Thorpe Park owner Merlin's hotel boss blames 'lazy' staff for 'room intrusions' after the Travelodge keycard sexual assault case

A review by barrister Paul Greaney KC found that failures in hotel room security represent an industry-wide problem rather than one specific to Travelodge, after a woman was assaulted at the chain's Maidenhead branch when a keycard to her room was handed to a man. Ramesh Ganeson, vice president of hotel operations at Merlin Entertainments, said the technology itself is sound and that breaches stem entirely from human error.

Merlin launched a retraining programme covering all staff at its hotels, including those at Chessington, Thorpe Park and Alton Towers resorts.

Ganeson warned the failures 'will dent the reputation' of the entire sector because 'guests trust that they're safe outside the home'.

Hotels across the industry are now overhauling security protocols in response to Greaney KC's finding that the problem is sector-wide.