Duty Of Care

by Catherine Chetwynd

Are serviced apartments the safer alternative to hotels? Do they meet the expectations for a prolonged stay away from home? Do they comply
with corporate travel policy?

Across Europe, duty of care is important. "Companies recognise their duty of care towards staff, particularly with the growing difficulty in finding people to go abroad, they
want to take particular care of their people and they lay on home finding, orientation and immigration services," says president of the European Relocation Association
(EuRA) Helmut Berg.

In the UK, companies' obligation to duty of care ranges from concern for employees' work-life balance to adherence to the Corporate Manslaughter & Homicide Act.

Quality of life, health and safety requirements are the most common reason for housing employees in serviced apartments for international assignments. Apartments allow
people to live as they do at home and with their family, where applicable. They can look after themselves and relax in a way that is not possible in a hotel, not least
because hotel guests are reliant on other people to provide every service.

"You cannot relax as easily in a hotel as you can in an apartment when you invite friends or have family around," says managing director of The Apartment Service,
Charles McCrow. "An apartment is a bit more like normal home life. This leads to a happier worker, greater work productivity and fewer HR issues"

An apartment is often in a residential development, so guests feel less like a tourist in the city says Tracey Stephenson, co-founder of Staying Cool, a niche operator with
apartments in Birmingham and Manchester in the UK. In London's Dolphin Square, which is part residential, part serviced apartments, guests get the twin advantages of
the independence that apartments allow and the opportunity to mix with the residents in the bar.

"We promote use of apartments based on the effect on people's wellbeing - they are more comfortable and provide a more homely environment," says head of UK hotels
and venues procurement for PricewaterhouseCoopers Sam van Leeuwen.

However, apartment operators are beginning to see a change in the length of contracts. "People are saying they will not go on a project for 18 months and as a result,
companies are taking shorter contracts on apartments rather than long term leases of houses," says The Apartment Service's Mike Stapley. "Work-life balance drives
companies to assign on a different basis."

A lot of people are saying they are willing to do it but it has to work for me and my family
The same is true in the US. "On international assignments, which might be from 18 months to two years, a lot of people are saying they are willing to do it but it has to
work for me and my family," says corporate housing consultant Elaine Quiroz. "Fifteen years ago, it would not have been acceptable to say that. It is no longer just about
budget or length of stay but the soft issues." As a result, many companies provide a mentor for employees relocating to a new city. This support on the ground is as
important as any health & safety standards at the apartments themselves.

Quiroz says that government, military and large corporate bids in the US often ask for buildings with sprinklers and other fire precautions. "I have also seen RFPs ask
providers to detail their emergency communications/operations plan in case of a sudden emergency such as a natural disaster, terrorist threat or shut-down of computer or
communications systems," she says.

This reflects the introduction of such criteria into more traditional hotel programme RFPs over the last few years. Although RFPs are a well established procurement tool in
that the transient sector, they are only just starting to be used for serviced apartments in companies' relocation and mobility programmes.

Security at the corporate housing end of the serviced apartment sector is much the same as security in people's home but unlike a hotel, in the US and the UK, guests are
generally supplied with a mobile or pager number for 24-hour support rather than full-time reception in the building. And regarding tracking individuals' whereabouts: The
apartment provider, and the agent, will be the only ones who know where a guest is staying, ensuring that the corporate can find their people quickly in the event of an
emergency without compromising their privacy.

"In the UK, corporate manslaughter legislation can mean criminal prosecution by the police and the victim can receive unlimited damages. "This drives the health and
safety aspects of how we look after people," says Malcolm Broadbent, general manager of Hyde Park Gate, a Cheval Group property." Everything fromCorgi gas safety
certificates and electrical standards to fire precautions and water standards is rigorously and regularly monitored and recorded. Even getting in contractors involves a field
risk assessment. "Everything has to be approved by the group maintenance manager before we even proceed with it," he says.

Outside the UK and US, CEO for Europe and the Middle East for Frasers Serviced Apartments Guus Bakker sees considerable demand and growth potential for fully
serviced accommodation, as opposed to corporate housing. "Guests in foreign countries are looking for the security of professionally operated properties with international
standards and familiar brand names provide reassurance in an unfamiliar culture."

Guests in foreign countries are looking for the security of professionally operated properties with international standards
This is not just a matter of peace of mind in an unfamiliar environment. "Health & Safety standards vary enormously worldwide but international serviced apartment
operators have strict standards in terms of health and safety, most of the time based on the model of American or British H&S requirements," he says. It is interesting to
note that serviced apartments operators do not get much business through TMCs, even though, if they did, standards of service and product might have to become more
consistent. In emerging countries high safety and security standards are even more important. For example, safety and security for residents is paramount and many
foreign guests prefer Western style buildings that have security cameras, high levels of staffing and are in decent areas, "says senior vice president and general manager
for Oakwood Worldwide Gavan James.