Category Archives: Insurance

by | February 7, 2011 · 7:29 pm

Hotel Industry Security Risks: Importance Of Security Cameras And Securely-Locked Doors Seen In Robbery And Assault Of Louisiana Hotel Guests

It’s believed the two men by-passed the front desk and slipped into the hotel through the back door as someone else was leaving. Security cameras show they went directly to the elevator and proceeded to the 6th floor.

The Sleep Inn Hotel in Kenner is where police say three guests were terrorized inside their 6th floor hotel room. Security cameras are posted in all public areas of the hotel.

That’s how detectives obtained pictures of the men they say robbed the victims at gunpoint and took off. “We know there was some property taken but we don’t have a whole lot of information about that right now,” says McInnis.

WGNO Reporter, Darian Trotter says, “The fact that there were other guests on the 6th floor, but no other robberies reported, leads investigators to believe the victims may have been targeted.”

Lt. McInnis says he showed the victims pictures from security cameras. “They said these are the two individuals who burst into the room carrying firearms and robbed us,” McInnis says. He says the victims had never seen the gunmen before, and therefore did not know their names or any information that might help police identify them.

For more:  http://www.neworleans.com/news/local-news/559140.html

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by | February 5, 2011 · 9:43 am

Hospitality Industry Fire Risks: Canadian Hotel Health Club Sauna Fire Caused By "Short-Circuited Ceiling Light"

An almost full Chateau Laurier was evacuated Thursday night after a fire broke out in the sauna room, and while the investigation was still ongoing Friday morning, early indications were that a ceiling light may have short-circuited.

The fire was contained to the sauna, which is encased in thick masonry, said fire department spokesman Marc Messier. Perrin added that while it is a heritage building, the hotel’s electrical systems have been updated and are regularly checked to make sure they’re up to code.

The historic, 99-year-old hotel was at 91-per-cent capacity, firefighters said. The blaze broke out at about 11:40 p.m. in the sauna ceiling on the main floor and it was brought under control by midnight. No injuries were reported, and damage was estimated at about $12,000. Hotel guests gathered in the lobby where blankets, hot chocolate and more were passed around, said hotel spokeswoman Deneen Perrin. Staff were also on hand to provide regular updates during the 20 minutes that guests needed to be out of their rooms.

The fire was initially reported by overnight cleaning staff who were working in the pool area, which was closed, and saw some smoke. While the nearby health club is open 24 hours a day, no one was using it at the time, Perrin said.

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Chateau+Laurier+sauna+fire+forces+evacuation+near+capacity+hotel/4228769/story.html#ixzz1D6g2fkOB

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Filed under Fire, Injuries, Insurance, Liability, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Pool And Spa, Risk Management

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by | February 3, 2011 · 10:21 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Hotel Owners Must Strive To "Avoid" Employee Lawsuits With "Strong Management" And "Attentive HR Staff"

“…a review of selected cases shows plaintiffs prevailed in 55% of retaliation and whistleblower lawsuits and in 75% of sexual harassment cases…”

“…The pro-employee and, many argue, pro-union policies of the Obama administration have arguably made matters worse, if not convincing employees to sue or obstruct their employers, at least showing them how it’s accomplished…”

 

The Department of Labor, for example, citing the difficulty the average employee encounters in navigating the legal system, has said it will now provide wage/hour claimants who had filed cases with the agency but whose claims would not be heard (including those whose claims lacked merit) with a list of local attorneys who, as a DOL official announced, “may be able to help.” 

The National Labor Relations Board, its regulatory and judicial reach muted during the Bush administration, is an agency reborn, replete with pro-union appointees. In mid-December 2010, the Board announced a proposed rule that would require employers to place on employee bulletin boards a poster notifying employees of their right to unionize. Employers, particularly those in the hospitality and other service industries staffed predominantly by minimum wage employees, are understandably likely to object. Meanwhile, unions won two-thirds of all conclusive elections conducted in 2009, the most recent year surveyed, according to the NLRB’s 2009 annual report.

  Vanquishing the curse of litigation is no easy task. Labor and employment lawyers long have argued that the only effective way is to keep it from happening—to keep the genie in the bottle. How? The most practical prophylactic is a combination of strong, compassionate leadership (the opposite of what destructive leaders peddle) and an equally strong, dialed-in HR team who fairly administer policies that recognize an employee’s intrinsic value and reinforce the organization’s unequivocal support for fair treatment.

For more: http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles.aspx/4679/Two-big-HR-challenges-in-2011

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by | February 1, 2011 · 5:16 pm

Hotel Industry Liability Risks: 2-Year Old Falls Down Elevator Shaft At New York Hotel After Child Opens Door That Should Have Required A Key

 The toddler then fell through a 16-inch gap. Inspectors say the switch should have required a key to operate or should have been in a locked panel.

Newer elevators are designed so there is no gap between the door and wall. Building owners have until 2015 to have older elevators retrofitted.

The chief building inspector in Joliet says a code violation played a role in an elevator accident which injured a 2-year-old boy last week. The child fell down an elevator shaft at the plaza hotel.

Inspectors tell the Joliet Herald News that the boy probably flipped a switch which stopped the elevator between floors and opened the doors. The toddler then fell through a 16-inch gap. Inspectors say the switch should have required a key to operate or should have been in a locked panel.

Newer elevators are designed so there is no gap between the door and wall. Building owners have until 2015 to have older elevators retrofitted.

The state fire marshal’s office has temporarily suspended the licenses of two inspectors who certified that elevator in October.

For more:  http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=7932805

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by | January 31, 2011 · 8:05 am

Food Industry Risks: New York Tortilla Factory Ordered To Shut Down After Employees' Death And Discovery That Owners Did Not Carry Workers' Compensation Insurance

The state Workers Compensation Board issued a stop-work order at the Williamsburg facility after learning the factory’s owner, Erasmo Ponce, was not offering workers’ compensation insurance to his employees.

A Brooklyn tortilla factory where a man was crushed when he fell into a dough mixer has been temporarily shuttered, state officials said Friday. Tortilleria Chinantla was not closed because of Juan Baten’s gruesome death, but his loss of life did lead investigators to the facility, officials said.

“The owner would need to get the insurance and pay fines before he is permitted to reopen,” said agency spokesman Brian Keegan.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the state Department of Labor are investigating the deadly accident. Baten, 22, reached into the mixer early Monday and was sucked inside after his hand was snagged by one of its blades. The young father was killed instantly when a turbine broke his neck.

For more:  http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2011/01/29/2011-01-29_feds_shutter_deadly_bklyn_tortilla_factory.html

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by | January 29, 2011 · 9:01 am

Hospitality Industry Employee Risks: New York Restaurant Employees "Secretly Tape" Owner And Supervisors And Claim Violation Of "Federal Labor Laws"

“These tapes and transcripts provide irrefutable proof that the Boathouse Restaurant has repeatedly violated federal labor laws,” said Peter Ward, president of Local 6 of the hotel and restaurant workers union.

Employees at the iconic Boathouse Restaurant in Central Park have been secretly taping their bosses.

Fed up with their treatment by management, dozens of waiters and dishwashers have been reporting to work for the past year armed with miniature cassette recorders and have taped hundreds of workplace conversations. Restaurant owner Dean Poll can be heard on several of the tapes warning his employees that if they vote for a union he “will go out of business.”

A dozen workers claimed Thursday in interviews with the Daily News that supervisors routinely threatened and retaliated against them for trying to organize a union.

On Tuesday, Poll suddenly dismissed 16 workers – all supporters of the union campaign.

The restaurant normally employs about 100 people in the winter and up to 200 during the spring and summer.

“They told us we were terminated because they have a new policy of bringing in agency workers,” said Francisco Labayen, a banquet waiter who regularly wore a wire to work.

Local 6 responded to those firings by formally petitioning for a union election Thursday to the National Labor Relations Board. Ward wants investigators from the federal agency to listen to the audiotapes for themselves and sanction Poll for a host of unfair labor practices.

For more:  http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/01/28/2011-01-28_restaurant_staffs_tale_of_the_tape.html

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by | January 24, 2011 · 7:43 am

Hospitality Industry Payment Systems Risk: Process, Controls & Instrumentation (PCI) Compliance In America Must Address "More Secure Methods Of Payment Authorization"

“…more incentives (should be) put in place to encourage more secure methods of payment authorization. One example of this is the “chip and PIN” system in use outside of the United States. In this system, credit cards use a tiny PIN-activated microchip that protects payment information...”

“As it stands, virtually every Western and Eastern nation have migrated to this (system)…which countries haven’t? Iran and the U.S.”

Data security also is going to be a major focus at this year’s Hospitality Law Conference.

Right now, liability is on the merchants’ side of things but not on the payment systems, and that has to change, said Cannon, who is counsel to the Merchants Payment Coalition.

“Right now, all liability runs downhill and at the bottom is the merchants’ coalition and, partially, the hospitality industry,” he said.

The federal government is reviewing the issue of data security liability and could potentially come up with a new way of assigning liability by 21 July of this year.

“In terms of the regulatory process, this is the speed of light,” Cannon said.

For more:  http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles.aspx/4809/Hospitality-Law-event-to-examine-privacy-PR

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by | January 23, 2011 · 11:34 am

Hotel Industry Health Risks: Hotels Owners Must Act To Eliminate "Sick Building Syndrome" (SBS) Including "Inadequate Ventilation", Indoor And Outdoor "Chemical Contaninants" And Biological Contamination

“Sick Building Syndrome” (SBS) is defined as building occupants experiencing acute health and comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a building, but no specific illness or cause can be identified.

  • Inadequate ventilation: ASHRAE recently revised its ventilation standard to provide a minimum of 15 cfm of outdoor air per person in non-smoking areas. ASHRAE is attempting to balance energy consumption with an adequate IAQ. If you have an existing hotel, an engineered study of ventilation will give you all of the information you need to make adjustments as needed.
  • Chemical contaminants: Research clearly shows that V.O.C.’s (volatile organic compounds) can cause chronic and acute health effects at even low concentrations, and many V.O.C.’s are known carcinogens. This is why LEED standards address V.O.C.’s as found in adhesives, carpeting, upholstery, manufactured wood products, copy machines, pesticides and cleaning agents. Your “green” advisor can assist with low or no V.O.C. options for your hotel. GreenSeal.org can provide all of the details you need.
  • Chemical contaminants from outdoor sources: This includes motor vehicle exhaust, plumbing vents and building exhausts (from kitchens or bathrooms, for example) and combustion products from a parking garage. Air intake vents must be carefully located to avoid these sources of contamination.
  • Biological contamination: These include bacteria, molds, pollen and viruses. Unfortunately, hoteliers are all too familiar with the history of hotel-borne Legionnaire’s Disease, and as such, must be vigilant in testing our cooling towers and indoor decorative fountains.

For more:  http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/154000320/4049708.search?query=hotel+pool+water+illness

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by | January 13, 2011 · 6:30 am

Hospitality Industry Risks: Hotel And Restaurant Owners And Management Must Have Emergency Plans And Insurance In Place To Manage Crisis

Hotel owners and management must be able to deal with catastrophic events and know the answers to the following:

  1. How quickly could you restart?
  2. Would insurance provide money for next week’s rent and wages?
  3. What would the bank say?

Massive floods are one thing, but what if a neighbouring building caught fire or your kitchen burst into flames? Start your managers and staff thinking through the issues, while they’re still in the headlines…

  • Check Data Backup Systems: are they all onsite or are copies of data, systems and staff records kept elsewhere? Is the safe fireproof or just a box with a key? Online backup systems like Carbonite work well, and data storage is very cheap – but you need to start it happening!
  • Is the Insurance cover complete? Would it cover a situation like the current floods? Does it cover intangible items as well as equipment? What about loss of profits and staff wages while rebuilding happens?
  • Are Staff trained for fire and first-aid emergencies? This is the type of training that’s usually regarded as ‘nice to have’ rather than essential. Do they know how to handle a fat or an electrical fire? What about an elderly customer who faints or collapses? Or flood waters coming near electrical connections?
  • How will you keep Customers & Staff informed? It’s more effective if your email newsletter or SMS alerts are already part of their world, then you can really keep their loyalty active. Your Facebook Page and Twitter updates will also reach many others…
  • Have a Crisis Management Plan, designed to cover the many risky situations where you depend on only one alternative: eg only one staff member who’s qualified with first aid, one chef who knows how to cook the favourite dessert, one key for the liquor store, or one computer with all the staff records.
  • Crisis Management Downloads: ready to use (and edit) Safety Manual and Rules, Maintenance Logbook, Cleaning Rosters (greasy dirt is a big cause of kitchen fires) and a raft of other systems designed to keep your business organised and safe.

For more:   http://www.hotelnewsresource.com/article51387.html

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Filed under Claims, Flood Insurance, Guest Issues, Injuries, Insurance, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Training

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by | January 10, 2011 · 10:17 am

Hotel Industry Theft Risks: Hotel Management Must Make Valet Parking Areas Secure From Thieves Who Hide In Vehicles

Police said a casino surveillance video shows a man handing his Hummer over to the valet. The valet parked the Hummer in the casino’s secured lot without knowing there were three men hiding inside the vehicle. The men had access to all the cars parked in the lot, police said.

 Three Cadillac Escalades were stolen from a secured valet parking lot Saturday at Detroit’s MGM Casino Hotel, police said. The video shows the men stealing the Escalades.

When hotel customers asked the valet employees to retrieve their vehicles, the drivers were puzzled to find that the Escalades had disappeared from the parking lot. It may sound like a clever crime, but this same type of theft was acted out in an episode of the TV show “Las Vegas.” The episode was re-run last week. The men could have been copying the fictional thieves.

For more:  http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/26439694/detail.html#

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