left a ring in my hotel room, already called the hotel

July 20, 2014 8:35 PM

I left a ring with sentimental value in my hotel room in the bathroom this afternoon, checked out of the hotel and didn't remember until now. I've called the hotel lost and found and they said the room was cleaned, nothing was reported found and that they will have housekeeping check tomorrow, the room is occupied already. Is there anything else that I can do about this?

The hotel was not interested in taking a description of the ring and told me to call back tomorrow. (I am extremely upset with myself for having left it in the first place.) Thanks.

posted by tangaroo to Grab Bag (9 answers total)

Offer a reward? If someone (in housekeeping?) found it and didn't turn it in, maybe a reward would induce them to do so.
posted by needs more cowbell at 8:49 PM on July 20, 2014 [2 favorites]

Best answer: In my experience, there's a disconnect between housekeeping and lost-and-found in hotel operations, especially on weekends when the primary staff may be off duty. Call back tomorrow and try to talk to the Housekeeping Supervisor as well as the General Manager. They usually have to log the lost and found items (because they are so sensitive to theft accusations) and it can take several days before the item makes its way up the chain of custody and into the system. Since it had value (real or perceived) it may have been put into the hotel's safe; this can make it harder to retrieve the item. Sometimes there are parallel lost and found systems for housekeeping (stuff found in rooms) vs items found in the rest of the property. There are also sometimes separate systems for different shifts. Try to get someone to explain the whole system to you so you can use the correct lingo specific to that hotel. If you have a photograph showing the ring, find it now. Do not be afraid to tell them you're going to file a police report preparatory to submitting an insurance claim, but at the same time, give them a few days to work their system while calling every day, several times. Good luck!

Wild idea: Call the hotel and ask for your room number; maybe the new occupant found it and will pass it along to the General Manager with your contact info. You may not get connected without knowing the new occupant's name, but many hotels have automated systems and you could get lucky.
posted by carmicha at 8:51 PM on July 20, 2014 [10 favorites]

If there's a way for you to get over there and hang a poster advertising a significant reward for the ring's return, I'd do that and emphasize that if the ring is returned no questions will be asked. This worked for me once before with a valuable item - I unfortunately didn't get it back but someone who knew what had happened to it did call me.
posted by treehorn+bunny at 9:27 PM on July 20, 2014 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: It's a little late to try to call the room tonight, but I will try tomorrow. I also found someone (via facebook) who went to the same event as I did who is staying in the hotel tonight, I am thinking of having her knock on the door in the morning to ask if it's still there.
Where would you put the poster? by the elevator?
posted by tangaroo at 9:31 PM on July 20, 2014

Best answer: YES to all of the above!!

Specifically calling housekeeping supervisor!

No one will admit to it if it was stolen, but housekeeping dept. might have it. I hope for you they do:))
posted by jbenben at 10:09 PM on July 20, 2014

At Marriott properties forgotten items go to the security office. Housekeeping doesn't hold on to anything, it all goes to security. There are big storage bins that have items filed by date. (Ask me how I know!)

If someone is staying at the hotel, have them ask visit lost and found.
posted by 26.2 at 10:15 PM on July 20, 2014

If none of the above good suggestions pan out by Tuesday or Wednesday, ask the hotel to send you an e- mail outlining the search measures they took so you can submit it with the police report you will have to file to be able to claim on your insurance. Even if you have no intention of doing any of that, hotels really do not like having such reports on record, and might pursue their search with renewed vigour.

(I used this method when an expensive ski jacket disappeared in the hour between me checking out and returning to find it. After a week of searching, I cheerfully told the manager that I accepted the loss but would be pursuing the police report and the insurance claim, and somebody in housekeeping managed to find it within hours. Miracles do happen.;-))
posted by rpfields at 11:22 PM on July 20, 2014 [7 favorites]

Response by poster: 1- facebook friend knocked on the room door this AM and the guy in the room didn't see it
2- I called the hotel back, talked to the reception person who checked lost and found, didn't see anything reported
3- I asked reception to transfer me to the housekeeping manager who took the room info and location of the item and said she would call back
4- two hours later, she called back and said they found it!!

I wrote an email to the general manager for the hotel praising the housekeeping manager and the staff also, as it would have been easy for it to remain lost.

Thank you all for your very good ideas also, they were very helpful. Also, faith in humanity surprisingly restored.
posted by tangaroo at 11:38 AM on July 21, 2014 [19 favorites]

Yay! Glad there was a happy ending!
posted by jenfullmoon at 2:17 PM on July 21, 2014