Category: 🧹 Housekeeping & Room Status Management
Target Roles: Housekeeping Managers, Front Desk Supervisors, Night Auditors, General Managers, System Administrators
Last Updated:
Executive Overview
A room discrepancy occurs when the physical occupancy status reported by Housekeeping differs from the reservation status recorded by Front Office in the Property Management System (PMS). For example, a room marked as Vacant in Front Office may be observed by housekeeping attendants as physically Occupied (Sleep/Skip condition).
To protect guest security and prevent accidental double-occupancy assignments, HotelKey PMS flags discrepant rooms with a red warning badge. If an arriving guest is assigned to a room currently flagged with an open discrepancy, the PMS places a hard operational lock on the reservation card, blocking the front desk from completing check-in until the discrepancy is formally investigated and resolved.
Operational Workflow: Discrepant Room Management
System Navigation Path
Housekeeping Module:Home > More > Housekeeping
Front Desk Arrivals:Home > Arrivals
Section 1: Flagging/Creating a Discrepant Room
Step
Action
Platform Guidance & Operational Details
Access Housekeeping
In the left-hand navigation sidebar, click More and select Housekeeping.
Renders the primary Housekeeping room tile matrix and status filters.
Locate Target Room
Use the Search by Room Number bar or click on the physical room card (e.g., Room 315).
Opens the room's detail card displaying Schedule Details and Service Options.
Access Service Options
In the room modal, navigate to the Service Options tab.
Displays operational actions such as Mark DND, Deny Service, and Mark Occupied.
Trigger Discrepancy
Under Service Options, click the blue Mark Occupied button.
Identifies that the room is physically occupied despite Front Office registering it as Vacant.
Confirm Discrepancy
Close the modal. The room tile updates immediately with a red alert badge containing a warning triangle icon and red border.
Increments the DISCREPANT count under Status Indicators in the Housekeeping header.
📷 VISUAL CALLOUT:
Discrepant Room Card & Header Counter
Creating a Discrepant Room
Section 2: PMS Check-In Blocking Logic
When Front Desk staff attempts to check in an arrival holding a room with an unresolved discrepancy, the system executes an automated security block:
Step
Action
Platform Guidance & Operational Details
Locate Arrival
Navigate to Home > Arrivals and locate the guest reservation assigned to the discrepant room.
An inline red warning triangle icon appears directly adjacent to the room number badge on the arrival card.
Attempt Check-In
Open the reservation card and click the blue Check In button.
System intercepts the action and halts check-in processing.
Error Modal & Toast
The PMS halts check-in and launches an Error modal stating: "Room has an open discrepancy. Please clear the issue or assign a different room."
A simultaneous red toast notification appears in the top-right corner. Check-in is completely prevented until the room discrepancy is resolved or reassigned.
📷 VISUAL CALLOUT:
PMS Check-In Interception & Error Modal
Arrival reservation screen displaying the Check In button click blocked by the centered Error modal: "Room has an open discrepancy. Please clear the issue or assign a different room." with top-right notification.
Discrepant Room Check-in Hard Block
Section 3: Investigating & Resolving a Discrepant Room
Once staff verifies physical room occupancy and checks guest departure status, resolve the discrepancy in the Housekeeping module:
Step
Action
Platform Guidance & Operational Details
Filter Discrepant Rooms
In Housekeeping, click the DISCREPANT button under Status Indicators.
Filters the screen to display only rooms carrying active occupancy discrepancies.
Open Room Details
Click the discrepant room tile (e.g., Room 315).
Opens the room management modal. Under Occupancy Status, the mismatch is visible (Front Office: VACANT vs. Housekeeping: OCCUPIED).
Open Discrepant Status
Click on the Housekeeping OCCUPIED row under Occupancy Status.
Opens the Discrepant Status resolution pop-up.
Input Resolution Notes
In the Remarks field, type an audit explanation (e.g., "Confirm guest has now departed room").
Captures an auditable operational explanation for historical logs.
Confirm Vacancy
Click the blue Confirm Vacant button.
Updates housekeeping occupancy back to VACANT, synchronizing it with Front Office records.
Clear Alert
The modal confirms "Room updated successfully". The red discrepancy badge clears from the room tile and arrival card, lifting check-in restrictions.
Returns the room to standard housekeeping flow for cleaning and inspection.
📷 VISUAL CALLOUT:
Discrepant Status Resolution Modal
Pop-up window displaying Front Office (VACANT) vs. Housekeeping (OCCUPIED) comparison, the entered resolution remarks, and the blue Confirm Vacant button.
Discrepant Status Resolution
Detailed Field & Status Breakdown
Occupancy Status Matrix
Front Office Status: Reflects active reservation occupancy recorded in the PMS (VACANT when no active reservation is checked in; OCCUPIED when a folio is in-house).
Housekeeping Status: Reflects the physical on-site condition observed by room attendants (VACANT or OCCUPIED).
Discrepancy State: Triggers automatically whenever Front Office Status ≠Housekeeping Status.
Discrepant Resolution Modal Fields
Front Office: Read-only label reflecting PMS status.
Housekeeping: Read-only indicator of the attendant's physical observation.
Remarks: Required text entry field where team members record the operational reason for the resolution (e.g., verified guest departure, early key drop, luggage hold verification).
Confirm Vacant Button: Core resolution action that clears the discrepancy flag, reconciles room status with Front Office records, and allows front desk check-in workflows to resume.
Related Documentation & Reports
Discrepant Rooms Report: For property-wide auditing of recurring occupancy variances and historical housekeeping logs, reference the Discrepant Rooms Report.
