Do
- Give us a working mobile number for the lead guest at the time of booking, and tell us if it changes.
- Tell us the guest's preferred language up front.
- Tell us in advance if there is anything commercially sensitive we should not discuss with your client, such as your rate to them.
- Copy us on anything material your client has told you but not told us.
Don’t
- Do not promise your client a refund, a discount, a relocation, a compensation amount or a waived charge before we have confirmed it in writing.
- Do not instruct your client to arrange their own contractor, locksmith, cleaner or hotel and expect reimbursement without our prior written approval.
- Do not send escalations to individual staff members' personal numbers — cases sent outside the published channels are not logged and carry no response time.
- Do not raise a mid-stay escalation for something that is a booking or billing question; those follow the normal commercial route.
When one of your clients hits a problem mid-stay, speed matters less than accuracy. This article sets out the escalation channels we operate, the information we need from you to act, the response you can expect by severity, and the circumstances in which we will bypass you and speak to your client directly.
Escalation channels
We operate one escalation line for all partners, 24 hours a day. Use the channel that matches the severity — do not open the same case on several channels at once, as that splits the thread and slows us down.
| Channel | Use for | Availability |
| Phone +971 (4) 392-0202 | Critical and high severity — anything affecting safety, access, or habitability right now | 24/7 |
| WhatsApp +971 (4) 392-0202 | High and medium severity — photos, videos, location pins, unit access issues | 24/7 |
| Email partners@deluxehomes.com | Medium and low severity, and all written follow-up, evidence and claims | Monitored Monday to Saturday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM |
| Named account contact | Commercial disputes, repeat incidents, service-level concerns | Every partner has a named account contact in the Business Development team, available Monday to Saturday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM |
What we need from you
An escalation without identifiers cannot be actioned. Send all of the following in the first message — every field missing is a round-trip that costs your client time.
- Booking reference or reservation ID as issued by us or by the channel the booking came through
- Property name and unit number
- Lead guest name and the mobile number they are reachable on right now
- Check-in and check-out dates
- Severity as you assess it: critical, high, medium or low
- A factual description of the issue — what is happening, since when, and what has already been tried
- Photos or video where the issue is physical (leak, appliance, damage, cleanliness, access)
- Whether your client is currently inside the unit, locked out, or off site
- Whether your client is willing to be contacted by us directly, and on which number and language
- Any commercial commitment you have already made to your client in relation to the issue
How to escalate
- Confirm there is no life-safety element. If there is, your client calls emergency services first, then you notify us.
- Assess severity using the table below and pick the matching channel.
- Send the first message with the full identifier set from the checklist above. Put the booking reference and unit number in the first line.
- State plainly what outcome your client is asking for — repair, replacement, relocation, cleaning, refund — so we can size the response.
- Confirm whether we may contact your client directly, and give us the number and preferred language.
- Stay on the channel you opened. We will acknowledge, give you a case reference and tell you the next update time.
- Relay our answer to your client, or hand the conversation over to us if you have authorised direct contact.
- Once the issue is closed, send any claim, invoice or evidence in writing to partners@deluxehomes.com against the case reference. Submit it within 7 days of check-out.
Severity and response times
We triage on impact to the client's ability to occupy the unit safely, not on the volume of the complaint. Response time means our first substantive response to you, not full resolution.
| Severity | Typical examples | Target first response | Target resolution |
| Critical | No access to the unit, total power or water loss, active leak or flood, lock or door failure, gas smell, security incident, anything making the unit uninhabitable | 15 minutes | Resolution or relocation within 4 hours |
| High | No air conditioning, no hot water, non-functioning kitchen appliance, lift out of service affecting a mobility-restricted guest, significant cleanliness failure at check-in, Wi-Fi down | 1 hour | Same day |
| Medium | Single appliance fault with a workaround, minor maintenance, missing amenity, noise complaint, parking access issue | 4 hours | 48 hours |
| Low | Cosmetic defects, requests and preferences, information questions, non-urgent replacements | 1 working day | 5 working days |
If you disagree with the severity we assign, say so on the same thread and tell us why — a stated business impact will be reviewed. Do not re-open the case on a second channel to force a re-grade.
When we contact your client directly
Our default is to work through you. There are defined situations where we will speak to the lead guest without waiting for you, because routing through a third party would create risk or delay.
- Any safety, security or medical situation, or an evacuation instructed by the building.
- Access and entry — the on-site GRO must be able to reach the guest directly to complete check-in, hand over keys or resolve a lockout.
- Where a technician, cleaner or contractor needs to enter the unit and we must agree a time with the person inside it.
- Where a building or authority requires the occupant to be contacted, including any request from the DET (formerly DTCM) or the building management.
- Where your client contacts us first, on any channel, and asks for help.
- Where we cannot reach you within the response window on a critical or high severity case.
Relocation, refunds and compensation
Where an issue cannot be resolved in the unit, we will look at moving your client to an alternative property in our portfolio, subject to availability. Any relocation, refund, partial refund or goodwill gesture must be confirmed by us in writing before it is communicated to your client.
Refunds follow the Refund Policy published on our website. Where the booking was made through an OTA or through your own agreement with the client, that party's cancellation and refund policy governs the outcome and we will settle against it.
Case closure and reporting
A case is closed when the issue is resolved and you have been told so on the original thread. Any residual commercial item — a claim, a deduction, a credit — is handled separately in writing against the case reference.
- Keep the case reference on all subsequent correspondence about the same stay.
- Send evidence in writing, not verbally; photographs and timestamps are what support a claim.
- Report repeat failures at the same property to your account contact rather than raising a new escalation each time, so the underlying cause is addressed. There is no scheduled incident report: a case history is available from your account contact on request, and accounts with ten or more bookings a year receive a quarterly review.
Contact
Phone and WhatsApp: +971 (4) 392-0202. Email: partners@deluxehomes.com. In an emergency, contact the local emergency services first, then notify us.