fizzback

23 Aug 07
Caterer & HotelKeeper

 

CLEAN ROOMS AT TOP OF GUESTS’ PRIORITY LISTS

Hotel guests in the UK value clean rooms above everything else during their stay, but many operator are far from whiter that white when it comes to cleaning, new research reveals.

 

According to the findings of the report by instant feedback company Fizzback, which is based on data collected from 500 consumers while in their rooms, the majority of complaints and compliments received by hotel managers pertain to standards of hygiene in guests’ rooms.

 

The survey found that one fifth of all complaints were about poor standards of cleanliness in rooms, while nearly one third (29%) of all positive feedback was praise for how clean rooms were.

 

Guest particularly value a clean bathroom, with a quarter of all compliments praising the standards of hotel toilets.

 

Fizzback chief executive Rob Keve said: “Customers value cleanliness above everything else, yet hotels don’t put enough effort into getting this relatively simple thing right.”

 

Eton Collection managing director Peter Tyrie said that skimping on housekeeping was ultimately a false economy for any business.

 

“You don’t want a hair in the bath anymore than you’d want one in your soup,” he said. “It’s absolutely essential that the room is clean, but amazing how often this is overlooked in hotels.”

 

Chrissy Hodges, divisional director of hotel and leisure services at facilities management company ISS, agreed and said that the biggest problem with cleaning rooms was that hoteliers were not always prepared to pay the going rate for the work to be done.

 

“If you don’t invest in proper cleaning services, you can’t achieve the high standards guests expect,” she said. “Cross-contamination is a big issue, and it’s vital that cleaning methods are monitored. You can’t use the same cloth to clean the toilet and the bedside table, for instance, but often hotels do not check that the right cleaning methods are applied.”

 

Exclusive research by Caterer in May revealed that one in 10 hospitality operators gave staff no cleaning or hygiene training.

 

The Spring Clean Survey 2007, sponsored by P&G Professional’s Fairy Warewash Solutions, Questioned nearly 200 hospitality workers and found that , while 99% consider cleanliness to be of importance, more than one-third conceded that their establishment was not always cleaned to the highest standard.