Methamphetamine -  blog by one of our members

October 2020

We have had an amazing time with wonderful people however we have learnt some things operating in the domestic market and want to share these lessons with you. This is not to scare you but to help you think about having a plan so if something like below happens to you, you can quickly make a decision. We know people who have been caught out with the likes of Meth in their accommodation properties and it has been devastating for them.  So, it is important to know what you would do for the safety of your guests and yourselves.  This could happen to anyone of us, don’t think if you are high end it will not happen to your lovely property.

Each of our guests are vetted, we require their full name and address and check them out on Google, Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn and we like to form a relationship before they arrive by either phone but more likely an email conversation with them to get a feel for our guests.  This only usually requires a minute as 99.5% are wonderful people and that is all that is needed unless some warning bell goes off.

Guests we have spoken to about what we do are appreciative that we have their safety in mind. Often, we find personal connections which helps form a special personal relationship with our guests too.

We have headed off a booking by a gang executive member.  He had been prosecuted recently for escaping from custody, assault with baseball bat, driving offences, etc.  We asked the OTA to make a call as we felt we had a potential security risk to other guests and they cancelled out on our behalf.  Also, a local known Meth addict tried to book us through TWO different women, luckily, he and they were known.  Another potential guest cancelled out within an hour when we asked for the full names and addresses of all guests coming. All of these bookings were through an OTA.

We try not judge and just make sure we do our due diligence.

If there is an inquiry by text or phone and they are wanting to pay in cash and they do not have a visa card the reply is:

“Thank you for your inquiry. 

Those dates are available at the moment, the price is …. for two people for a direct booking. 

We require full names of all guests, addresses, identification and an email for Covid 19 tracing purposes. 

No extra visitors unless approved by management and for your safety we have methamphetamine detectors installed that are directly linked to our phone.

Bank account transfers accepted with a screen shot of payment to secure a booking, we can send you the account details.

If using a credit card 4 % fees apply. We require a valid visa card number and expiry date regardless of payment method.  

Again, thank you for your inquiry and please don’t hesitate to contact us if you require any more information.

Kindest Regards, …..

We can check if their credit cards are valid though we usually never hear from them again. The phone call is always by a very sweet-talking lady, on one occasion we could hear a guy whisper in her ear “offer him more money” when we said we don’t take cash, warning bells right there.

Our property has been regularly meth tested due to the experiences and we have learnt from others however we now have a P Alert system that cannot be tampered with and detects any smoking of meth or meth on a person. If the Alarm goes off, we have the right to ask a guest to leave or can call the police. When guests arrive, they are very aware of its presence and on other properties I have been told guests have left immediately when seeing the signage. If anyone is interested in knowing more - https://palert.co.nz/products/p-alert-alarm

A conversation with a large motel owner leads us to see they have no idea what goes on in their units and there is some evidence meth is more prevalent than any of us realise in rental accommodation. Their response is to do a deep clean of everything every six months of all soft furnishings and every inch of the room. The question is what do others do and what do you do.

We now have a plan in place so we can carry on enjoying being hosts to wonderful guests knowing everyone is safe and we all can sleep soundly."

For further information about methamphetamine - click here