Cabin Steward's Card Key Opens Deadbolt

[Colo Cruiser]

I think Mary Poppinz is the only poster who understood my question. It was not clearly worded. I have no problem with the room steward or any other cruise staff member having an emergency key that opens the deadbolt in an emergency. I have always assumed they do have such a key. I want them to have such a key for emergencies such as a fire or if I am incapacitated.

 

The cabin steward was using a master key to open my room door that simultaneously opened the deadbolt. He used this key to enter my room for nonemergency, twice daily cabin cleaning. When I inquired about this both to the cabin steward and his supervisor I was told that this was the new Princess policy. The cabin steward now has only one key and it always opens the deadbolt. He no longer has two keys, one that will get him into your cabin for nonemergency cleaning purposes and one that he can use in emergencies only.

 

It defeats the purpose of even having a deadbolt. I don't understand why the steward needs to use an emergency "deadbolt override" key for nonemergency situations such as cleaning the cabin. I have sailed on a variety of Princess ships over the years and have never had this occur before this occasion.

 

My question, more simply put, is:

 

Is it a new Princess policy to use the emergency deadbolt override key at all times now, even for twice daily, nonemergency room cleaning, or was I misinformed and this situation is limited to my cabin steward on the Golden Princess?

 

 

 

Simple solution once again "USE THE DO NOT DISTURB SIGN".

 

End of Story. :rolleyes:

[MaryPoppinz]

Yes, it's a simple solution. But, then so is a deadbolt. EITHER should be sufficient warning that you don't want anyone to intrude short of an emergency.

 

I couldn't honestly say whether I routinely use the Do Not Disturb sign. I really don't give it much thought because I don't expect the deadbolt to be opened unless there is an emergency.

 

I suspect, thanks to the OP, I'll be a bit more careful about this in the future!

[Admiral Horatio Nelson]

 

My question, more simply put, is:

 

Is it a new Princess policy to use the emergency deadbolt override key at all times now, even for twice daily, nonemergency room cleaning, or was I misinformed and this situation is limited to my cabin steward on the Golden Princess?

I think you answered your own question in your comments. I agree that in theory it would be a good idea to have two keys, one to use day to day and one for an evacuation. That is the way it was, sort of. There were keys available with the SECO and they were to be handed out in an emergency. However that system could fail if the is little time. The cabin steward could in theory have two keys, but being the one who produces these keys, I can tell you that in practice it is already a huge job. Keys are set for a time period, Usually 6 months, however they are often broken through use and also sometimes lost, and the amount of cards already produced is already very high. Doubling the amount would just make matters much worse. When you iinclude the time taken form their job going to get new cards etc. it soon mounts up.

 

I think people generally put more pressure on cruise ships in these matters. Would you be upset about this in a hotel? How many people have even asked that question about a hotel?

 

I think it would be more convenient to have a deadbolt stop your cabin steward from entering, but safety far outweighs convenience.

 

Look at it from the other side, imagine a story were somebody was trapped in their cabin as the ship burned because the crew couldn't get a hold of a key to open your deadbolt. Imagine the discussion that would be had on here???

[MaryPoppinz]

Would you be upset about this in a hotel? How many people have even asked that question about a hotel?

 

My reaction to this would be not one bit different if I were in a hotel room. I can't imagine why it would be. Depending on what was going on, I'd be anything from terrified to horrified to annoyed. To me, a deadbolt means: Keep out. Doesn't matter whether that's at home, in a hotel, or on a cruiseship.

[negc]

I can see arguments on both sides of this issue, but I do believe that with this new system there should be a specific instruction provided to all guests which explains to them that the deadbolt will not prevent a room steward from entering their room and that if they wish privacy they should use the card which is provided. The average person assumes that a deadbolt prevents anyone from entering their room and since that assumption is incorrect it should be pointed out to all guests. Changing the system but not alerting guests to the implications of the change is poor practice. I, too, would be quite annoyed if this happened in a hotel room as well, and to the best of my knowledge that is not the case. The same emergencies can occur in a hotel room and yet it seems that no one is clamoring for the hotels to adopt this practice.

To claim that it is too big a job to provide all the room stewards with a second key that will, in case of an emergency, override the deadbolt seems ludicrous. Every week, numbers of guests lose their room keys and it isn't that big a task for the purser to issue replacement cards. The need to replace the steward's deadbolt override card should be necessary far less often and ought not to be that difficult or time-consuming task.

[negc]

duplicate post -:(

[PEFER33]

Concerning switching to another cruise line; I had the same thing happen on a different line. Sorry, I can't remember if it was Holland America or Celebrity. At the time I blamed it on myself, believing that I had failed to set the deadbolt completely. I then tried it with my own key. The wife stayed inside and set the deadbolt. I used my room card and was able to get in. After that we always put the do not disturb sign outside. The room steward always respected the sign. I do not remember a second card slot to open the deadbolt, probably because that would cause confusion for some passengers. I do agree that the locking system should be set up so that a seperate card has to be used for the deadbolt. Then in an emergency, the steward can get in quickly, but can not walk in during routine service if the deadbolt is set.

 

Phil

[linanbob]

Get a grip folks...

 

The deadbolt is intended to prevent someone without any key from physically crashing in the door, not to prevent all access from the outside. Many (most?) hotel systems work the same way.

 

And many who would complain about the "ease" by which a steward gets access, would be the first complaining that in a possible emergency

it took someone n additional minutes to procure the second key.

 

And you "definitely" don't want to use a doorstop on a cruise ship.

 

Put out the DND sign.

 

This is a non-issue.

[MaryPoppinz]

Many (most?) hotel systems work the same way.

 

Are you saying that the housekeepers 'normal' key also releases the deadbolt in many/most hotels?

 

And many who would complain about the "ease" by which a steward gets access, would be the first complaining that in a possible emergency it took someone n additional minutes to procure the second key.

 

At least as far as this thread is concerned, no has complained about the ease with which cabin stewards enter the rooms, nor has anyone suggested they procure a second key.

[chasetf]

Get a grip folks... The deadbolt is intended to prevent someone without any key from physically crashing in the door, not to prevent all access from the outside. Many (most?) hotel systems work the same way.

 

And many who would complain about the "ease" by which a steward gets access, would be the first complaining that in a possible emergency it took someone n additional minutes to procure the second key. And you "definitely" don't want to use a doorstop on a cruise ship. Put out the DND sign. This is a non-issue.

So we all know now how the bolts work.

 

There must be more important things to argue about out there. Princess is not going to redesign and change 16,346 doors because some passengers are too lazy or forget to put out the DND sign.

 

If your steward ignores the sign, then that is a different issue that needs to be brought to his or her attention.

[japester]

And many who would complain about the "ease" by which a steward gets access, would be the first complaining that in a possible emergency it took someone n additional minutes to procure the second key.

 

BINGO!

 

This is all about lawsuits, people. The cruise lines know they will get sued in an emergency if there is anything that can be nitpicked (like how it took the housekeeper an extra 20 seconds to get that second key), but nobody is going to sue about them walking in while the door is deadbolted.

 

Having said that, I heartily agree that the new system could have been implemented better. A dot or other indicator that tells the steward the deadbolt is engaged would have been better, so they would know when they are over-riding the lock.

 

This is pretty simple stuff, folks. Princess is facing mounting numbers of ridiculous lawsuits while at the same time is being pressured to keep costs as low as possible. So they will implement the best budget safety measures that meet both goals. This is a perfect example. It is exactly what every other business is doing these days. This shouldn't surprise anybody.

 

Jape

[Jacqueline]

It is not as the the poor stewards are drifting aimlessly in and out of the stateroom. The schedule is predictable- clean up in the morning and turn down in the evening (usually when the pax is at dinner).

I value my privacy but as stated by the OP the DND was not up. Now we all know to use it to ensure that we are not disturbed. A little chat with the stewards at the commencement at the voyage would be an opportunuty to convey any particular information.

I am really sort of jealous that you all have so many exciting adventures behind closed doors.

I guess if there is truly something of an exotic nature afoot then one might use the doorstop. But I agree that it should not be used under regular circumstances.

[negc]

Now WE all know that the deadbolt will not prevent the room steward from entering our room, but there are a lot of passengers out there that aren't aware. How difficult would it be for Princess to provide a notice, perhaps posted right on the door that explains the situation and reinforces the necessity of placing the do not disturb sign on the door if you need privacy?

Otherwise, why not do away with the deadbolt altogether? The number of cases where someone physically breaks down a door to gain access has to be infinitesmally small, and certainly far less than the number of guests who are caught unawares by the entry of ship's personnel at inconvenient times.

[Host CJSKIDS]

Simple solution once again "USE THE DO NOT DISTURB SIGN".

 

End of Story. :rolleyes:

 

 

This may be the end of story but I do want to point out that we have witnessed these signs being taken by some teens one night, evidently they needed one for a scavenger hunt that they were doing. We also saw some of the college students on the spring break who were highly intoxicated who thought it was really funny to move name cards around and I'm sure they would have moved the "do not disturb" signs had they run across one.

 

I truly understand the need to get into the cabins quickly in case of emergency and I'm sure part of it came out of the Star incident, but hopefully they can come up with some kind of system so that many passengers are not walked in upon while "enjoying" the cabin with their significant other or while changing.

[NAS-KARR]

I'm at peace with the dead-bolt situation just the way it's designed.

What's the big deal ??

CIAO..."to all and to all a BUONA NOTTE"

[spongerob]

If I remember correctly, didn't the issue of the over-ride key become an issue during the Star Princess fire? I don't have the report handy on this computer to verify, but perhaps someone with a better memory can help out here.

 

The little DND cards are fine, so long as they stay in place. Sometimes they seem to get moved or turned around.

 

If this is something that has changed as a result of the fire investigation, you can bet that most cruise lines will be adopting a similar policy. Perhaps it is possible to refit the doors with a DND indicator that is built into the lock mechanism itself.

[fti]

You won't get much sympathy from most posters in this forum. Most believe (though they would never come right out and say it) that Princess can do no wrong. :D

 

And you "definitely" don't want to use a doorstop on a cruise ship.

 

Put out the DND sign.

 

Why not use a doorstop? As you can see from a previous post, some ships give them to passengers. A combination of doorstop, Do Not Disturb sign and knowledge of how the system works is probably best.

 

I have stayed in lots of hotels and have had anyone access my room while the deadbolt was activated.

[TexasMom2]

Perhaps it is possible to refit the doors with a DND indicator that is built into the lock mechanism itself.

 

That's a great idea...maybe something similar to the "Occupied/Vacant" thingy on airline lavatory doors. A lever you push left or right. Of course all existing doors would have to be modified or replaced and that would be expensive.

[MaryPoppinz]

This may be the end of story but I do want to point out that we have witnessed these signs being taken by some teens one night, evidently they needed one for a scavenger hunt that they were doing.

 

Get a grip!

 

Simple solution.

 

Stay up all night long and monitor your Do Not Disturb sign.

 

It's a non-issue. End of story.

 

;)

[andrea63]

Since the DND signs can fall out or be taken out easily from the door slot we might have to go to tying colored ribbons on the door handles. Blue means please clean room and red means:eek: :D please do not enter at the moment!;) or maybe for a few more hours.:rolleyes: I'm sure they will get some kind of system worked out. Maybe now we will all have to bring along duct tape to tape the door closed!

[firefly333]

Has anyone else experienced the cabin steward entering when the deadbolt is on? This new lack of privacy in the cabin is enough to make me consider sailing another line.

 

I had something else disturbing happen, that I posted, but no one here seemed to find it wrong or else just didnt comment.

 

I had put the privacy thingee into our door, 6:30 am and we ran up for about 15 minutes to eat cereal and our steward came on in.

 

We were so surprised to come back and find him in our room. I asked him why and he said he had to get the room ready for the next people, no apology or excuse like he thought we accidently had the privacy card upside down...just acted like he thought it was ok to ignore the card.

 

This was on the Princess Grand. We had nothing like this on other cruise lines.

[Wendi&Max]

As a single woman, this really is disturbing to me. Not as a privacy issue, but as a personal security issue. Yes, I would like to be able to get out of my room easily in an emergency, but I don't want my cabin steward being able to enter my room at any time just because they can. They need to come up with a better system if this is an emergency issue. Perhaps an automatic deadbolt release whenever a fire alarm system is activated??? So what if it costs more!

[firefly333]

Simple solution once again "USE THE DO NOT DISTURB SIGN".

 

End of Story. :rolleyes:

 

Except my room stewart ignored this on my cruise a couple of weeks ago.

 

I had ALMOST taken the money and stuff out of the safe, thinking the room would not be entered and we could run get cereal just before getting off the ship. Like I said this was 6:30 am surely the room steward could have waited until we left at 7:15, early walk off.

 

I got the same response as the OP is getting, everyone said lesson learned, dont leave anything in your room ever that can be stolen or depend on the Privacy card. Not one poster thought the room steward was in the wrong, everyone said it was me.

 

OP I get it. You think your privacy will be respected and it was not.

[Princess Chatterer]

As a single woman, this really is disturbing to me. Not as a privacy issue, but as a personal security issue. Yes, I would like to be able to get out of my room easily in an emergency, but I don't want my cabin steward being able to enter my room at any time just because they can. They need to come up with a better system if this is an emergency issue. Perhaps an automatic deadbolt release whenever a fire alarm system is activated??? So what if it costs more!

 

Here's what you need:

 

http://www.corporatetravelsafety.com/swege.html

 

or this

 

http://traveloasis.com/door-alarm.html

 

or this

 

http://www.defensedevices.com/dolopo.html

[Princess Chatterer]

As a single woman, this really is disturbing to me. Not as a privacy issue, but as a personal security issue. Yes, I would like to be able to get out of my room easily in an emergency, but I don't want my cabin steward being able to enter my room at any time just because they can. They need to come up with a better system if this is an emergency issue. Perhaps an automatic deadbolt release whenever a fire alarm system is activated??? So what if it costs more!

 

Here's what you need:

 

http://www.corporatetravelsafety.com/swege.html

 

or this

 

http://traveloasis.com/door-alarm.html

 

or this

 

http://www.addalock.com/addalock_inst.html

 

or this

 

http://www.defensedevices.com/dolopo.html