When hangers and co. from the hotel end up in your luggage

Some people's suitcases are fuller after their hotel stay than before. But what is actually allowed to take out of the room? Asked by a lawyer.

Towels, bathrobes and clothes hangers are among the items that most often disappear from hotel rooms. But even pictures or even tablets repeatedly end up in guests' suitcases and are missing from their rooms after check-out. At least that's what a survey of almost 1,400 hoteliers recently published by the Wellness Heaven portal suggests.

When it comes to art and electronics, it should be clear to everyone that this is theft. But what about clothes hangers - not really a problem, is it? Yes, it is, says Ines Kilian, a lawyer specializing in criminal law, in an interview.

Ms. Kilian, what am I allowed to take out of a hotel room? Is it already a problem if I pack a coat hanger?

Ines Kilian: Yes, that is already a problem. In principle, you are not allowed to take anything out of the hotel room - because everything in it belongs to the hotel. You can, of course, use things provided by the hotel, such as soap. And if there are shrink-wrapped bath slippers in the room, you can take them with you after your stay - if you use them, they cannot be made available to other guests afterwards. But if, for example, there is a large dispenser with liquid soap in the bathroom, I'm not allowed to take it with me. It belongs to the hotel.

Isn't there something like a de minimis limit?

No, in theory it's all punishable. But of course, a public prosecutor would be unlikely to take action against a stolen coat hanger.

Do you ever take anything from your hotel room?

I love the slippers in hotels, for example. I've sometimes taken them with me. Even if there are small, packaged bars of hand soap on the washbasin that are intended for use, you could pack them if in doubt. But anything that can be used several times - soap dispensers or towels - and where the hotel doesn't make it clear that you can take it with you after your stay, has to stay in the room.

Personal details: Ines Kilian is a specialist lawyer for criminal law and runs a law firm with colleagues in Dresden and Leipzig. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Criminal Law Working Group of the German Bar Association (DAV).