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Wounded Soldier Rejected From Hotel, Forced to Sleep in Car

Thu, 09/04/2008 - 10:00am by CitizenSugar
281 Views - 26 comments

I hope there's a good explanation for this, though I can't even in my wildest imagination come up with one. Corporal Tomos Stringer, a British soldier on sick leave from the war in Afghanistan, arrived at the Metro Hotel in Woking, UK, only to be told that he was not welcome.

According to the hotel’s policy, they are not accepting members of the armed forces as guests, and Cpl. Stringer, whose arm was in a cast from a broken wrist, was sent away to spend the night in his car. Stringer was on leave to help with funeral preparations for a friend killed in battle.

To add insult to his injury, no apology — or even an explanation — was offered by the hotel, which is owned by a family entertainment center called American Amusements. Cpl. Stringer’s mother was incensed: “I’m very, very angry. It’s discrimination. They would never get away with it if it was against someone of ethnic origin.”

To see the backlash to the incident, read more.

The incident has caused an outcry even in parliament as one MP wrote: “Although I do not know the precise circumstances, I think it is deplorable for the management of a hotel to have a policy not to accept military personnel.” Fellow soldiers are also taking action online. Some have suggested making reservations in huge numbers only to cancel at the last moment, while others are (creatively) posting unfavorable remarks on hotel-rating websites. One such comment? “Cons — No beds for our country's heroes.”

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26 Comments Add a Comment

  • hausfrau's picture
    hausfrau
    2

    This is disgusting!

    But is Woking UK a small town? He couldn't have found another room? Not saying that he should have to, but it would have beat sleeping in his car.

    13 weeks 4 hours ago Report Comment
  • MarinerMandy's picture
    MarinerMandy
    5

    Wow, kinda reminds me of the horrible treatment many soldiers received after coming home from Vietnam. I thought everyone had learned to differentiate soldiers from politics, but I guess not. That is just horrible.

    13 weeks 4 hours ago Report Comment
  • raciccarone's picture
    raciccarone
    6

    And what's even weirder is that it's owned by a "family entertainment company"?! That's not only malicious and idiotic, it's also just bad business.

    13 weeks 4 hours ago Report Comment
  • Jude C's picture
    Jude C
    8

    Why the hell don't they accept service members as guests? Puzzled

    13 weeks 4 hours ago Report Comment
  • UnDave35's picture
    UnDave35
    9

    This is ridiculous and scary. I hope this doesn't happen here.

    13 weeks 4 hours ago Report Comment
  • stephley's picture
    stephley
    12

    "A manager in the letter said the hotel had in recent months "experienced some rather serious incidents" resulting from the stay of personnel from a local barracks and staff had been requested to be "cautious" in taking future bookings from the armed forces. It is not hotel policy to turn military personnel away."

    It's not about the decline of the British Empire, its a hotel receptionist who screwed up.

    13 weeks 4 hours ago Report Comment
  • stephley's picture
    stephley
    18

    After seeing the number of articles this event sparked, I'm betting the receptionist is feeling unemployed.

    13 weeks 2 hours ago Report Comment
  • Jazz Z's picture
    Jazz Z
    20

    I was going to suggest maybe it was actually an Arab-owned hotel under an assumed name, but that was before Stephley got more details. I can also see how a few soldiers not used to being around civilians might be difficult to deal with. I'm surprised CS didn't do the research.

    13 weeks 1 hour ago Report Comment
  • chippyshero2066's picture
    chippyshero2066
    21

    Thanks Stephley for clearing that part up. Yes the hotel receptionist is probably kissing that job goodbye big time.

    12 weeks 6 days ago Report Comment
  • laluna's picture
    laluna
    23

    In my old job we were often told to be cautious when checking in certain people. It can be hard trying to distinguish the good ones from the 'bad' ones. A lot of the time i just turned them all away because if i got it wrong and there were problems i'd be in trouble. It wasn't fair.

    12 weeks 6 days ago Report Comment
  • bigestivediscuit's picture
    bigestivediscuit
    24

    Yeah when I read the story, I found it hard to believe that it was hotel policy, especially since there are quite a few barracks in Woking. If it was a receptionist who misinterpreted those rules, that person should be fired.

    12 weeks 6 days ago Report Comment
  • nylorac's picture
    nylorac
    26

    how does a wounded serviceman look threatening or potentially harmful?

    the hotel should issue an apology, pronto, and think of hiring a new receptionist.

    12 weeks 6 days ago Report Comment

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