# Locked in bathroom



## letin (4 Jul 2011)

Hi all, 
Basically was in a very high end hotel a few weeks back. Got into the room and noticed the bathroom door was faulty. When closed you could not open from inside the bathroom, I highlighted this to reception and they advised a repairman would be up to repair. This was at about 10:30pm. I waited, nothing happened.

Decided to go to sleep.

Woke at 3am, went to the toilet, as per habit closed the door behind me and I then experienced one of those slow motion reactions turned around and saw the door click shut behind me. Tried to open the door... Nothing...

The room is a bathroom, radiator constantly on, no windows etc etc...I yelled, banged and tried to open the door for hours... 6hours to be exact. Saga came to an end when a hotel employee heard me banging and came to investigate. He opened my door, white as a ghost and found me locked in the bathroom. 

I addressed to management as soon as I was out, they brushed it off and basically told it was only something small...

My question is, do I have a legal case here? It was very stressful being locked in a confined space not knowing when I'd be released. It could of been hours before the cleaner came in, and god knows what would of happened if I had the "do not disturb" sign on the door.

Surely the hotel has a health and safety obligation that has gone completely astray here? It could of ended alot worse than it did, but it was still very distressing. What are my entitlements? rights?

Thanks


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## Guest105 (4 Jul 2011)

what do you mean by 'what are your entitlements' ? Surely you are not looking for money to compensate you for a few hours been confined in a warm bathroom.  If it were me I would have had a long hot soak!

It was a mishap, the repair man would most likely have called up the following morning to fix the door. 

 I sympatise with your ordeal but I am full sure you wouldn't have been left in there for days on end without somebody hearing your racket.


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## millieforbes (4 Jul 2011)

cashier said:


> what do you mean by 'what are your entitlements' ? Surely you are not looking for money to compensate you for a few hours been confined in a warm bathroom.  If it were me I would have had a long hot soak!



But being trapped in a bathroom for any number of hours is enough of an inconvenience that one could reasonable imagine a complaint to the management would result in a discount / refund of the night's cost or an offer of a voucher etc

OP did you pay for the stay in full?


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## NOAH (5 Jul 2011)

You should have swopped rooms immediately.  Report them to the nearest fire station, what if there had been a fire!!  They are in breach of fire regulations.

noah


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## niceoneted (5 Jul 2011)

I'm not sure you are "entitled" to anything but this is bad form of the hotel. 
What if you were claustrophobic or a diabetic perhaps or have some other medical condition. 
Yes I think Noah is correct that it could be in breach of fire regulations. So I would report this.


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## onq (5 Jul 2011)

+1 on what noah and others have posted.
-1 on what cashier has posted.

It sounds like there was breach of fire regulations.
While the door was probably not a fire door it is unlikely that it or the bathroom enclosure offered more than 30 minutes fire protection.

If there had been a fire emergency in the hotel 6 hours could have seen the building burn to the ground.
The hotel staff response was certainly not adequate given the stress you were apparently put under by this ordeal.

Given the fact that there wasn't a fire emergency and you have fully recovered from the ordeal, I would not be certain that there is a claim for personal injuries here.
The issue of proof arises - the one witness is the hotel employee and they have probably repaired the defective door by now.

Also while you could not get out of a room within your bedroom, or enjoy the benefits of the bed you paid for, I'm not certain you could state that you were detained unfairly against you will, since you had intended to stay in the hotel, in that suite, albeit not in the bathroom, and once your situation was made known, the hotel staff effected your release.

I think you should report the matter as a public service to the local Fire Officer.
This measure may especially be appropriate if the problem was caused by a generic fault with the door fittings or ironmongery.
Not doing so - if the door was not repaired since of if there were similarly defective doors in that hotel - could  possibly result in a death by misadventure in a future fire emergency.


ONQ.

All advice on AAM is remote from the situation and cannot be    relied                        upon                                                                                                         as  a                defence       or                support   -         in             and        of                    itself    -                           should                            legal                         action                be                             taken.
       Competent legal and building professionals should be asked to               advise        in                                                                                                               Real         Life          with               rights      to                 inspect            and                    issue                        reports             on                the                                      matters           at                            hand.


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## Complainer (5 Jul 2011)

cashier said:


> If it were me I would have had a long hot soak!


For six hours?  You'd have been like a wrinkled prune when you finally got out.


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## Guest105 (5 Jul 2011)

Complainer said:


> For six hours?  You'd have been like a wrinkled prune when you finally got out.


 
I'm already a wrinkled prune


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## computerman (6 Jul 2011)

At the very least they should have given you a voucher ( dont ask for an ensuite).

Leave an appropriate review on tripadvisor and email their customer service dept of the link to your review.


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## Sandals (6 Jul 2011)

If hotel outside Ireland basically you haven't a hope (know a situation where a tv fell on toddler and nothing ever came of it despite solicitors letters etc).

From my own experience of a poor quality stay few years back contact Bord Failte who will demand an answer for you (if the hotel dont answer you), in my case the manager failed to respond and they were set ten days again to answer and the manager did and I got a nice 1BBD (although in the same hotel). 

I class this very serious as my mother-in-law got locked into our apartment bathroom many years ago which had no window etc and the poor woman suffered a panic attack and the door had to be broken in.


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## letin (6 Jul 2011)

Thanks for the replies guys. They repaired the door alright whilst I was out. Being locked in the room was a huge inconvenience, I was up in Dublin for 3months work and stayed with this particular hotel for several weeks before this incident happened.

Door was a firedoor, tried to kick it in frustration.. big mistake. 

and I did pay for the full week. No discount given whatsoever. Also had to remain in the same room (with makeshift repair on door) for the remaining of my stay (4nights)

I think in situations like this, they should not only check the room before occupancy for defects but have some means of an alarm system incase someone fell or got locked in the bathroom. Was very distressing indeed. 

As for having a bath and relaxing until I was let out, how can you say this? I had appointments I had to make, which I didn't. I wasn't sure if I was going to be locked in there all day, and if the "Do not disturb" sign was on the door I am fairly sure they wouldn't of entered my room until checkout day arrived and I didn't check out. 

It was a very distressing incident, and could of ended alot more worse. Being confined in a sauna type space, with no means of timelimit till it ends is not a pleasant experience at all. 

I think I will report to the local fire dept, and would be very tempted to name and shame.


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## bacchus (7 Jul 2011)

May be you could change your AAM name to "letout"? (sorry, could no resist)


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## onq (7 Jul 2011)

letin said:


> I think I will report to the local fire dept, and would be very tempted to name and shame.



A fire door by definition cannot have a lock on it, defective or otherwise, that prevents egress from the space it helps enclose.

I think you've been treated very shabbily by the hotel.
By all means report them and name and shame them.
Just remain true to the facts and not sensationalist.

On a broader screen I think there are issues for hotel governance.
It could spawn a Prime Time exposé into Fire Safety in hotels.

ONQ.

All advice on AAM is remote from the situation and cannot be    relied                        upon                                                                                                         as  a                defence       or                support   -         in             and        of                    itself    -                           should                            legal                         action                be                             taken.
       Competent legal and building professionals should be asked to               advise        in                                                                                                               Real         Life          with               rights      to                 inspect            and                    issue                        reports             on                the                                      matters           at                            hand.


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## elcato (7 Jul 2011)

> Got into the  room and noticed the bathroom door was faulty. When closed you could not  open from inside the bathroom, I highlighted this to reception and they  advised a repairman would be up to repair.


How did you know the door could not be opened from the inside ? Was the handle missing or was there someone else in the room when you first arrived ? Just curious btw.


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## Sunny (7 Jul 2011)

You seriously didn't get anything after being locked in a bathroom for 6 hours?? Of course you have a case.


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## orka (7 Jul 2011)

I can't beieve they made you pay for the night spent in the bathroom instead of in a bed!  You probably will be able to get some compensation out of them but it will be affected by the fact you knew about the defect and went ahead and locked yourself in.


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## onq (7 Jul 2011)

You knew about the defective door and your brother had been trapped in the same room?

This sheds a completely different light on this matter.

Brief your solicitor better than you did AAM.

ONQ.

All advice on AAM is remote from the situation and cannot be    relied                        upon                                                                                                         as  a                defence       or                support   -         in             and        of                    itself    -                           should                            legal                         action                be                             taken.
       Competent legal and building professionals should be asked to               advise        in                                                                                                               Real         Life          with               rights      to                 inspect            and                    issue                        reports             on                the                                      matters           at                            hand.


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## Ceepee (8 Jul 2011)

I think you have been treated very shabbily by the hotel, in that you did not receive the service you were purchasing - ie a good night's sleep.  A profuse apology, waiving the night's charge, and a move to a new room would have been in my view an appropriate response.  A letter of apology from the manager and a complimentary fruit bowl go a long way, in my experience!



letin said:


> I wasn't sure if I was going to be locked in there all day, and if the "Do not disturb" sign was on the door I am fairly sure they wouldn't of entered my room until checkout day arrived and I didn't check out.



Just to reassure you, generally if a room cannot be serviced by the staff (eg if a Do Not Disturb sign is on the door for a prolonged period), reception or a manager will attempt to make contact by phoning the room.  Hotel managers do worry very much if guests are locked in their room and do not come out.  In two hotels I worked in, I have dealt with tragic situations where guests took their own lives in their hotel rooms, and in each case the alarm was raised by housekeeping staff expressing concern about the guest's well-being.


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## Complainer (8 Jul 2011)

onq said:


> You knew about the defective door and your brother had been trapped in the same room?
> 
> This sheds a completely different light on this matter.
> 
> Brief your solicitor better than you did AAM.


It was clear from the original post that she had reported it beforehand, but got no response from the hotel. Not sure where de brudder comes into it???


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## onq (8 Jul 2011)

De brudder's experience means it was experienced by a close relative who reported it to the room occupant, who did not request a change of room.

The whole matter of whether there may be due compensation at all seems to be compromised IMO.

Briefing your solicitor fully is a given.

ONQ.

All advice on AAM is remote from the situation and cannot be    relied                        upon                                                                                                         as  a                defence       or                support   -         in             and        of                    itself    -                           should                            legal                         action                be                             taken.
       Competent legal and building professionals should be asked to               advise        in                                                                                                               Real         Life          with               rights      to                 inspect            and                    issue                        reports             on                the                                      matters           at                            hand.


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## levelpar (8 Jul 2011)

Hi Letin, Maybe that should be letout


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## Complainer (8 Jul 2011)

onq said:


> De brudder's experience means it was experienced by a close relative who reported it to the room occupant, who did not request a change of room.



Am I missing something? Where exactly does she mention a relative?


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## niceoneted (9 Jul 2011)

Complainer the OP did have a post responding to Elcatos question in post no 14. In the response they mention that there brother had been in the hotel room with them on one of the days and that he had gotten locked in. The post seems to have disappeared from the thread.


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## Complainer (9 Jul 2011)

Nice one, Niceoneted.


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## mercman (9 Jul 2011)

onq said:


> A fire door by definition cannot have a lock on it, defective or otherwise, that prevents egress from the space it helps enclose.
> ONQ.



I will not doubt your qualifications but why do Insurance companies insist on locks on some Fire doors in houses ?

OP without dragging the matters any further or longer, never mind requesting a refund. Demand it. If they say NO, pass the incident to your solicitor. I bet that they will then pay up.


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## onq (9 Jul 2011)

Mercman,

Please, don't stand in awe of my qualifications, or anyone else's.

Most of  my advice offered to AAM is experience-based.

Besides, any professional is only as good as their current knowledge.

Case in point - I didn't know that insurance companies required locks on some Fire doors in houses [mine doesn't] and I'd be obliged if you could clarify that by return.

We need to increase the AAM knowledge base...



======================

There may be a degree of confusion here between requiring a lock on a door which ALSO happens to be a fire door, and requiring a lock on a fire door because its a fire door.

Security and fire safety are often at loggerheads when it comes to buildings which are in operation.

So for example someone may want a lock on a garage door, to prevent casual entry to the house by roundabout means.

======================

That having been said, I didn't define my terms in the response you quoted and relied on the assumption that it was an inner room served by an accommodation door until it was called a fire door by the OP - IOW, people use this door.

Normally bathrooms are classed as areas of low fire risk and so fire doors in houses are seldom specified for bathroom enclosures.

However, if something is a fire door through which people pass, it normally 


 cannot have a lock on it
 can only have a removable locking device - removedion times of operation [padlock and chain]
 must be one way secured to prevent access from the outside of the building [press bar lock] or
 be fitted with a tumbler lock.
  The one instance of where locks are normally fitted in apartment buildings is to doors or hatches serving service installations or service ducts.
These are intended to be opened only by trained personally to reduce the risk of disruption of services or hazard.

A difficulty can arise for example when there are multiple lettings and fire stairs serve all storeys that need to be secured.
If one of the stairs is compromised by smoke, and you don't find out until you are in it, how can you get out if the fire door lock behind you?

A thorny one and there are several compromises but no ideal solution.

ONQ.

ONQ.


      All advice on AAM is remote from the situation and cannot be    relied                        upon                                                                                                         as  a                defence       or                support   -         in             and        of                    itself    -                           should                            legal                         action                be                             taken.
      Competent legal and building professionals should be asked to               advise        in                                                                                                               Real         Life          with               rights      to                 inspect            and                    issue                        reports             on                the                                      matters           at                            hand.


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## Leo (11 Jul 2011)

The fact that you knew the door was faulty, and made the hotel aware of the issue would have a significant impact on any case. Once you're aware of a hazzard, it's difficult to argue someone else is liable. It could be argued that you locked yourself in there on purpose with the aim of seeking compensation.


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## Staples (11 Jul 2011)

Leo said:


> The fact that you knew the door was faulty, and made the hotel aware of the issue would have a significant impact on any case. Once you're aware of a hazzard, it's difficult to argue someone else is liable.


 
Equally, once a hotel is made aware of a hazard, it's reasonable that they should do something about it.

I don't think a resident is necesarily at fault if they neglect to remember a faulty door at three in the morning.  If the resident was serious about engineering a compo claim, surely it would have been better not to inform the hotel in adavance about the faulty door.


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## letin (11 Jul 2011)

Hi all,
 Surely the fact I highlighted the fault to the hotel would put them more liable?! As they were aware of the fault/danger and did nothing to correct?

If I didnt realise the door was faulty, didn't report it surely the hotel could stand behind "hmm we had it serviced recently, and it seems to be "one of those things"". The fact that this wasn't a "surprise" and they were aware would deem them liable?!

I'm quite surprised on peoples views on this.. Surely if you rent a car, see the car is not 100% in your eyes, report to hire company and they advise its ok they become liable as they were aware of the "fault" and yet continued to rent the car full well knowing its fault and potential hazard to the customer?


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## Panacea (11 Jul 2011)

letin said:


> Surely if you rent a car, *see the car is not 100%* in your eyes, report to hire company and they advise its ok they become liable as they were aware of the "fault" and* yet continued to rent the car* full well knowing its fault and potential hazard to the customer?


 
Would this not be a case of _volenti non fit injuria_? 

Personally I think they should at least have either offerred to comp your stay for that night or issue you with a voucher for a complimentary return stay out of goodwill.

Out of curiousity, did you ask to be transferred when you first noticed the problem having seen someone else lock themself in? Was there a lock on the door or was the handle to open it broken that you could only open from outside? Hotel must note have been too busy if no one staying in any of the surrounding rooms could hear you calling out or banging on the door or wall to next room assuming the bathroom backed onto another room.

On a more humourous note I know of a guest who called up one of the daily radio afternoon chat shows to express their outrage and disgust at the hard core adult content available on a pay-television channel in a foreign hotel owned by an Irish hotel group only to be found to have spent more than 40 minutes over the two nights of her stay watching said channels when a representative of the hotel called in to the show to respond


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## Leo (12 Jul 2011)

letin said:


> Surely if you rent a car, see the car is not 100% in your eyes, report to hire company and they advise its ok they become liable as they were aware of the "fault" and yet continued to rent the car full well knowing its fault and potential hazard to the customer?


 
The analogy isn't quite right here. It's more like you hired a car, noticed the brakes wren't working, notified the hire company, but then proceeded to drive it anyway. 

I doubt any court would find the hotel 100% liable in your circumstances.


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## robbie00 (12 Jul 2011)

Can the original poster advise what type of claim they are looking to receive from the hotel eg free weekend break or are they looking for money? 

I think its annoying that you got locked in your bathroom alright but the face is you knew it was faulty. It all depends aswell what the hotel staff said when you reported it (did they say we will have the handyman up to look at it tomorrow or offer a room change)?

The most I could see you being entitled to is your money back or a complimentary weekends stay at the hotel. 

Can I ask also why you didnt ask them to change your room when you realised the door was faulty?


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## Complainer (12 Jul 2011)

Leo said:


> I doubt any court would find the hotel 100% liable in your circumstances.


I don't think it is a 'court' issue. However, the hotel should clearly have made a goodwill gesture to keep the customer. It would cost the hotel a negligible amount to offer her free accommodation for 1 or 2 nights. The hotel would probably cover their costs by why they would spend in the bar and restaurant.


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## nigey (14 Jul 2011)

Im not sure if you are legally entitled to anything but customer service should come into play here somewhere. not a pleasant situation to be locked into bathroom for 6 hours. You had notified them of the problem they should have moved you to a different room if they could not fix the problem.


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