4.

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Introduction
Not all premises offer Express Checkout.
It is more common in large establishments, especially those that cater for business people who
don’t want to be delayed at check-out.

Processing express check-outs

Express check-out provides extra service for the guest. Where this service is offered, a couple
of systems may apply.
The guest who wishes an Express Checkout may need to request this service. When they do
they receive an Express Check-Out form from reception they are asked to complete all relevant
details.
Alternatively these forms may be provided in-room near the telephone or in the in-room
compendium.
An Express Checkout means that when departing the guest doesn’t need to wait at reception.
They simply need to hand in the Express Checkout form at reception
and the business will charge their credit card or send the account to the
company for payment. The day prior to a guest’s departure an express
check-out form is signed by the guest. The Front Office cashier checks
the signature against the credit card imprint or guest registration form,
obtained at registration and held on the guest’s file. There is a clause in
most Express Checkout forms stating that the guest authorises the
establishment to action the above process.
In many establishments the Express Checkout process is facilitated using the in-roomtelevision.
The hotel is able to put the guest account up on the screen so the guests can check their
accounts before they proceed with the express checkout.
Premises that offer this service will usually also have a ‘Key/Card Drop’ slot near reception so
that Express Checkout departing guests can return their key/card.
No charge applies to guests for availing themselves of this service, and those who use the
service tend to value it quite highly as it means they can better plan their day and don’t risk
missing an important meeting, missing a flight or getting caught in traffic jams to the airport.

4.6 Error: Reference source not found

Introduction
Group check-outs are potentially problematic for reception as it can mean loads of guests and
all their luggage clogging up the front office area.
For these reasons, most establishments plan the departure of groups and have special
procedures that apply, in the same way that special procedures applied to their check-in.
Remember to find out what group check-out procedures apply where you work and make sure
you follow those.
High on the list of what to do is planning and coordination between staff. The primary idea is to
handle the group as a group and not as, for example, a hundred or more individuals who are all
checking out at the one time.

Group check-outs
The Master Account (or Master Folio as it is also known) is a list of the group’s identical charges
to be settled by the tour leader on check-out. Identical charges can include accommodation,
breakfast and any other charges that were standard across the entire group as negotiated when
the booking was taken. On the due departure date the cashier must obtain the signature of the
tour leader after the master account has been finalized.Most groups will have a direct billing
arrangement established, and the property may have even required a large group booking to
pre-pay (or at least forward a significant deposit to secure) their booking. In some cases the tour
director will bring vouchers to be used in exchange for their stay at the establishment which the
venue will then process for payment.
Where members of the group have incurred additional charges
(that is, they have bought items that were not covered as part of
their ‘package’) such as laundry or bar charges, an individual
account would be created called an ‘Extras Account’.
These extras are paid for by the guests themselves. All
individual accounts may be finalized via express check-out or
individuals may have to settle their accounts at the front office.
These individual accounts may be finalized the evening prior to
check-out or at the time of checkout. Check with the guest for any further charges which need to
be added to the account, such as breakfast, in-room fridge and/or newspapers. Finalize the
account and hand a copy to the guest for checking before processing the payment.
The group leader will normally collect all room keys/cards and present them to reception.
While the keys/cards are being returned to you and the accounts are being processed, the
porters will load the luggage on to the coach and the group will depart.
Group luggage
When handling group luggage, porters will usually have obtained a guest list from Reception
and made up luggage tags well in advance. This saves time and confusion.
The porter will:
 Count all the pieces of luggage
 Make a note on the group record
 Deliver the luggage to the transport vehicle
following the instructions of the tour group
coordinator.
If group baggage is to be stored for any length of time netting or roping bags together to avoid
confusion with other groups’ bags is a security precaution that may be used. This ensures all
baggage is together and helps avoid loss or theft.
Any missing baggage must be reported immediately to management.

4.7 Error: Reference source not found

Introduction
Departure lists are printed out and distributed to various departments to assist the hotel to
process a smooth check-out for the guests.

Departure lists
The following departments require departure lists to assist with the check-out process.
 Housekeeping
 The departure list is used to allocate checkout service rooms to the housekeeping staff
 The time of the guest departure could also help with having the room serviced and
available for resale
 Concierge and Porters
 The departure list is used for staffing purposes. High check-out days, especially if groups
and tours are involved, need to be identified as more staff is required
 Time to departure is also important
 High check-out days means the hotel has to have plenty of taxis or airport transfer buses
available
 Security
 VIP or high profile guests need security to be present at the time of departure just to
make sure everything runs smoothly
 Management
 Various levels of management like to peruse the departures list to see who is checking
out on a particular day. Some managers may come and farewell particular guests
 Maintenance
 Departure lists help the maintenance department as they may need to have certain
rooms placed out-of-order and need to know when they are available.

4.8 Error: Reference source not found

Introduction
Reception staff are responsible for acting on guest requests for assistance on their departure.
In some instances, reception staff will offer to help themselves, while on other occasions,
assistance will be provided via another department, but organised through reception.
In all instances, the help that is provided must be delivered with courtesy.

Recording forwarding address

In some situations a departing guest may ask you to record their forwarding address.
This is common for some business people and for international tourists who are touring the
country.
Where this is requested it usually reflects the fact that they were expecting letters that have not
yet arrived. It should be standard practice when such a request is made to immediately check to
see if the expected letter, fax or e-mail has arrived but not been passed on.
The following procedure where the guest wants to leave a forwarding address is:
 Note down the address as stated by the guest
 Record it as appropriate for the system used at reception. This can mean filing the address
in a specific file or adding the address to a guest file within the computerised system
 When any letter, fax or e-mail arrives for a guest who is not currently shown as in-house,
these files (as well as the Arrivals File) should be checked and the correspondence
forwarded as appropriate. Simply re-addressing the envelope or forwarding an e-mail may
suffice
 If the expected item is a parcel, house rules regarding payment for forwarding such items
must apply. This commonly involves advising the guest that costs for sending the parcel will
be charged to their credit card on a cost recovery basis.
Provide lost and found services
When attending to guestrooms, staff might come across
personal property of guests who have checked out. Just
because a guest has departed, does not mean the person
deliberately left these items behind, so every effort must be
taken to keep the items safe for the guest to claim.
Lost property can be defined as all the items left in check-out rooms and that do not belong to
the establishment. Common items that are left include watches, jewellery, books, small address
books, wallets, cameras, and duty-free shopping items. Some of these items have a greater
monetary value than others. To safeguard your own reputation, those items that are of a greater
value – cameras, jewellery, wallets or ther important items e.g. airline tickets, bus/coach tickets,
or theatre tickets, should be reported to your supervisor immediately.
Baggage may be lost prior to a guest’s arrival or within a property. In either case, Reception
may be called upon to assist in finding it. Your property will have set procedures for locating lost
bags and recording and holding lost property.
Lost property is usually taken to the Housekeeping office where each item is labelled with the
following information:
 Date found
 Room number – or other location as appropriate (corridor, guest laundry etc.)
 Exact location in room where item was found – ‘under the bed’, ‘in the bathroom’
 Description of item – such as ‘Gent’s briefcase, brown, locked, Avion brand’, ‘ladies Seiko
watch, gold with leather strap’
 Name of person who found the item
 Date item was returned to the owner - after item has been claimed or sent to the rightful
owner.
Only items that are going to be stored for a short time may be kept in the Housekeeping office.
All other items, especially items of value, must be stored in a securely locked area. The
Housekeeper will keep a log on what happens to each item, e.g. whether the items are returned
to the guest by mail, picked up personally, are to be given to charity etc.
Where property is found in a guest room by the Housekeeping staff – or handed in to Reception
by other guests – it is Reception who are responsible for handling the lost and found/lost
property paperwork.
Lost and Found items are traditionally kept in the Housekeeping department. However, some
establishments will have a Lost and Found register at Reception to trace the articles left behind
while other establisments will direct all lost property queries through to the housekeeping
department.
Generally, lost property is kept for three months. However during that time the establishment
may attempt to contact the owner, especially if the item appears valuable and/or of the guest is
a regular.
Where a forwarding address and/or phone number is available, the guest is contacted and
asked if they would like the item returned.
The guest may be asked to forward postage before the item is sent.
A ‘With Compliments’ letter generally accompanies the return of the item and a copy of this
letter should be filed in the lost property correspondence file.
Some items that have not been claimed within a three-month period, after all channels to
contact the owner have been exhausted, will be given back to the finder or handed to police
depending on the value of the item and what it is.
Lost property should never be taken off the premises without the correct authorisation. You
cannot assume that an item is yours simply because you found it and the owner has departed.

Calling a taxi
In most establishments, if there isn’t a taxi stand there may
be a direct line to a taxi company.
As an alternative, you may book a taxi for a guest. This is
often done under a room number, rather than a name, as this
number is used as a reference by the taxi driver and can
be a lot easier to remember than a surname.
Where a taxi stand is available, a porter or concierge may summon the next cab off the rank to
transport the guests. The taxi driver and/or porters should load guest luggage into the taxi. The
guests should not be expected to do this themselves.

Making a booking at another establishment

On occasions departing guests may ask your advice about where to stay, or obtaining a
reservation, at their next destination. Try and sell your own company if you have a property in
the next destination. If not, this is an excellent opportunity to provide customer service and also
a selling opportunity as the property will usually gain a commission when making a reservation
on behalf of the guests.
To accommodate guest needs you will need to:
 Identify their destination
 Determine the style and quality of establishment they wish to stay in
 Find out if they have a preference as to the hotel they want to stay with
 Use your industry knowledge coupled with information available (such as details available
through brochures, guides and the electronic information contained within a CRS)
 Advise the guest of their available options and gain agreement as to their preferred option
 Contact the hotel – usually by telephone – and make enquiries, lodging the booking where
suitable accommodation is available
 Obtain a booking number for the reservation and, if agreed by the guest, guarantee the
booking
 Pass the details of the booking in hard copy form on to the guest
 Thank the guest for their booking.
When the guest has departed, follow internal procedures to ensure that your property records
the booking and will receive the commission to which they are entitled.
In some establishments, a forward booking may be the role of the concierge so identify what
applies where you work and adhere to that.

Organise a porter to take luggage

Some guests will ring from their room to organise a porter’s service at a specific time: advice
regarding this is usually contained within the in-room compendium.
When the guest has notified Reception about their need for porter assistance, you will need to
pass this on to a porter advising them of:
 Guest name/s – which will also indicate the number of guests whose luggage needs to be
moved
 The amount of luggage – you should ask the departing guest how many bags they have
 Room number.
Any special details that apply such as whether the departure needs to be done immediately or if
any other time limits apply.
The porter will then take a trolley, go to the guest room, and stack the trolley with the luggage
doing a check to ensure the guest hasn’t left behind any of their belongings. Where the amount
of luggage or number of departing guests is ‘large’, several porters may work together to effect
this process.
Porters may also be required to pick up guest luggage from the reception area and transport it
to a car boot, taxi or coach.
Work Projects
It is a requirement of this Unit that you complete Work Projects as advised by your Trainer. You
must submit documentation, suitable evidence or other relevant proof of completion of the
project to your Trainer by the agreed date.

4.1 Create a guest folio for a guest

4.2. Research the type of data that would be available on a departure list

4.3. Prepare dialogue to process a guest checkout

4.4. Describe how you would process the payment of a credit card

4.5 Go to a hotel in your area and collect an express check out form. Discuss this with the
class

4.6 Design a master folio for a group and record all the identical charges that would be paid by
the tour leader

4.7 Research and design a departure list for a hotel

4.8 Create a Lost and Found Register.

Summary
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 The departure list provides the front office with a listing of all guests expected to depart on the
day. Reception need to constantly review this list to make changes and communicate these
changes to other departments
 The departure list provides the front office with a lisiting of all guests expected to depart on the
day. Reception need to constantly review this list to make changes and communicate these
changes to other departments
 Preparing a guest account is an important part of the guest stay/guest cycle. Timing and
accuracy are the two most important points in relation to the guest account. The guest account
should be ready for the guest when they are ready to pay and depart
 The Front Office is where you process guest arrivals and departures. Both of these require you
to process financial transactions or undertake cashiering tasks
 The guest who wishes an Express Checkout may need to request this service and when they do
they receive an Express Check-Out form from Reception and are asked to complete all relevant
details
 Group check-outs are potentially problematic for Reception as it can mean loads of guests and
all their luggage clogging up the front office area. For these reasons, most establishments plan
the departure of groups and have special procedures that apply, in the same way that special
procedures applied to their check-in
 Departure lists are printed out and distributed to various departments to assist the hotel to
process a smooth check-out to the guests
 Reception staff are responsible for acting on guest requests for assistance on their departure. In
some instances, reception staff will offer to help themselves, while on other occasions,
assistance will be provided via another department, but organised through Reception.