SCTA makes hotel refund money to ill-treated guest

JEDDAH: The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) has slapped a fine on a hotel in Jeddah and ordered a refund for a newly-wedded Saudi for preventing him from joining his bride inside a room rented for two nights. The guest also claimed that his car parked at the hotel was damaged by hotel workers.
SCTA Director General in Makkah Mohammed Al-Amri said SCTA President Prince Sultan bin Salman ordered a thorough investigation into the complaint.
Al-Amri said after the report was released, the SCTA took measures against the hotel, including a fine and an order to refund the money paid by the aggrieved hotel guest.
In addition, a warning was issued that in the case of repeated incidence of the violation, the punishment will be doubled.
Al-Amri said executive regulations governing hotels state that hotels should treat their guests politely. He urged hotel managements to ensure high levels of services to guests.
“Article 18 of the regulations states that each hotel is committed to the reception of guests, if rooms are available, and will provide all hotel services to them, according to the grade and in compliance with class-specific prices,” Al-Amri said.
He added that damaging a guest’s car and stealing from it came under the jurisdiction of the police and therefore the groom should complain to police on this matter.
The groom suspected that a worker at the hotel was involved in the attack on his car as indicated by the surveillance camera at the hotel. That is why he sought the help of SCTA on its Twitter page.
He also claimed that hotel security forcibly took his mobile phone and removed the recording of the dispute with the reception manager.
It was also reported that hotel management said the guest’s complaint carried many fallacies, but it did not hide his detention because he had recorded the dispute with the reception staff.
The SCTA contacted the hotel and it answered to the queries made by the SCTA on the complaint.
On the other hand, the groom said he was detained for more than an hour in the reception area and was not allowed to go to his room where his bride was waiting, and hotel security assaulted him and took away his mobile phone.
According to the earlier report, an SCTA official said an inspector visited the hotel and was in the process of preparing a preliminary report on the incident. He stressed that the SCTA will not accept denial of service to guests or rude behavior toward them.