thieving from the house/gite - experiences please + what to do if it happens?

[glacier1]

Hi there fellow B&B/chambre d'hotes owners,

I have only been open about 3 weeks now and already I've experienced theft from my gite, small things, for instance a few international (uk/french adaptors) which I carelessly left on an un-converted lamp, in the morning the New Zealanders who stayed with us had taken it.  The worse theft I experienced happened 2 days ago when 10 of my coat hangers were missing, a nice family from the Netherlands took them (they were friendly, kind and your avarage next door neighbour), and the worse thing about it, they covered up their theft by placing the bathroom towel over the rail in order to mask the missing coat hangers.

Now personally I do not mind GIVING coat hangers to them, they only cost me a few euros in Castorama, but to steal it it's idiotic! 

I have spoken to a fellow B&B owner in my local town and she told me that a Dutch couple again stole her remote controls for the TV!  But why?!?  They were old tv's from the late 80's!

How do we avoid this in our B&B's?  There is a certain element of trust involved with renting but if people start stealing, how are we meant to react, I'm hardly going to phone the gendarmes over coat hangers, or stolen remote controls!  What are your experiences.  Any advise?

Thanks guys and have a good Sunday, wherever you are.

[Théière]

Personally, like any other retail outlet serving the public you just buy more and factor it into the price and don't get upset over such small items.

Children often remove items without the parents being aware, we have had items sent back to us.

I buy the adapters in packs of ten each year, if we loose a few I don't care.

The Dutch are a legend.

If it were a large expensive item I would take a different view.

[glacier1]

right, I think the same way as you but where do you draw a line?  We'll be watching now, change our ways, I'll make them park in our compound, and look at the gite before they leave, making sure that everything's controled.  So the Dutch are a legand eh?  How so? 

[NormanH]

I don't understand the problem.

Surely you have factored in loss/damage/replacements as a cost?

For example restauranteur friends of mine factor in 8% for breakages/theft/unpaid cheques etc.

You have the first figures to put in that column in your accounts.

Or did you think that you had made an easy investment and that everything will stay the same for ever despite the visitors?

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="teapot"]

Personally, like any other retail outlet serving the public you just buy more and factor it into the price and don't get upset over such small items.

Children often remove items without the parents being aware, we have had items sent back to us.

I buy the adapters in packs of ten each year, if we loose a few I don't care.

The Dutch are a legend.

If it were a large expensive item I would take a different view.

[/quote]

I think items like adaptors will get taken away, client puts one on their own hairdryer, packs dryer and forgets adaptor is still there. We have lost a map or two but I guess these are put in client's car for an outing and they just forget to put them back when they leave. One client bought us replacement map as ours had got very well worn.

Taking coathangers and hiding the evidence cannot be classed as an accident, this is planned![+o(]

Edit: Back to the original question "what to do if it happens?" If the item is valuable I would deduct money from the damage deposit,  anything smaller you have to factor into the running costs, as others have said.

[NormanH]

But planned theft will happen.

Surely nobody is naive enough not to recognise that?

My post was about the bookkeeping.

[Scooby]

Can you not just deduct them from the security deposit? I am assuming you check the gite before you refund their deposit?

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="Scooby"]Can you not just deduct them from the security deposit? I am assuming you check the gite before you refund their deposit?

[/quote]

Scooby, that is what I was suggesting.

Deducting from security / damage deposits will work for gîte rentals but AFAIK, B&Bs don't take security deposits.

[Quillan]

I think its not what they take it the snide lengths they will go too to cover up what they have taken or done.

When we used to take children we have had a child draw with a Biro on a white duvet cover, I am not talking small drawings either. The room looked like the person was trying to be helpful when they left. The dirty sheets stripped from the bed etc until you went to put them in the washing machine [:@] .

We have had people do the same when they have had an 'accident' in the bed although the smell gives it away. We have also had somebody who drunk 4 bottles of red wine then deposit it in the bed, up the curtains and all round the toilet and shower, never said a word and smiled on the way out.

The classic for thieving was when I went to clean a bathroom and thought 'its' a bit dark here' only to discover that somebody had nicked one of the spots from the suspended cable low voltage system that traverses the bathroom.

Basically its all a learning experience, hard that it is I suspect everyone goes through it. My personal tips would be.:

1. Don't let people in to the personal area of your house (do have a personal area to escape too). Have a clear No Entry sign and lock it at night if you can.

2. Check every room before lallowing a guest depart.

3. Have electric gates installed where practical and don't let them out till you have carried out No 2 above.

4. Go minimalistic, very trendy but leaves less to be nicked or broken.

5. Pay extra on your insurance for CDH to cover guests breaking or taking things.

6. Make an inventory of everything in the bedroom and bathroom just like you would for a Gite.

7. Use your common sense.

8. Treat them all (I know its a bit sad) as potential thieves so use your common sense (7 above) to avoid embarrassment to both parties.

9. With power adapters we sell them to the guests and are willing to buy them back when they leave for what they paid for them.

Its hot here (38 deg) and there are other things but I can't think of them just at the moment.

[NormanH]

There speaks the voice of experience...the sort of thing for which this Forum is exceptional!

[glacier1]

Thanks Quillan for the excellent advise, I shall try and take it all onboard for the next guest.  Cheers for that!  Try and rest indoors if you have aircon, it's 34oC here today, not to bad but my grass is dying, it's just so dry here, don't know if you've had rain but we've had nothing here for weeks upon end, it's a dust ball in the Drome

[Quillan]

We have had loads of other things happen over the years, nothing big but just annoying. We put torches in all the rooms (told France has regular power cuts, load of tosh but your not to know when your 'fresh of the boat') when we first opened and battery smoke detectors. The torches have long gone, disappeared over about four months, one by one. Tested the smoke detectors only to find the batteries missing? I suppose there are loads of things that need a 9V battery.

The trick is to try and do a damage limitation exercise i.e. remove things of value that could be of interest to people but keep others. We have antique tea sets in the rooms but then only an English person would know what they are (make, age, collectability etc). To others they look like just ordinary stuff. Don't ask me why we have them, its the wife's department [;-)] . The life cycle of many things is short in this business regardless of what they are (with the exception of sheets, always buy white Egyptian cotton, they last for years) like lamps, mats etc. There is some nice but cheap stuff out there in shops like CASA looks stylish but if it gets broke or nicked it doesn't cost a fortune to replace. There is also the dreaded Ikea as well.

Never, ever, have anything in the room that requires a remote control because as sure that eggs are eggs the remotes will disappear.

If you have AC heating and cooling in your rooms then buy one of THESE and get your electrician to install it. Not only does it mean they can't leave the AC running when out but it makes the room keyring so big they can't forget to give it back. Of course only buy an AC unit that has a remote and a control panel that can be wall mounted then keep the remote locked up in your cupboard. To make doubly sure we now have a big wooden tag on our key sets. As a backup reminder we have a key switch on the gates for them to get in and out so hopefully it helps to remind them further that they have our keys. Only once has anyone sent keys back that they have forgotten to hand in when they left. Its a right pain in the harris having to run around getting another set cut. There's no point in getting wound up about it just find a system that makes it difficult for them to forget.

Anyway good luck and have a good season.

[glacier1]

Hi again Quilian,

Thanks for your input, it's really interesting listening to people to experience talk about the do's and dont's of gites/chambre d'hotes.  What is most surprising is how many things you've said "not" to do that we have done! hahaha, all the sheets are Egyptian cotton and we have a Hitachi a/c unit with an aircon comand that's pinned to the wall, it can be taken off so I'll keep it in a safe place! thanks!  I am going to get a few more lamps Monday from a 2nd hand store (they have some good quality stuff quite cheap, amaizing what you can bring back to life after a good clean!).  I'm going to put a big wooden tag on our keys, which is a really good idea.....nobody's lost keys yet, so I will get this done for the next lot of people.  I need to get a fire alarm installed Monday aswell.  I haven't got around to that yet, but it's important, also going to get a fire hydrent installed too, it's good to have. 

I am new to all this, the regulations and the do's and dont's are confusing, but I'll get used to it, eventually!  Thanks and I hope your season goes well too. 

[Kitty]

NB Don't put the name of your chambre d'hote on the wooden tags as the guests lose the keys when they are out and you are putting your place at risk.  We just put room name on the tags.

[Gardengirl]

I'm appalled to read about all the problems posters have had with things being stolen etc.

We stay at B & Bs, and find bedrooms set out with all manner of attractive items. Similarly, one we have stayed at several times has a lounge solely for guests' use, with books, CDs, games etc. Awful to think of someone just walking off with any, or TV changers etc. I've always thought running ing a B& B or gite must be hard work, but didn't think about things disappearing. Hope none of you have this happen for the rest of the season.

Jo

[Clair]

It's the silly things you don't expect to find: the missing batteries in the smoke alarm or in the torch, the pretty coloured (and thankfully cheap) candle holders or the candles themselves even being packed by mistake, the maps defaced by bored children, the DVD scratched or covered in sticky fingerprints... [:'(] and of course, you only find out just as the new family arrives...[:@]

[plod]

As some have said things may be taken by accident. I packed a hairdryer after an overnight stop in a B & B; luckily my wife noticed and we left it with the rightful owners.

[Bob T]

As a person who does not run any sort of business, I am amazed that some people are willing to take €350 a week from punters and worry about €5 worth of coat hangers.

It is nearly as bad as complaining that they left a light on all day and used an extra €1 of electricity.

[Kitty]

Bob - It's not the money.  It's the inconvenience.  We have to go out and buy replacements - once we have found out that they have gone.

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="Cathy"]Bob - It's not the money.  It's the inconvenience.  We have to go out and buy replacements - once we have found out that they have gone.[/quote]

Cathy, that's it, in a nutshell! Same with people who break things and don't let us know (china, glass etc. not items of great value).

[Théière]

Ditto, then write a lovely letter 2 weeks later telling you all about it

[cassis]

If anyone needs some electric adapters we have a fine collection left behind in sockets by guests. 

[Cerise]

Cassis - perhaps I could swap you some adapters for tee shirts.  This year's guests have all decided to leave tee shirts behind.  I get more things left behind than nicked - get fed up with posting things on.  I try to check the rooms but you would be amazed at the cunning places that people hide their unwanted teeshirts!

And does anyone know why, when people spend loads of money on a holiday, they are too mean to buy a 6€ map?

[cassis]

Yeah - a lot of people seem to rely on GPS and a freebie map from the service station.  Big mistake on several counts.

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="Cerise"]

Cassis - perhaps I could swap you some adapters for tee shirts.  This year's guests have all decided to leave tee shirts behind.  I get more things left behind than nicked - get fed up with posting things on.  I try to check the rooms but you would be amazed at the cunning places that people hide their unwanted teeshirts!

And does anyone know why, when people spend loads of money on a holiday, they are too mean to buy a 6€ map?

[/quote]

In the past we have posted back a few things that clients have left after holidaying in our house. Never have we received a note or e-mail of thanks, [:(]so now I will only return lost property if the clients ask us to.[:)]