I keep getting extra late arrivals, what should the late fee be?

[Sherri14]

3 of my 4 renters since the middle of June have been 4 to 6 hours late arriving, 11 to midnight. I have checkin from 3 to 9 pm, I just added to the House Manual/additional guidelines that if it is past 9:30 it will be $100 late fee. Is this ok? I think it is total lack of respect for the host that a guest arrives this late and doesn't think anything about it. 

Am I being too sensitive?

[Farah1]

@Sherri14 I personally think you are not being too sensitive as your time is valuable and guest is responsible to keep you updated with their arrival time. Though $100 seems like a stretch, but that really depends on how you justify the situation. I usually ask guest before approving their request to keep me updated with their arrival time. When I send a check-in instruction, I check on the arrival time again and remind guests to keep me updated with their arrival time. I have a keybox which can be used for self-check-in... I cannot imagine if I need to wait and sit around for guests who do not come on time/have a change in their plan. If you do not want to have self-check-in as an option, the fee for late check-out can be implemented and/or any other type of policy.

[Marie21]

I used to offer late check in with fees at arrival as i used to paid friends or cleaner to welcome guests but this year i completely stopped it as many guests ignore the payment and dont give to the person who welcome them and still i need to be online even if they check in earlier and late specially in Dublin when many US flight land at 5am 

And now i have added on my rules i do not accomodate early check in or late arrival

this may play on average booking but i cannot deal with that anymore as even after asking or telling guests to confirm when they land most of them sometime ignore the message and those are the same one during review process who start blaming you becasue they dont want to follow ur info or rules

Not worth the headache anymore, the take lot of time and energy to welcome those arriving from far away some will said they phone does not work they could not send any message even after telling them there is free WIFI in dublin and most of the Dublin Buses or others buses have free WIFI 

[Stay-Asheville0]

Sherri,

You are a host.  People are paying you money.  If you can't accomodate something as simple as a check in when it's not convenient for you, you should take a good long look at what your goals are here.   Just install a lockbox and let them check in any time after a certain limit.  I let my guests check in any time after 4.  You don't have to meet them or talk to them... 

It's funny that you bring up respect.  Charging someone 100 dollars to check in "late" is probably the most disrespectul thing you can do, given the cost of a lock box being about 30 bucks.  

[Todd-and-Reese0]

We try to be there to greet our guests upon arrival but if we have plans or they are getting in after our bedtime we give them their door code and basic info and try to bump into them the next day. You should get a keyless entry or lockbox. They pay for the space from whatever your checkin time is so it's their loss if they check in late night. 

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

Well, if the late arrival is because of a flight arrival time or something totally understandable, then as long as they properly communicated the fact then I would be accepting of a late check-in. 

I think the important thing is to make sure guests understand how important it is to communicate accurate ETA info in advance so hosts don't have to wait around all day for the guest to arrive. Also, people keep talking about having a lockbox or keyless entry as an option but personally, I would not feel comfortable with giving out my passcode to a guest, before greeting them in person because my listing is a private room in my home. I always greet my guests at the entrance of the building, give them the code and have them punch it in to make sure they know how to do it properly. 

[Annette33]

@Sherri14 , it sure is annoying, and inconsiderate of the guests, no doubt. I feel for you! But in the grand scheme of things, I think you are hurting yourself  more than helping yourself with this extra fee of $100. It just sounds a bit tacky, and as a guest, not that I even think of arriving late, I just don't like it, and thus you would lose my booking because of this. occasionally there will always be some minor  inconveniences like late arrival, part of doing business, just put it behind you,,or find alternative solutions like lock box.  the more guests you allow, the more these kind of problems will surface.
Also, how are you going to collect it? I doubt Airbnb will help you getting it out  of your security deposit, which is never collected upfront, Airbnb just puts a hold on it and only in case they side with a host in a dispute will they collect it for you, not an easy process. Same for your announcement of not returning the $300 damage deposit if pets were present. Again, is that an extra deposit you plan on charging at check-in, or are you considering thatbthis fee would also come out of the security deposit via Airbnb? Consider that things you cannot enforce have no true bite.
You can help yourself a bit by making your check in times clearer: you say it's 3 to 8, but then add the fee about $100 extra after 9:30 pm. sounds like you are figuring in a grace period. So really, people will read it as 9:30'pm, not 8 pm. Might be better to just leave it at 3-8. sounds more defined.
Good luck, and happy hosting!

[Nikki91]

My problem with late arrivals is that the rental home is in a very quiet nieghborhood. The nieghbors have repeatedly complained to the town officials of the noise and disruption at midnight or 1 AM. I do hide the key but late guests are putting me in a very precarious position with the officials. I recently added a comment that if you can't be postitve that you can arrive by 10 PM then please don't book my property. I am not enjoying being a host and look forward to the day I can sell this property. I think if your listing states that check-in is over at a specific time and the guest doesn't abide by this you should not have to allow late check-ins. If they want 24 hour check-in they can go to a motel. The guest who is coming tonight won't arrive until 1 AM and iwould prefer that I could tell them that they can't check-in and then Air bnb can give them a refund.

[Diana320]

I really appreciate this conversation and all of your input.

My check in time is from 3-8.  

Tonight's renter said they would be here at 7.  Then emailed me around 6:30 that they would be arriving after 8 because traffic was worse than expected. 

Then at 9:30 pm I called them to ask their ETA.  She said they were an hour away.  At 10:40, I called again because I'm concerned about them finding the house in the dark.

We have a 5 acre property and the rental house is an acre plus from our house.  I don't like the idea of them arriving late and potentially wandering around or getting lost. 

Just makes me anxious .I like to be reachable by phone when people are arriving in case they need help.

So I called at 10:45 pm bc I want to go to bed.  She said they were at dinner.  I feel angry and disrespected.  She wasn't very nice either. It was clear that she was irritated by my calls .  I would like to tell them to get a hotel tonight but  am not going to . Not sure what I will do going  forward about this. but it helps to vent!

[Alison3]

Yeah! I just had that happen tonight. We arranged for her to arrive a few minutes after 9 pm. At 9:20 she sends me a message that she was at dinner with friends and would check in later. Check in time is BY 10 pm. 

[Annelene0]

Do you add a fee for late arrival 

[Mark116]

We heavily discourage super late night check ins because they sometimes indicate that the guest will be a 'problem'...that they will have been doing something they shouldn't, that they will try and sneak in an extra guest, that they will be loud and cause a problem with the neighbors.  One of our worst ever guests wanted to check in at 3am, which we allowed, but they did all of those things:  extra guest, unbelievably loud, probably drunken laughter and shrieking and banging, and the rest of their stay was just as bad.  In our area, also, anyone who is driving and wants a late check in is going to have trouble parking and this we have found will often color their view of the entire stay in a negative way.

I wouldn't charge anyone for arriving late, and we don't charge when we allow a later check out.

I also think there is much advantage in meeting your guests in person, or having someone meet them.  It reinforces that it's not a hotel environment, it allows you to form a little bit of a connection, to troubleshoot questions, to reinforce house rules, etc.  

[Yulianna0]

I already suggested to put a new filter so guests can choose homes based on check in/check out time. Could be convenient for them and for hosts. I accept late arrivals, but I’m night owl, not a problem. The latest one arrived at 5.30 am. Not his fault and he kept me informed and apologized million times. I don’t accept early check ins. “Sorry, not possible”. Brave or demanding ones who did IB had to cancel