Tag Archives: Security

by | June 18, 2014 · 9:18 am

Hospitality Industry Risk Management Update: “Why You Need to Track Your Travelers”

“…Another factor reducing traveler safety is lack of awareness by travelers themselves about the risks they might encounter, experts said.risk management A recent survey by travel assistance provider International SOS found that while most international travelers carry smart phones, nearly three-quarters (73%) do not use travel-related applications before or during travel. Survey respondents said they would like information about medical services and risks in their destination – but apparently they don’t want it badly enough to bother looking…”

Do you know where your travelers are? Sure, you say. “I’ve got some people in Europe and a bunch headed for a meeting in the Bahamas.” Sorry, that’s not enough information. You need more than a general idea of where your travelers are, according to safety and security experts. Not knowing where travelers are or the risks they could encounter can open your company to legal and financial liability.

For more: http://bit.ly/1ilhLGc

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by | June 17, 2014 · 8:42 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Atlantic City ‘Fake’ FBI Agent Convicted of Casino-Hotel Robbery”

“…With the assistance of Borgata security, police located and arrested Jonathan P. Zembreski,new jersey casino then 32, of East Northport, N.Y., inside the casino. Zembreski was charged with robbery and impersonating a public servant or law enforcement officer and lodged in the Atlantic County Justice Facility in default of $200,000 bail…”

A New York State man has been convicted of impersonating an FBI agent inside an Atlantic City casino-hotel last year in order to gain entry to a hotel room and rob the occupant.

On March 1, 2013 at 3:49 a.m., Atlantic City police responded to the Borgata Hotel and Casino for a report of a strong-arm robbery that had occurred inside the hotel/casino.

For more: http://bit.ly/1kKjsaX

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by | June 12, 2014 · 8:24 am

Hospitality Industry Risk Update: “Hospitality’s Fight Against Human Trafficking”

“…While the $32-billion human trafficking industry is on the rise, now the hospitality industry must take steps.gavel (1) With leaders like Nelson, the hospitality industry is just starting to push back, which means traffickers are going to hit obstacles never seen before. We cannot just rely on the strength of victims and the federal government to fight alone. All of us have a responsibility to stop the epidemic in our country…”

The hospitality businesses, especially hotels and restaurants, have become a harbor for human trafficking in the United States. Human trafficking comes in two forms: commercial sex trafficking and forced labor trafficking. Victims can be domestic or international. Whether it is commercial sex trafficking victims being moved through motels, or subcontracted foreign labor utilized in restaurants or hotels, traffickers have identified the hospitality industry as a vehicle for modern-day slavery.

For more: http://bit.ly/1hMzfem

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by | June 10, 2014 · 8:30 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Update: “Hyper-Vigilance Helps to Keep Guests Safe”

“…If an incident does occur, whether it’s an act of violence or a minor theft,safety responsibility rests with lodging management to respond immediately, Chartier says. That may mean correcting the physical surroundings, barricading an area, having appropriate security personnel respond, or calling the authorities. Situations will be further complicated once an incident spreads via social media or a news crew shows up…”

The autopsy photos still haunt Norm Bates, Esq. “She was stabbed 96 times,” says Bates, president of Liability Consultants Inc., in Bolton, Mass. “I’ve done hundreds of murder cases, but this was the worst one I’ve ever seen.”

Roughly a year prior to the October 2007 murder of 21-year-old Layla Banks, the former Stamford Sheraton Hotel in Connecticut had cut the property’s security staff of 10 to one as a cost-saving measure, says Bates, who served as a security and liability expert for the Banks family in the case against the hotel. The security office became a storeroom, and the director of engineering doubled as the director of security, a position that he was “incompetent” to serve.

For more: http://bit.ly/1ki7zc2

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by | June 9, 2014 · 8:21 am

Hospitality Industry Crime Update: “2 Teens Shot at West Berkeley Hotel Party”

“…According to unconfirmed scanner traffic, one person had been shot in the face and one person had been shot in the leg.Berkeley Hotel Both were taken by ambulance to a local hospital for medical treatment.Authorities received a report of a third person who had been shot in the chest, but had not located anyone matching that description as of 11:15 p.m. They planned to call local hospitals to see if that person had gotten to the hospital in some other way, according to the scanner…”

Berkeley Police spokeswoman officer Jennifer Coats confirmed that two teenage juvenile boys were shot at La Quinta on Saturday night.

She said she could not comment on their injuries due to medical privacy laws, but said the wounds did not appear to be life threatening. Both were taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Police have not located a third gunshot victim, though one initially had been reported. Authorities have asked area hospitals to alert the Berkeley Police Department if they become aware of one.

For more: http://bit.ly/1kWZQF9

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by | June 5, 2014 · 8:17 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Grass Valley Hotel Bust Results in 15 Arrests”

“…Through that investigation 15 people were arrested on variety of charges,grass valley including suspicion possession of controlled substances and firearms. Police believe the suspects were using the rooms to take drugs…Police confiscated methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, firearms and ammunition. A hidden trap door under the carpet in one room led to a storage room…”

Grass Valley police arrested 15 people on various drug and gun charges at a hotel.

The arrests occurred on May 30 after police learned that people were staying at the Holiday Lodge on East Main Street who were not registered. Police suspected they were involved in narcotics.

For more: http://bit.ly/1kNa4mA

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by | June 3, 2014 · 7:54 am

P3 Hospitality Industry Risk Report: “Front Desk Best Practices” Presented by Loss Control Manager Marco Johnson of Petra Risk Solutions (VIDEO)

[vimeo https://vimeo.com/96622404 w=500&h=281]

Petra Risk Solutions’ Loss Control Manager, Marco Johnson, offers a P3 Hospitality Risk Report – ‘Front Desk Best Practices’. 

P3 ( Petra Plus Process) is the Risk Management Division of Petra Risk Solutions – America ’s largest independent insurance brokerage devoted exclusively to the hospitality marketplace.

For more information on Petra and P3 visit petrarisksolutions.com or call 800.466.8951.

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by | June 2, 2014 · 8:00 am

Hospitality Industry Risk Update: “Methamphetamine Labs Pose Growing Problem, Expense for Hotel Owners”

“…The ingredients for meth and their byproducts, including ammonia, hydrochloric acid gas, lithium, sulfuric acid and pseudoephedrine,Meth Labs carry a plethora of possible side effects depending on the length of exposure….The size of most hotel rooms and the self-contained air-handling systems in them work in favor for decontamination crews. Since each room has its own heating and air-conditioning unit, the chances of the vapors getting into the rest of the building are slim…”

Gone are the days when making meth on the go was confined to low-end hotel rooms. The drug’s cooks are now finding their ways into hotels that any family might choose for road trips or weekends at various lake communities in the area.

“It’s not just happening in low-level hotels or strip hotels. It’s starting to happen in middle-class hotels,” said Joe Clark, operations manager for water and special projects at Protechs, a Fort Wayne company that does meth lab decontamination.

For more: http://bit.ly/1pzPNsk

 

 

 

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by | May 16, 2014 · 8:33 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Update: “Hotels Working On Concierge App For Check-in Via Smartphones”

“…Marriott Hotels, for instance,offers mobile check-in for select members who can check in via the mobile app and collect their key card from a designated mobile check-in desk. Image‘This technology will change the guest arrival experience and streamline the entire check-in process,’ said Prasad Iyer, head-cluster e-commerce, Indian subcontinent and Maldives at Marriott Hotels…”

Come 2015, guests arriving at the Aloft and W Hotels will be able to bypass the traditional check-in desk and enter their rooms using their smartphone as the room key.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts, which owns the two boutique brands, is working on collaboration with locking and security solutions provider Assa Abloy to develop keyless checkin technology that will allow the guests to check in and out of their rooms using their mobile phones.

For more: http://bit.ly/1n4iwRN

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by | May 14, 2014 · 9:02 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Benton Police Bust Crime Ring Based Out of Hotel”

“…Police said detectives found four stolen vehicles, a large amount of stolen property and numerous articles of evidence related to identity theft and forgeries in the suspects’ possession.Image Methamphetamine, prescription medication and ecstasy were also found on the scene…The suspects purportedly used multiple rooms at the hotel to avoid detection and used stolen license plates and vehicles to avoid being caught, the release states…”

The arrest of a burglary suspect on Monday led Benton police to discover and bust a Saline County criminal enterprise ring, officials said.

Officers responded to a burglary in progress around 12:45 p.m. Monday on River Heights Drive. While police were unable to locate the suspect — identified as Jason Hamilton, 33, of Benton — at the time of the burglary, Hamilton was later located in Pulaski County and taken into custody, the Benton Police Department said in a news release.

For more: http://bit.ly/1gE0r9o

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