Q Apartments is continually monitoring the ongoing situation with the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. We have always been committed to looking after people and therefore the health, well-being and safety of our guests, our employees and Q other partners is our highest priority.
Since the beginning of the outbreak we have followed the guidance provided by the World Health Organisation, the Centre for Disease Control, local governments, public health authorities and medical professionals in order to ensure that we are taking all precautionary measures to minimise the spread of the virus and to keep our guests, employees and Q other partners safe.
The measures that we are taking specifically related to keeping our guests safe can be found outlined below:
SELF-ISOLATION REQUIREMENTS
Guests are advised that if they are displaying any symptoms of the virus or have come into contact with someone displaying symptoms of the virus (either before arrival or during their stay) they are required to adhere to the self-isolation guidelines provided by the World Health Organisation.
Guests will also be subject to border controls on entry to the UK and are required to adhere to any possible quarantine obligations set out by the World Health Organisation.
SELF-ISOLATION PERIODS
• If you live alone, stay at home for 7 days from when your symptoms started.
• If you live with others and you or one of them have symptoms, then all household members must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days. The 14-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill. For anyone in the household who starts displaying symptoms, they need to stay at home for 7 days from when the symptoms appeared, regardless of what day they are on in the original 14day isolation period
After 7/14 days, if the person feels better and no longer has a high temperature, they can return to their normal routine. If they have not had any signs of improvement and have not already sought medical advice, they should contact for United Kingdom call 111, Denmark call 112 and Brazil call 192.
HOUSEKEEPING AND MAINTENANCE VISITS DURING SELF-ISOLATION
Guests are required to notify Q Apartments if they are self-isolating. During the isolation period, all housekeeping and maintenance visits to the property will be suspended. We will continue to attend to major maintenance/emergency issues in line with guidance supplied by the Local Government.
ASSISTANCE DURING SELF-ISOLATION
Q Apartments can be contacted 24/7 during the guest’s stay. We are committed to supporting our guests and can arrange contactless delivery of linen, groceries, cleaning supplies and other provisions if essential during a self-isolation period where possible.
MEASURES IN PLACE FOR OUR EMPLOYEES AND SUB-CONTRACTORS
Our employees have all been provided with the latest guidance available from your local government and are always required to adhere to social distancing and self-isolation rules.
All employees are required to continually comply with the risk assessment questionnaire and are required to inform us immediately if they are displaying any symptoms of the virus or have been in contact with anyone who has the virus. If an employee notifies us of or displays symptoms, they are immediately sent home and are required to comply with the self-isolation rules. Where possible, in line with guidelines set out by your local government, we will arrange for employees with symptoms to have a COVID-19 test.
Our employees and sub-contractors are required to wear gloves and face coverings (where applicable) when visiting apartments. Employees are required to thoroughly sanitise their hands prior to putting gloves on and the gloves are required to be safely disposed of after leaving the apartment in order to minimise any cross-contamination. Employees have always also been provided with hand-sanitiser (to be kept on them) to use when hand washing facilities are not readily available.
In line with current guidelines issued by the local government, our employees are provided with face coverings to wear where social distancing is more difficult. Employees and sub-contractors are also required to wear face coverings when attending any apartment.
BREAKS IN BETWEEN BOOKINGS
Q Apartments has implemented a policy of a 72 hours break in between bookings as advised by the World Health Organisation. This break therefore minimises the possibility of the virus still being present on any surfaces when our housekeeping team attends and before the next guest arrives. The apartment is then thoroughly cleaned prior to guest arrival.
5 CHECK INS
We pride ourselves on our self-check-in procedure across our portfolio, all check-in information is sent prior to arrival with all the relevant access codes as required. Today we know the importance of social distancing, adhering to the government rules and therefore we have designed a meticulous procedure so you can access your apartment without our representatives being present.
All apartment keys and master locks are sanitised, and they can be found next to your apartment door. Guests are advised to use our taxi provider on arrival to transport them to their apartment, our provider is operating under strict COVID-19 guidelines and disinfecting cars in between journeys.
MEET AND GREET
In order to prioritise your safety, we have implemented a mobile meet and greet representative, who may be contacted on the phone; they will be patrolling the properties and will be able to remotely assist you with, as an example: showing how appliances work and they are ready to answer any questions or concerns upon arrival.
Our team are working 24/7 to make sure you have the right support during this difficult time.
HOUSEKEEPING
Until further notice we are only conducting a weekly service when the guest has vacated the apartment.
Our normal cleaning procedures adhere to high standards however, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak we have put enhanced measures in place including:
• Increased focus on sanitising high-touch point areas such as door handles, taps and toilet flushes within the apartments
• Sanitisation of high-touch point areas in communal spaces
• All housekeeping contractors are required to adhere to rigorous personal hygiene standards including thoroughly sanitising their hands before putting on gloves to enter the apartment.
• Face coverings are worn by all housekeeping contractors whilst in the apartment
• All gloves are safely disposed of after leaving the apartment to avoid any cross-contamination
• All our housekeeping team are currently based in your building avoiding the risk of contamination by avoiding the use of public transport.
MAINTENANCE
Maintenance work continues, providing all the current government safety advice is adhered to. COVID-19 Protocol – Keeping Our Guests Safe
COVID - 19 Protocol
We want to inform our customers that we will be adhering strictly to all advice provided by the World Health Organisation. We are also closely observing all protocol advised by local and international authorities.
The well-being of our guests and our staff is of absolute priority, and we would like to assure you that health and safety has our complete attention. This means that all our maintenance team are fully updated on the current requirements and are undertaking radical health and safety measures to ensure that the highest possible hygiene standards are maintained throughout every aspect of our daily work – particularly for our engineers and visiting customers.
SUPPLIERS AROUND THE GLOBE
We are working together with all our suppliers to maintain strengthened precautionary measures to safeguard the health of our colleagues and guests around the globe, as well as keeping a tight surveillance on the current situation.
Below are the main actions that we are demanding from our suppliers:
• Increased frequency of disinfecting in all public areas including, but not limited to, handrails, elevator buttons, countertops and door handles. Sterilization of remote controls, cutlery, cups, and all other surfaces in guestrooms, restaurants, spas and fitness centres.
• All cleaning staff and restaurant chefs to wear face masks and single use rubber gloves on duty.
• Requiring guests to complete a declaration form regarding their recent travel details.
• Daily reminder notifications on their phones to all our colleagues to maintain good personal hygiene at all times.
Below are the supplementary precautionary measures taken at properties with restaurants, spa and health clubs as well as suppliers to safeguard the health of our guests and colleagues:
Restaurants and Bars, where open:
• Proactively disinfect all tables after each guest’s departure.
• Place additional sneeze guards at the buffet displays.
• Provide additional hand sanitizers for guests and colleagues in the restaurants.
• Sterilize all public areas, surfaces and equipment every 30 minutes, including and not limited to the door handles, reception desk, credit card machines, telephones.
• All chinaware, glassware and cutlery are sterilized using a high temperature washing machine and sanitizer.
Spa and Fitness/Health Club, where open:
• Disinfect all areas every 30 minutes including the reception desk, touch screens, pens, and fitness machines.
• Additional sterilization after each spa treatment and sprayed with cleaning detergent overnight.
• Pool Deck: Additional cleaning of all furniture at regular intervals during the day and overnight.
COVID-19 Housekeeping and Maintenance Standards
The safety and well-being of our contractors are of the utmost importance to us.
The following necessary measures have been put in place to ensure the safety of our contractors and our clients:
• Team and contractors are to regularly wash their hands using soap and water for at least 20 seconds and hands should be washed before putting on and after taking gloves off
• Team and contractors are required to carry and regularly use alcohol-based hand sanitizer
• Team and contractors are to use disposable gloves and face coverings when cleaning our apartments.
• Mobile phones are to be regularly sanitised
• Full work uniforms are to be worn
• All team members and contractors are required to adhere to social distancing requirements and attend apartments in teams of a maximum of two
• All team members and contractors are assigned to dedicated areas to minimise the need to use public transport
Team members who are required to self-isolate:
Under no circumstances team members are permitted to attend work if they are displaying symptoms of the virus:
• High temperature and/or
• New continuous cough
If a team member is experiencing these symptoms or was in contact with someone with these symptoms, they are required to adhere to the self-isolation rules set out by the UK government:
• If you live alone, stay at home for 7 days from when your symptoms started.
• If you live with others and you or one of them have symptoms, then all household members must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days. The 14-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill. For anyone in the household who starts displaying symptoms, they need to stay at home for 7 days from when the symptoms appeared, regardless of what day they are on in the original 14-day isolation period
• After 7/14 days, if the person feels better and no longer has a high temperature, they can return to their normal routine. If they have not had any signs of improvement and have not already sought medical advice, they should contact local health organization.
General housekeeping standards to be applied during all apartment cleans
• All our team members and contractors are instructed to follow all relevant Q Apartments procedures and complete all checklists provided
• Use anti-bacterial surface cleaner specially for all door handles, lifts and all “high-touch points” areas
• Used linen is to be carefully placed in a separate bag provided by the linen company and removed in line with the linen companies’ procedures. Care should be taken when handling dirty laundry.
• Keep the windows open during the service (where possible) in order to ensure proper ventilation inside the property
• Used cleaning materials and to use disposable gloves and face coverings are to be sealed and disposed of safely
Enhanced housekeeping standards to be applied for cleans where there has been a case of suspected COVID-19
• As well as gloves and masks and disposable gloves
• All surfaces are to be cleaned with the appropriate chemical and/or disinfectant. Surfaces are to be cleaned with a disposable cloth and particular attention is to be paid to frequently touched areas and surfaces, including bathrooms, grab-rails and door handles
• Floors are to be cleaned and disinfected thoroughly with a disinfectant floor cleaner.
• Care needs to be taken to avoid creating splashes and spray when cleaning
• Soft furnishings are to be thoroughly cleaned
• Used linen is to be carefully placed in a separate bag provided by the linen company and removed in line with the linen companies’ procedures. Care should be taken when handling dirty laundry.
• All waste including used gloves, masks and disposable cloths/cleaning materials should be placed in a plastic rubbish bag and tied when full. This should then be placed in a second bag and tied. The rubbish is then disposed of securely.
• Hands are to be washed thoroughly using soap and water for at least 20 seconds after removing gloves and masks.
• Upon entry to the apartment a tape will be in place, this assures any arriving guest that they are the first person to enter a sanitised apartment.
