Holiday Inn Express Hotels

My husband and I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express 12/22 to 12/23. We are 69 & 72 years old.

Given room 322, but sign said room not ready and there were clothes in the room. We returned to the desk & were given room # 130. In the morning, after sleeping in the bed all night I was horrified when I noticed with the bed covers pulled back that there was blood on the sheets. NOT MY BLOOD.

Clearly those sheets were never changed from previous guests. REPULSIVE. I have pictures and did complain to the front desk.

I paid $143.00 to sleep in someone else's blood. DISGUSTING...I have pics and did report this to their front desk.

Hi,

My name is Leslie Elliott. I am a survivor of the Eaton Canyon Altadena Fire.

I was told by Fema that I could use the emergency hotels available for disaster victims.

I did so and decided to call your Holiday Express Hotel in Pasadena, CA. I spoke to an agent on Saturday and reserved a room for Sunday. I gave them my credit card as a deposit. After getting there on Sunday they were not able to check me in to a room and they were not able to process my Fema number.

Well from there it went downhill and suffice it to say I did not get my room. I did call FEMA and they too were surprised.

My issue is that my card was still charged, $150.00. I did call a customer service number and was told the charges would be reversed, later that same day, the manager said he would also handle the situation.

To date, I still have not been refunded.

I have been through it and this really takes the cake. I even signed up for the reward program initially at the request of your reservation agent.

Can someone fix this problem. It is an easy fix and someone should be able to do this in a snap.

Can you please call me and make this entire ordeal seem reasonable and fair.

Thanks Leslie Elliott

Holiday Inn Express Van Nuys

Summary of Issues:

Upon check-in, despite having a confirmed online booking, the Front Desk refused to accommodate my guest unless I provided not only a copy of my ID and the card used in booking the staywhich I accepted as part of verificationbut also the number at the back of my card. I was shocked by this request.

Even banks do not require such codes in such a manner, and your staff should not have either. This raised serious data privacy and PCI compliance concerns and caused unnecessary stress to both myself and my guest, who was held in the lobby during the ordeal.

While I complied by sending my ID and a copy of my card, I firmly refused to disclose the numbers at the back of my card. Eventually, my guest was allowed to check inbut not without further issues. Upon entering the room, there were two men already inside, reportedly fixing the TV.

Although I appreciate efforts to ensure the room was in working order, such maintenance should be completed prior to check-innot during.

I would have let this situation go, had it not been for the more concerning issues that followed.

Lack of Communication and Delay in Security Deposit Refund:

Since checking out on April 16, I have made repeated attempts to follow up regarding the refund of my security deposit charged to my card. Despite multiple emails and phone calls, I have received no proper resolution.

Here's a timeline of my efforts:

April 24 & 29: Emailed hi-guestrelations@***.com, laxvn8244@***.com, HIEexpressvannuys@***.com, and managerlaxvn@***.comno response.

May 9: I called and was told the issue would be resolved within 24 hoursnothing happened.

May 11: I spoke with a customer service rep named Harvey, who was cold and dismissive. He told me to wait two more hours and call again.

Around 2:30 AM (Philippine time), I called again and was told by another agent that Valeria from Van Nuys confirmed the security deposit had been processed and that I should email Nasim for details.

I was only provided Nasims contact information after weeks of asking for an update.

When I emailed Nasim twice, I received a generic no-reply message containing the same invoice I was already given at checkoutstill with no trace number or confirmation of the refund.

This entire process has been exhausting, disorganized, and unprofessional. It has left me feeling that my concerns have been ignored and that your team is indifferent to both guest experience and financial data protection.

Holiday Inn Express is a globally respected brand, and I did not expect to be treated with such negligence.

I am staying at the Holiday Inn Express in Princeton, Indiana due to the winter storm. On 1-6-25, I went to the customer service desk to get supplies for my room. The man working the desk does not have any personality for working with customers. As he was going down the hall, I went down there and in a loud voice, he told me to go back to the desk. When all was said and done, he told me in a loud voice - You can leave now! I am 82 and a half years old. I was in a homeless shelter waiting for my apartment to be ready for me to move in. They closed to accommodate their employees and not the homeless. I enjoy my room and it is taking the money I had for moving to stay here, which is my problem. There isn't any need for any employee to yell at a customer.
Judith Stock
PO Box 5
Ft Branch, Indiana
47648