April 2007
You hear so much about crime these days - and you see so few tangible, workable solutions - that it’s good to hear about a pro-active initiative that has real potential.
www.badguest.co.za is a new site that seeks to protect the accommodation sector of South Africa’s tourism industry from one of its worst nightmares - bad guests. And, rather than trying to offer a compromise solution to all crime, it targets a specific area of crime - and offers a solution.
“The tourism industry is very susceptible as, by the very nature of its business, its arms and front doors are always wide open,” said a spokesperson for the site. “Hospitality establishments are subject to abuse, vandalism, theft, fraud and bilking and there’s never before been any way of finding out whether potential guests have a history of this kind of behaviour,” he said.
The idea for the Bad Guest web site was sparked by a letter published in Getaway magazine in which a writer complained that her establishment had been trashed by guests and that there was no central database where information and details could be recorded.
“Bad Guest is a little like a star grading system for guests as opposed to establishments,” said the spokesperson”. “It provides members a database of information which they can search before they agree to accept reservations from individuals.”
The concept is simple and user friendly. Members pay a small annual registration fee for a password which allows them to search or add information to the data base.
“If a guest commits a crime, damages your property or fails to pay you, you can upload information like photographs, first and second names, identity numbers, passport numbers, cell numbers and car registration numbers. A message is then sent to all registered users alerting them that a new report has been put up,”.
To ensure that the information it contains is legitimate and confidential, the database is accessible to paid users only. “Bad Guest does not interfere, own, manage or manipulate any of the information,” says “Badguest”. “The users are the messengers - we supply only the cleft stick.”
A spokesperson for the website stressed that Bad Guest is not a policing or a security unit, “but simply an aid for legitimate, hard-working and ethical owners to be able to try and curb crime within their industry through networking. Obviously the more members we have the wider the net will become - and with tighter controls in place the criminal element will be eased out so that tourism’s doors can be kept open for legitimate guests.”
Bad Guest offers full support and a series of added benefits like security tips, updates on scams and information on internet fraud and viruses. “We also offer a down-loadable sign for members to display. Hopefully this will discourage would-be criminals and Bad Guest will thus become a preventative and defensive tool.”
News just in is that the Bad Guest web site - www.badguest.co.za - has helped to track down (and nail) its first criminal; a bilker who’d been defrauding guest houses around KwaZulu Natal for some time. The man had used several names and ID numbers - but only one cell number and one hire car. Trouble for him was, his details had been posted to www.badguest.co.za, the car had been fitted with a tracking device, someone saw the information on the site, the police were alerted and he was caught at the airport and arrested. With thanks to This Tourism Week for this article – www.thistourismweek.co.za he was eventually caught after bilking in Amanzimtoti at a guesthouse insured by BnB SURE and for which we paid the bilking claim in terms of the policy.
GUESTS MEDICAL EVACUATION
A potential problem that faces every B&B or guesthouse owner is the possibility of the guest who suddenly becomes ill and has neither the money nor the medical insurance to be taken to hospital.
So if that happens what does the B&B owner do? They have very little choice. They have a sick guest in one of their rooms and that is the very last thing they want.
From 1 April a new section will be available on BnB SURE called Guests Medical Evacuation and what this will do is for just R50 per month it will guarantee medical costs up to R10,000 in respect of any guest who becomes seriously ill (e.g. a heart attack) and needs attention. Sadly this amount may not be enough to do very much in the case of a serious illness and some hospitals demand higher deposits than that and for only R25 per month extra (R75 in total) the cover shoots up to R50,000.
BnB SURE QUOTE DESK
In order to make things easier for our brokers we are opening our new Quote Desk on 2 May 2007. This desk that will serve the entire country and all our branches will be there to ensure that quotes get out quickly and that all details are there to ensure that prospective policy holders are getting the correct premiums by the application of all the correct discounts.
Brokers may continue to send their quote requests to branches as they have been doing or may direct them straight to the Quote Desk at lindsey@bnbsure.co.za
BnB SURE LAUNCHES www.brokerfinder.co.za
In our February newsletter we launched our new website www.brokerfinder.co.za and the response from our broking friends has been overwhelming with comments like “That is wonderful - well done and thank you for doing something for us brokers. It is truly refreshing” and “Great website! Very well done, about time someone had this initiative”.
We thank brokers who have had these sorts of comments and remind all our brokers that we welcome reciprocal links to their websites and a short description of how they would like to describe their businesses so that this can be included on the site.
BnB FINDER
We remind those policyholders who have not yet listed their establishment that this service – usually worth about R150 per month on other sites - is available to them at no charge. We have now exceeded 1000 listings making bnbfinder one of the biggest websites listing B&B and guesthouses in South Africa. This site is marketed at most airports and many tourism offices in South Africa and direct reservations made through the site now exceed 60 per month. We are obviously not able to monitor indirect reservations made but must assume that it is several times more than that. A real benefit to BnB SURE policyholders.
COVER ENHANCEMENTS
The Errors and Omission Extension to the Liability extension has been increased to R5m from the present R1m. The wording of this extension states “The Underwriters will pay to or on behalf of the Insured all sums which the Insured shall become legally liable to pay by way of compensation as a result of a claim or claims first made against the Insured and notified to the Company during the Period of Insurance arising out of any act, advice, error or omission committed, or alleged to have been committed, subsequent to the effective date by or on behalf of the Insured in connection with the Insured’s business as specified in the Schedule.”
NATIONAL ACCOMMODATION ASSOC.
Congratulations to the NAA. The association has been involved in extensive negotiations with MATCH (the company appointed by FIFA to deliver the Accommodation and Ticketing solutions for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa) to achieve the situation as it now stands as far as non hotel accommodation is concerned and its hoped the outcome will be positive.
“As NAA members, we can all feel proud that our association was invited to the workshop held in Zurich for our input and, that the suggestions we put forward were adopted. We have all worked long and hard to achieve recognition, we are now truly 'on the map' and, hopefully, will be playing an important role in the 2010 World Cup, be a part of history in the making and setting a precedent for future World Events for ourselves and our colleagues in other countries.” said Heather Hunter, President of NAA.
To read the full media release issued by MATCH and TCGSA, please visit www.naa.co.za
BnB SURE is proud to be the preferred supplier of insurance to NAA-SA
BRANCH OFFICES
Contact details of BnB SURE offices are:
Johannesburg - (011) 886-6066 Fax No. (011) 886-1725
Cape Town office – (021) 948-0432 Fax No. (021) 948-3582
Durban office – (031) 561-4986 Fax No. 086 686-8897
Managers:
Johannesburg – Linda van Dijk
Cape Town - Trudy Venter
Durban - Vaneshri Govender
BnB SURE ASSIST TOLL FREE LINE
We remind readers that use of the services offered through the BnB Sure Assist toll free line can only be activated by calling toll free on
0800 55 66 77.
THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH:
Life’s too short to be mediocre - Reg Lascaris
