The Night Audit Chapter 13

The night audit is designed to end the work day for the hotel, and to update the guest folio. The night auditor is rarely a trained accountant but needs to possess good mathematic skills, self discipline and be detail oriented.

The night auditor works from 11pm or 12am until 7am or 8am. The auditor assumes the position of night manager and all of the responsibilities that come with that title. The auditor also becomes the front desk agent and bell person.

Reconciling Accounts Receivable- verifies the charges to guest folios. The closeout hour- the hour in which the auditor closes out all charges for the day. Posting room charges manually- involves recording room charges to each guests folio.

Manual System errors- errors made before a computerized system was used. Posting Room Charges Electronically- Electronic posting is much faster than manual posting and eliminates mathematical errors. Charges not posted during the audit- some charges are not posted during the audit such as; late check-outs, day rates, penalty rates and paid in advance rates. PMS systems can crash although there is less room for mathematical errors.

Revenue Verification- The total income earned by each department from accounts receivable sales is the same total charges to guest folios. Equal debits and credits

Now all computer systems in hotels interface with one another. Property management systems eventually became terminals for sales at a hotel’s outlets. Now all computer systems in hotels interface with one another. See page 509- not all systems interface.

Closing Routine- the auditor closes all of the systems and runs a trial balance. As one day closes the next opens. Often guests folios are printed as part of the process to speed up the check out process. Express Check Out- The guest is given the folio the night before check out and then does not have to wait in line to check out at the front desk

The night audit produces several reports for management. Turnkey Systems- refers to PMS systems that are ready to use upon being installed. Exception Reports- show any discrepancies from the norm. Downtime Reports- are a backup incase the system crashes. Credit Reports- analyzes the guests account balances. PMS Posting Errors- not error free. Go through exception reports on page 516. Go through Downtime reports on Page 516. Go through credit reports page 517.

Reservation Reports- shows the number of arrivals and how they made their reservations. Rooms Management Report- show the activity that occurred in the PMS through out the day. Rooms Status Report- shows which rooms are ready for sale and which ones are not. This is essential communication between the front desk and housekeeping. Go through reservations reports page 517, go through rooms management reports 518, rooms status reports 521.

Accounts Receivable Reports- shows all accounts receivable for a given time period. Room Count, House Count and Room Income- shows the number of occupied rooms, the number of guests and the revenue generated by the sales. Go through accounts receivable reports on page 524

The Housekeeper’s Report- is generated several times each day to show the status of each room, occupied, dirty or clean. Cover proving charges other than rooms.