Damage deposit

[Debbie903]

I just had a guest who with notice brought 30 dogs in four trailers and messed up my entire home. I collect a security deposit and Airbnb will not refund the money I had to spend to clean up my house from the dog feces. I spent a more $500 on the clean up before my next guest arrived. What can I do to collect the money I'm out????

VERY DISAPPOINTED in AIRBNB!!!!

[Emiel1]

@Debbie903 

30 dogs in four trailers ?
Is it not a 100% guarantee bringing a mess ?

[Helen3]

OMG why would you agree to such a booking - particularly when you know Airbnb doesn't accept claims for pet damage under its guarantee.  @Debbie903 

Sorry but this issue was down to you for accepting such a booking.

I hope you collected  a decent pet charge per animal. 

[Lenore22]

I feel your pain, but this might just be a painful lesson that will help you moving forward.

I have to agree with @Emiel1 

If you do not have a property that can accommodate 30 dogs, why did you approve this booking? Even if you had to cancel, it probably would have been worth it.

I believe Airbnb should live up to its host guarantee, but I also believe that it is up to us as hosts to vet whether a guest is a good fit for our property based on the info we are given. And you mentioned you were given this info in advance.

We are a "pet-friendly" property but we charge an additional $20/pet/night recognizing that cleaning up after animals after *reasonable use* requires more (in this case, $600 would have covered the clean up). I think this is a good, but painful lesson for you as a host to develop some rules and policies that work for you and for your property and also to consider what you expect and require of your guests. @Debbie903 

[Lenore22]

I just noticed your listing mentions a $50/animal fee. Did you add that after this experience? Seems like a reasonable idea.

[Ute42]

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@Lenore22 

But she'd better collect that fee at check-in. 30 dogs x $50 = $1500. Bingo. 😎

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Lenore22 Sadly Airbnb are living up to their host guarantees as it does NOT cover damage caused by animals.

[Ute42]

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@Debbie903    

I'm no sure if You said what You wanted to say.

You said: „a guest who with notice brought 30 dogs“

or did You want to say: „a guest who without notice brought 30 dogs“

[Anonymous]

@Ute42  I also thought that must have been a typo, as it seems unthinkable that the host willingly approved a booking with 30 dogs. I'm also kind of amazed that the cleanup cost only $500. 

[Paul1255]

Please let’s ensure this thread doesn’t become a pile-on of judgement that doesn’t support or assist @Debbie903  

[Emiel1]

The unregistred additional guests are waiting for check-in:

[Lawrene0]

Hi, @Debbie903 . That's the guest with the most recent review? She and her hunting dogs loved their stay, and you, very correctly, called her out in your review of her for bringing those 20 dogs without notifying you. Whether it is 30 or 20 doesn't matter, as even if you are pet friendly, 20 is still 19 dogs too many! And not house-trained? It's understandable that you were upset when you were typing. What a mess!

Do you have a receipt for that $500 cleanup? Do you mind trying again to get the deposit? Try Twitter if you haven't already. The account you want there is AirbnbHelp. 

Sorry not to know more about the process. I do know it is hard to get the deposit for "just" cleaning, as it is not damage.  But hopefully now that we know it is "without notice" someone can be of more help. 

[Anonymous]

@Debbie903 One of the first things you have to know about the claims process is that the "security depost" is fictional. Airbnb does not charge or place a hold on this money at the time of booking, and specifying a deposit in your listing has no apparent influence over the outcome of a claim. Since the language in the Host Guarantee makes it very clear that pet-related damage is not covered, some hosts recommend that you make no mention of the animals in a claim and just focus objectively on the damage. However, in this particular case it would be hard to explain why your house was covered in feces without mentioning that the whole cast of "Hotel For Dogs" made a cameo.

One detail that might be relevant: at what point in the reservation did you discover that the guests had brought this huge pack of dogs? Was it only at checkout, or were the guests permitted to check in after the shocking revelation that they had a canine entourage?

[Christine20]

@Debbie903 Hi Debbie, so sorry to hear of your experience. Airbnb treats their hosts terribly. I had a similar experience and there were no animals involved just two adults who partied, vomited, smoked and trashed my house. I had to pay for new linens, hours of extra cleaning, gift the incoming guests. I had a security deposit which did me no good because the money was not available since the guests credit card was maxed out. All the damage, cleaning fees etc was well documented. Don't think for a minute Airbnb is in your corner whether guest or host. They have allowed both unscrupulous hosts to advertise fake listings and crazy and destructive guest to continue to use the platform. What landlord in their right mind would rent without protection for damages yet that is what every Airbnb host is doing. Airbnb is a great concept but greed has gotten in the way. Airbnb has no problem asking the host to refund last minute cancellations which I have done more than once rather than see a guest lose their money due to unforeseen circumstances. Have you noticed however that Airbnb never refunds the fees they have collected to the guest? I will never host for Airbnb again.