Tip of the Week 18: The focus and importance of the safety in your property

[Quincy]

As we continue with theTip of the Week series, I'm delighted to share this week’s tip on the focus and importance of the safety in your property 📚

The following tip was shared by @Clara116  in "What is a critical factor for guests when searching to book an Airbnb?"

"Make sure you take a look at the Safety in your rental. It's important that you take Safety seriously for your guests e.g. safety cards and CO monitors". 

On this thread, we invite you to share your valuable tips on which actions you take to provide a safe stay for your guests 🏡  

We’re excited to hear and learn from you all. Let's gather the best practices for ensuring a great guest experience, and don’t forget to give a thumbs up👍 to the best tips shared. 😊

👉 TOTW series

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Quincy @Clara116  It occasionally annoys me that there is a fixation with Carbon monoxide alarms to the extent when you say you do not have one then Airbnb flags this on the listing. 

My irritation comes from the fact that there is no carbon monoxide generating device within 10m of our listings. We even went so far as to put an alarm in one listing even though, unless it fails, it will never go off.

[Clara116]

@Mike-And-Jane0  I hear what you are saying and I too have no clear reason for having one....BUT for those people that would be possible guests that read of the couple or family somewhere died because there was NO Carbon Monoxide Detector they have FEAR.   Guests can no longer trust that they are Safe! Unfortunately, some old homes do leak from days when they HAD gas and converted. So for the very low price of $15-25 .....or even free from Airbnb if you ask, if it gives people peace of mind, why would we ALL NOT do it?? 

Can you imagine people dying in your place? We, of course can not imagine that and assume we are totally safe and that our guests are as well. 

I personally will do anything to make sure and keep that from happening. 

Imagine the hosts that don't really clean the way WE do, or don't replace the air filters or have pest control and such. So unfortunately we are having to get everyone onboard because of those that don't care, don't have a clue and make things harder for us all. 

I hope this makes sense.

peace,

Clara

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Clara116 It makes sense on every level except the environment. Why would I cause an alarm to be manufactured and sent when there is literally no scenario where it could ever detect Carbon Monoxide? 

[Clara116]

@Mike-And-Jane0  just guess we will both go with what we believe the best for how we live and what we trust and believe. 

Peace,

Clara

[Bettye6]

@Clara116 and @Mike-And-Jane0  From what I researched, those who live in all-electric homes should have them installed because CO can seep into the house form an attached garage, cars on the street ( those living in densely populated urban areas) emitting into homes having windows open, use of a generator in emergencies, like a power outage.

I have them as I still use gas for my heat, hot water heaters and of course my stove. 

Clara, you sentiment is right on that it is better to be safe than sorry. And yes, we all have to apply by the rules of AirBnB to the lowest level of host understandings that have been set. We at times might find them redundant or obvious.

When I was working in medicine, if it  wasn't documented it wasn't done plus our ever loving SOP's, Standard Operating Procedures and Algorithms were written, and yes, sometimes pictures included, to provide to the lowest level of comprehension of who might be reading in mind. It is not fair to have anyone assume that I or anyone knows all or every step of a procedure.

Enjoyable Holidays to all,

Bettye

[Bettye6]

Great question,

One thing I do is provide an exit sign above a door that is rarely if ever used (emergency exit door).

I use nightlights in every room as well as the use of plugs for any exposed outlets. 

This was brought up in another thread but we need to be careful with the throw rugs and detached carpets too. According to our National Institute of health, those 65 and older average of fall injuries were associated with carpets (54.2%) and rugs (45.8%). 

Bettye

[Quincy]

Hi @Bettye6, this is very insightful. Thank you so much for sharing this! Have you considered any other safety improvements in your home? 

[Bettye6]

Hi Quincy,

Actually I have. 

We do you outside security cameras, besides our RING doorbell which shows the cars my guests parking directly in front utilize. I have a 2 story apartment building and the entire 2nd floor is rented out, We use a camera pointed at the guest front door, entry to the back yard which also allows us to see who is coming and going into the apartment. [that keep us on top of 3rd party bookings {never occurred], one in our back yard plus one facing the driveway. 

We never used cameras until getting the AirBnB going. We have no contact checkins and this allows us to know when, who and how many checking in.

I have a large first aid kit under the bathroom sink as well. 

I keep a list of emergency and non emergency phone numbers.

As I think the guest door is keyless entry which automatically locks. We have found before buying this the door being unlocked. We live across the street from a major park, one can never be too safe.

Thank you for asking,

Bettye6