Travelodge guests are still at risk, finds review launched after sexual assault

An independent review into Travelodge after a serious sexual assault has found that guests are still at risk, with room intrusions reported at nearly one in 10 of its hotels this summer.

The damning findings were published in a 70-page report on Thursday, which was commissioned earlier this year after a man was convicted of a serious sexual assault against a Travelodge guest in Maidenhead in 2022.

The perpetrator was handed a copy of the victim’s room key, having falsely claimed to be her boyfriend, and sexually assaulted her in her hotel bed. The victim – referred to as “Lily” in the report – was later offered what she described as an “insulting” £30 refund.

The incident prompted further reports of security failings at the hotel chain, eventually leading to the resignation of Joanna Boydell as chief executive in August.

Paul Greaney KC, the barrister who led the review, said Lily “was treated by Travelodge in a way that was inappropriate and unfair; indeed, it was disgraceful” He said the hotel’s response to her complaint “was driven by a desire to get rid of the complaint as quickly and cheaply as possible”.

The report said: “Travelodge’s treatment of Lily, following her complaint in writing, fell short of every standard the public would expect of an organisation such as Travelodge. It was simply appalling.

“Overall, these failings are extremely serious and rest principally with the organisation, rather than with any individual [member of staff].”

Greaney acknowledged that Travelodge had been trying to improve its room security policies and training since March. However, he said not enough had yet been done to assure guests were safe.

Despite Travelodge strengthening its key security policy, Greaney found it was “not being applied with anything like sufficient consistency on the ground. In other words, it has not sufficiently embedded.”

“Even in this period of strong improvement, there were reports by guests of room intrusion across nearly one in 10 of Travelodge hotels, which represents around 60 hotels,” the report said.

“I am not satisfied that enough has yet occurred to make guests as safe as they should be when staying in a Travelodge,” Greaney added.

Although the review was focused on the budget chain’s failings, the KC said guests were suffering unacceptable security breaches in hotels across the country and room intrusions “are a problem across the hotel sector”.

The review put forward a series of recommendations, including:

• Creating a new policy to address violence against women and girls.

• Improving safety policies for staff working alone.

• Introducing body cameras for all reception staff.

• Installing consistent CCTV systems across all its hotels.

• Introducing mystery shoppers to test its key security policy.

Travelodge said it welcomed the report’s recommendations, had put together a new board committee to ensure they were implemented and planned to track their progress over the next six to 12 months.

In a statement released alongside the review, Travelodge’s interim chief executive, Ray Reidy, said: “I apologise unreservedly on behalf of Travelodge to all guests where we have failed, and particularly to Lily. We have made significant progress in preventing and addressing these issues over the past six months, and we recognise we still have further to go.

“We are working hard to transform our customer service so we respond appropriately when things don’t go right. We will continue to improve so customers get the right level of support and empathy when they need it most.”