In last weeks blog, we learned how Governments can save money and time by installing smart access control systems for their public housing stock. According to their own laws, an Australian Government revealed that their houses must be re-keyed at the end of each tenancy. This is done in order to protect tenants, and it costs the Government over $1 million a year in locksmith fees and new locks. Smart access control systems with smart locks and digital keys, mean that you will never have to replace a lock ever again. With smart locks, digital keys can be revoked online in an instant.
The Australian Government also revealed how considerable staff time is wasted on managing the keys to their properties. Time is wasted on making arrangements to get new keys cut if tenants lose their keys. In addition arranging access to metal keys for service workers such as plumbers, or nurses can also be time-consuming for Government staff. Smart access control systems enable new digital keys to be created in an instant online and emailed to staff and tenants.
In addition to Governments, other groups/industries that stand to save time and money from installing smart access control systems include; Airbnb property owners; hotels and motels; community building managers; gymnasiums - just to name a few.
Like the Australian Government managing their public housing, the one thing all these groups have in common is that they are responsible for the protection of their users. The Government considers protection of a new tenant in the public housing is compromised if the previous tenant is not revoked access through the changing of the locks. The logic is that the old tenant could let themselves into their old house at anytime, or cut keys and give copies to anyone who could also let themselves into the old house at anytime.
Taking the above logic, a hotel still using metal keys, ‘does not take responsibility of the protection of their guests’. Just like the public housing tenant, a hotel guest can cut a copy of a metal key for their room/property during their stay, and come back at anytime in the future and give themselves access to that room/property. In addition, a hotel guest ‘can’ also give a copy of a metal key to anyone who can also use that metal key to give themselves access to that room at anytime. Of course this compromises the protection of all new users of the hotel room.
So if Governments can have laws to protect their people in their public housing, shouldn’t the same laws apply for hotels to protects their guests too?