out – what if the hotel bill is wrong?
If the guest does not agree with the hotel bill, he/she may ask for an explanation of that. The receptionist should make sure where is the mistake (if there is any) and solve the problem as fast as possible. Firstly front desk employee should make the conversation with the guest, to be sure if he /she is right. Sometimes guests forget that they used something or are not aware if they already paid or not. Then receptionist needs to check if there is a system or an employee mistake. If yes, he/she has to contact the person who made the mistake or resolve system errors.
Remember that hotel has no business cheating on the guest, it is a too big risk of loose of reputation. The guest should be patient as the mistakes in the bill are never done purposely. Yes, everyone may get nervous it is a normal thing, however, blaming anyone does not help anyway. Sometimes it takes some time to confirm that mistake was done and why, because there is a need to contact other departments.
To sum up, if the hotel bill is wrong, the guest should highlight it and ask why is that. Then wait for solving the problem. If the hotel cannot prove that the guest used something he/she is sure that was not used, the guest should not be forced to pay.
The reasons why the bill is wrong you may find here.
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