After a long and boring overnight shift, 7:00am rolled around and I was ready to pack up and head home for some much needed sleepie. Of course I speak too soon and I can't leave work without having at least one adventure in hospitality.
Front Desk Agent: "Uhh, K? There's a guest that wants to speak with a manager. He's upset about his phone call charges from his room."
Me: "Why, what's wrong with it?"
Front Desk Agent: "Well, he has two $600 charges for two separate phone calls to India."
Me: "To...India?"
Front Desk Agent: "To India."
So I put on my official hotel blazer because guests seem to feel I'm more of the authority when I wear it rather when I don't (another blog to come) and step outside to meet my guest. A handsome gentleman around his late thirties stands hunched over the front desk staring at his hotel bill.
Me: "Good morning, Mr....?"
Mr. Chuck: "Mr. Chuck."
Me: "Okay Mr. Chuck, my agent was saying there was an issue with your bill about some phone calls you made in the room?"
Mr. Chuck: "That exactly right. See, I do international business with India and sometimes I make business calls from my hotel room and well...I knew the charges would be expensive...but I had no idea that it would cost me $600! I'm not paying that!"
**thinking: okay. if your "business" is to do business with India from time to time, why don't you have a cell phone or a blackberry or something that you could use that would hmmm...probably save you a lot of money**
Me: "Well, Mr. Chuck this is the appropriate amount of money for a phone call to India and you did have a conversation that lasted 30+ minutes. International calls are very expensive."
Mr. Chuck: "Well, not THAT expensive!!! I was just staying at the Insert-Other-Random-Hotel-Name-Here a week ago and it wasn't that expensive to call to India! This is ridiculous."
Me: "Well, why didn't you call down to talk with someone about the price for the call before you made it?"
Mr. Chuck: "Well, I didn't think it was going to be that much money!!!"
Me: "So...Mr. Chuck. You didn't look to see how much the call was going to cost you before you made it?" **thinking: and now you want me to refund you for being a moron and not looking at the cost of a service before you used it?!?!**
Mr. Chuck: "Well, this is just ridiculous. Are you going to adjust the fee or not?"
Me: "No sir, I unfortunately can not change the fee. The prices are given to use by AT&T our phone service provider and I can't change that."
Mr. Chuck: "Well, you just lost a very valuable costumer. I am never staying here again. **thinking: can I have that in writing?** I want your general manager's name."
Lesson - Please. Look at the price of something BEFORE you buy it.
