Originally Posted by
Podcat
That employee should be fired and charged with filing a false police report. There’s no crime here under any circumstances— it is strictly a civil matter, if that. Behavior like this can get a property sued, though you probably have no real damages other than the jarring experience. Has anyone admitted how wrong this was? If not, perhaps they think all is righty right and will bloody well do it next time.
You should get a sincere apology and at least a $200 voucher, along with assurances this won’t happen again. I had a similar encounter with a rare nasty Southwest b!tch and was offered $300 without even asking.
Elites do not enjoy being treated like criminals.
This is going to be an unpopular opinion, but the hotel employee was legally in the right. The OP had the right to receive the welcome gift. However, the OP's remedy of self-help was unlawful and would no doubt have resulted in his arrest had the hotel employee pursued it. By example, just because I owe you money doesn't mean that you can grab my wallet out of my pocket and take what you believe you are owed. That's the legal equivalent of what the OP did. Terrible customer service no doubt, but the OP's solution would unlawful.
Originally Posted by
sethb
In the US, it varies by state.
If the only people in the hotel lobby are me and the front desk clerk, I have a reasonable expectation of privacy that only the two of us can hear our conversation. If there are 50 other people around, I don't.
In Maryland, you need all-party consent if there is a reasonable expectation of privacy.
In Massachusetts, you need all-party consent period.
Originally Posted by
sbrower
Law is complex. Just because there are 50 people in the lobby, do you think that you have a reasonable expectation of privacy when the desk clerk asks for your email address? Your credit card number? The name of the other guest occupying your room? What if you and another person are sitting on the sofa, in the lobby with 50 people, quietly discussing a business deal? BEFORE YOU ANSWER, remember that use of a telephoto lens in the lobby of the hotel probably is legal because it is a public place for pictures. But do you really think that just because there are 50 people in the lobby that the use of a parabolic mike is okay for audio of your conversation with the desk person and/or your business friend?
Agreed, these are all very fact specific information. Notably, hotels, finally appreciating the lack of privacy in hotel lobbies, no longer announce room numbers but simply write them on the folio. I am unfamiliar with any hotel which asks for a credit card number, rather than the credit card itself (no AUDIO).
Originally Posted by
sbrower
I do not believe this is a correct statement of the law for AUDIO recording in any U.S. jurisdiction. See my post about 2 above this one and I would be happy to discuss further.
I presented an analysis further upstream, complete with citation, of why one should not rely upon an expectation of privacy in a hotel lobby while speaking to the hotel clerk. A few examples from a quick Google search, albeit not with the rigor of a legal filing, but sufficient for FlyerTalk.
.
- "Under the Constitution, a person has an expectation of privacy. However, this expectation of privacy must be reasonable and is usually not found in open areas of work, i.e., a hotel lobby, the kitchen of a restaurant, the production area of a warehouse. Contrast this with areas such as a bathroom, locker room, and even an employee’s office, where there are greater privacy concerns." https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/wo...rding-5267736/
That being said, you are correct that this analysis, like any other, must be tempered by the specific facts. A reasonable expectation differs between the Caesars Palace and a sleepy roadside Courtyard. However, absent any specific facts to the contrary, I am comfortable with the position that as a general proposition, no one should expect a reasonable expectation of privacy in a hotel lobby while it is open to the public,