Elara - Trapped in Elevator

My wife was trapped in a broken elevator tonight for about an hour and five minutes. She was alone and wasn't scared, more bored and bothered for the waste of time. She used the call button to notify security and they kept talking to her until the elevator maintenance crew arrived. Security also called me in the room to let me know what was going on (she didn't have cell service). They watched her on the video camera and said if it looked like she needed it they would call emergency services to rescue her quickly. But because she was "fine" we had to wait for the elevator tech. Side note - I can't believe that at a resort like Elara the hotel doesn't have a maintenance department that could open the doors. But they don't.

Everyone was very nice which was appreciated. However, once she got out the front desk manager came over and asked if we had dinner. Since she was trapped from about 6 until a little after 7pm we had not. He offered us a $25 credit on our room so we could get room service. We said that would be nice. Then we got back to the room and noticed that even a modest dinner would cost over $50 from room service. We also thought about the situation and the loss of an hour and started to become bothered that they didn't offer to do more. Had we paid for our room I would think comping a night would be fair. But we are on a VIP owner package and the $99 I paid months ago to HGVC corporate is long gone and on our folio it says our rate is $0.

Any thoughts on if I should go back down to the front desk and say they owe us something else? I think I may send a letter when I get home because while I appreciate their "niceness" I really don't think they "stepped up" as they should have. Show tickets? A room credit that would actually cover dinner?

The front desk can't help. Call and ask to speak to a manager. However, they take into account that you are staying on a $99 package and probably feel you already got a good deal. But, $25 is a joke. When I read your post I thouht that was pretty cheap of them. They could have done a lot better.

I would have ordered the dinners and asked them to cover the full cost, you have a stronger case if you spend, did you use the $25 credit or keep the receipt from wherever you had dinner?

I was delayed an hour checking in once at HHV and they comped my parking for the week and sent up a huge fruit basket. That was 10 yrs ago, $25 is a joke and possibly all the desk is authorized for without escalating to a manager.


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"Is this the best you can do?"

is what I'd have said when they tried to appease me with a $25 room service credit.

Now, that said, my DW, (attorney) says, 'Stuff happens.' not everything that goes awry when traveling is compensible. Your wife was not injured. There was no emergency. You were notified and kept informed of the situation. You were already on a discounted stay, so accept the $25, apply it towards the bill and move on.

My customary $.02 worth.

Jim

I concur with Jim. Stuff happens. But you may want to talk to a manager or e-mail HGVC.
Not to greedy, but to suggest that perhaps, a full-meal should be comp'd.

I usually don't complain, but when I did... Radisson gave me a free night when I wrote to complain about noise from construction nearby. Universal Studios gave us a free-day, when I wrote about a mishap with a shuttle bus. But I didn't actually ask them to do anything or expect anything.

At Seaworld, they had to send a plumber to our unit when we had no hot water, anywhere. "Sorry 'bout that." Once, a storm knocked out power to the entire hotel for several hours. No one was comp'ed... We went out to a movie.
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That's kinda what the wife and I decided. Once we are home I will email or write a letter and say "I realize things happen and overall everyone was very pleasant to work with.....however the $25 was a bit of a joke since the front desk manager said it was meant to buy us dinner because my wife was trapped during dinner time and a room service dinner for 2 costs over $50."

So not an angry message and not one asking for anything. Just a FYI. And if they decide to do something (bonus points?) that's fine.

Small point. Whenever you write a complaint letter, tell 'em what it will take to satisfy you (bonus points is good- it doesn't cost them anything they have to report to superiors). That way the ball is in their court to either make you happy or tell you to pound sand. They will do whatever is possible to get you off their back. Leaving it open for them to decide what will make you happy is also leaving the door open for them to say, "You got a (perk), now go away."

Just a tiny part of negotiating.

Jim

Sounds like they were just comping yor wife's dinner!

Last year we were staying in Marriotts on a trip and when we checked in to the Spring Hill in LA, there was no hot water, or the water was about 80 degrees and a little chilly. I assumed the hotel water heater was having problems and it would be fixed soon. The next morning the same cold water and I called the front desk. They had someone fix the hot water valve in our unit and it worked fine. At the next hotel a few days later, the heater didn't work in the Courtyard and I slept in my blue jeans and jacket to stay warm. The next day, the front desk sent someone to fix it. I didn't make a big deal about either one and said nothing. But I got a survey email from Marriott corporate a few days after each stay and I gave them all the details. They replied that they were sorry for my inconvenience. Maybe I should have told them they owed me, but I thought they would figure that out. I was staying on points and each hotel was about 20,000 points per night, so I expected they might give me 5000 points, but got nothing. After that trip I quit using my Marriott Visa card. If you really want something from them, you probably need to say what you expect to get.

JSparling said:

That's kinda what the wife and I decided. Once we are home I will email or write a letter and say "I realize things happen and overall everyone was very pleasant to work with.....however the $25 was a bit of a joke since the front desk manager said it was meant to buy us dinner because my wife was trapped during dinner time and a room service dinner for 2 costs over $50."

So not an angry message and not one asking for anything. Just a FYI. And if they decide to do something (bonus points?) that's fine.

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JSparling said:

My wife was trapped in a broken elevator tonight for about an hour and five minutes. She was alone ... it looked like she needed it they would call emergency services to rescue her quickly. But because she was "fine" we had to wait for the elevator tech.
We also thought about the situation and the loss of an hour and started to become bothered that they didn't offer to do more.

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I think you also have to mention that she was stuck in the elevator, alone, for over an hour. Personally, I think it's ridiculous that they left her in the elevator for over an hour when they could have gotten her out sooner, but they didn't deem it an emergency, something they admitted too. And when they decided not to call it an emergency and get her out sooner, it's not like they knew that it would take 1 hr & 5 min. overall, it could have been hours longer. And what if an actual emergency, like a fire, did take place while she was stuck in that elevator? Excuse me, but I think the decision to leave your wife in that elevator was totally unacceptable, the manager should be reprimanded, and, yes, you and your wife should be compensated for undue stress and restraint.

Any lawyer friends or relative that could prepare your letter for you? How about mention to the local press about people getting stuck in Elara elevators, but Elara manager doesn't think it's an emergency to get guests out and leaves them in the elevator for hours.

We were kicked out of the pool at Sheraton Wall Centre/Intrawest Vancouver because the hotel owner didn't want any noise interfering with his privet party. My husband complained. They offered us free breakfast. My husband said that was an insult. They gave us $200 in room service credit, a nice bottle of wine, and phone call charges from our room disappeared.

jehb2 said:

We were kicked out of the pool at Sheraton Wall Centre/Intrawest Vancouver because the hotel owner didn't want any noise interfering with his privet party.

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I hear those privet parties can get wild.

Look how much fun this guy's having!

I read too much Harry Potter

#4 Privet Drive

About 10 years ago, my wife and I got stuck for about 1/2 hour in an elevator at Laughlin, Nv. I'm not positive of the name of the casino so I won't mention it.

I picked up the phone and it was dead. I pressed the alarm and it rang. But we weren't getting any feedback from anyone except some people outside who told us to stop ringing the bell. I was getting frustrated and had high anxiety. It seemed like forever being in there with no real feedback. I hadn't lost it, but I was starting to fray at the edges a bit. Eventually security came and got the door open. They mentioned that they could see us on their camera but they didn't mention why they didn't bother to communicate with us. They also told us that the elevator had been acting up and some other people were caught in it earlier that day. (Hmmm... if they knew that it had a problem, why did they not take any action...can you spell the phrase, "gross negligence" ?).

After we got out I marched up to the front desk and asked for the hotel manager. We traded some words and he wasn't very quick to do anything to remedy our anger and frustration. So I told him my bottom line - - that if he very quickly comp'd our room and gave us a free dinner that I would forget about it. But that if he wasn't really quick and if dragged his feet, that I would just hire an attorney and sue for as much as I could for my ordeal, my pain, suffering, emotional distress, etc. I told him that we'd probably prevail in some sort of expensive settlement and that I would be sure to tell his corporate bosses that he passed on the chance to get rid of us very cheaply. It took about 10 seconds for him to capitulate. I think that he made a smart decision.

I think that the key to resolving a customer issue is to do it quickly and fairly generously. For management to chinze out or to drag the process out, will lead to a pissed off customer. I also think that when you are the injured party that it helps to tell the manager what you need to resolve the situation. If my wife was offered $25 for an hour's worth of frustrating delay that I would have asked for more on the spot.

I think that now that you have returned home that your leverage is low. I suppose that you could mention that you have not YET written your Tripadvisor and Yelp reviews and that you have not yet written to all of the people on the board of directors explaining your unhappiness. Perhaps suggest that they give you a free three day vacation in a premium unit. ???

Just sayin...

I think that forcible confinement due to elevator neglect is worth more than $25. You do get a free 15 minutes free consult with any lawyer.

Why do people assume that the building maintenance has access to the elevators? They contract that out to a elevator company. Usually 1 person covers a few properties. Maybe that person was in another building doing work. It takes time to pack up the tools and get over to the building. Especially on the Strip.

Me personally, if I was stuck I wouldn't want building maintenance to get me out. They are not trained for these situations.

I agree that the $25 is a gesture of goodwill. The manager had no obligation to offer it. If you feel its not enough then try and ask for more. Once when a hotel was giving me compensation and I felt it was too little. I was firm but polite and they gave me $100 instead of $50 at the time not after the fact.

The best time to negotiate the compensation is when it is given. The least the manager can say is no sorry or if they want to keep you as future guests then they can offer you more.

I think the resort should not take into account that you were on a $99 package. It was their elevator that broke down and it was not caused by your wife.

Perhaps write a letter to the Guest Relations at the Hilton Grand Vacations Club and you may get some bonus HHonors Points or some other form of compensation if you feel more is due to you.

After reading this thread- and making a response- yesterday we were moving some stuff into a condo we bought. I went to take the dog for a walk, and the elevator 'clunked' and stopped. I tried all the buttons without effect. So I pressed the CALL button. Got a dial tone, and after a minute or so a disembodied voice answered. I explained the situation, the guy told me he'd send a repairman, and call me with an ETA as soon as he knew. Fortunately, I had my cell phone with me, so I called my DW and told her I'd be a while.

We (well, mostly me) sat down to wait. A woman knocked, and asked if I was OK- and yelled that the elevator in the building had had 'issues'.

After a half hour or so, the lights on the panel and floor indicator went dark, shortly re-lighted, and the sound of the hydraulic pump started. We rode to the basement and the door opened for the repairman. He had reset the system and said it had plenty of time to 'cool off' and should be fine. We rode to first floor, and I resumed my dog-walk.

Anyway. After tens of thousands- I suppose- of elevator rides over my lifetime, this was the first time one had failed while I was in it. Nobody offered me $25 or 25 cents= we, owners of the building, own the elevator too. But I can attest that it isn't fun waiting, when you don't know how long the wait will be.

My sympathy is with the OP's wife, and I hope she doesn't suffer any long term phobia about elevators. I know that it's just one of those things, but if it never happens to me again, that'll be fine.

Jim