Occupany limits and guests who disregard them

[Laura2592]

I have had three inquiries or reservations in a row where the guest did not read the listing and wanted to bring more than the max occupancy limit. I have tried to make it more plain in my listing and house rules. No I cannot accommodate your family of 5 and a Great Dane. The limit is 4 living beings, whether they are human, canine, feline or porcine. Our cleaning fees are based on this (and my cleaners are already threatening to quit due to COVID protocols.)

The latest was an IB for one person who mentioned "we" and a large dog in the message. When I  inquired as to how many people were coming after reading reviews which mentioned "so and so and her family" and "so and so and her group" I got radio silence. We charge extra per guest over 2 people to try and curb this but then get guests who reserve for one person when they really have multiples. Our cottage is small and has 2 beds. It would not even be comfortable for a larger group.

So any suggestions my fellow hosts?

[Anthony223]

@Laura2592   I get so tired with guests who don't read the listings before booking but we will always have to live with this problem here.  In my case, I also live on the premises so when guests arrive with a young child or an animal, or an unpaid extra person,  I can rectify the problem before handing over the room. I did make an exception when a German guy arrived with his 9 year old daughter,  late at night and I didn't have the heart to refuse them. The guest had paid for two adults and was incredibly polite and understanding.  The child proved to be perfectly behaved and was no problem at all so all was well.

I stopped accepting instant bookings because of guests who haven't read the listing and the rules.  Guests who must request a room first, are then forced to reply to any questions I may have.

[Laura2592]

@Anthony223I may have to turn off IB. I have also been thinking of doing a picture in my listing that states my occupancy limits in writing with some kind of cute graphic. People clearly do not read. Its frustrating because I can just see the reviews-- "Cottage was a little cramped." Well yes, its 1400 square feet. It does not comfortably sleep 6 with a couple of large dogs.

[Anonymous]

@Laura2592  Sometimes the "guests don't read" meme that circulates between hosts obscures the variety of issues that might be going on here - and the right solution depends largely on which one it is. The top three scenarios seem to be:

1. The guest simply failed to comprehend the rules and conditions

2. The guest read the text but presumed the host would be flexible on the terms once a booking was at stake

3. The guest had no intention of following the rules but believed they could get away with a violation undetected because the host is offsite. 

Another one that comes up sometimes is that part of the failure lies on the host's end. In some cases the wording of House Rules sounds inadvertently wishy-washy - any hint of negotiability or apology (e.g. "this is why we offer a low Cleaning Fee") ultimately weakens the impact. On top of that, we often forget that people might be comparing several listings from their search at once, and if any of those has too much superfluous text, they're inevitably going to get confused or tune it out.

It's very easy to figure out which one of these is going on in time to make the right call if you're not using Instant Book. But if you want to leave that on, presumably you've already accepted the risk that an ill-fitting group will have a confirmed booking.

[Cave0]

@Anonymous 

Airbnb Terms of Service make it quite clear that it's not acceptable to bring additional guests, but I agree that there are guests of a certain type who will try to take advantage of a hosts softer nature or negotiate their way around the rules.

From a host perspective, I am always concerned that should something happen, in particular, should the "extra" guest have an accident or cause some damage, then Airbnb could simply walk away because there's no valid reservation covering the extra guest.  Certainly where I am, it's illegal to have people in the accommodation without a reservation so if something happens not related to the host and accommodation, but it comes to the attention of the police that the "extra" guest isn't on the reservation then that's another potential "complication".

Having had any number of this type of guest, these being the very people that don't care if the host loses his tourist licence because if their actions, and therefore they don't care if the next lot of guests have thier holiday ruined because of this, I am afraid I don't play their game.

I am sure there will be some who might judge me harshly, but I evict them without exception, this type of guest has no right to expose me to criminal proceedings, they have no right to jeopordize the reservations of the guests that follow them and, of coure, they have no right to steal from me which they do when they use facilities that they haven't paid for.

There can be very, very few excuses for turning up with more guests than appear on the reservation and even fewer excuses for not even extending the common courtesy of talking to the host prior to check-in.

Amazingly most of them manage to look quite hurt at the eviction.  Makes for good Instagram posts.

I had one guest the year before last whom I evicted, within a couple of hours she'd posted that she'd been evicted (again) from "the Airbnb" adding it wasn't the first and she didn't expect it would be the last time this happened.

Sums up their little game really.

[Ann72]

@Cave0  Love your attitude!

[Sarah977]

I love your attitude, too. So many hosts on this forum seem to be afraid to protect their own interests when it comes to advantage-taking guests, in fear of a bad review. @Cave0

[Emilia42]

@Laura2592 I have a similar setup. No more than 4 and an extra charge over 2. 

Whenever a guest books for 1 but I suspect there will be more I don't take it as the guest being devious. I take it as Airbnb not putting a great emphasis on the number of guests during the booking process. In these cases, I will ask the guest to confirm the number of people and explain why this information is important (extra charges, preparing the space, town code/ordinances.) If I don't hear back within a few days I will ask again. The nice thing about instant book is that I already have the guest's phone number so I can call/text if they are unresponsive on Airbnb and I'm not battling a ticking clock. It has never come to this though. The guest has always responded (sometimes it just takes a week) or the guest cancels on their own. 

Another thing is that I try to make my place took small in the pictures. I leave out photos of extra couches and floor space. I mostly get couples who are pleasantly surprised by the actual size.

[Ann72]

@Laura2592  I have a limit of two people and this year had a string of requests for more.  Finally I entered an extra-person fee of $300 per person per night.  Mind you, this will never show up, because it's impossible to enter more than 2 people.  But it's there so I can say, "Extra guests are $300 per person per night - are you sure you want to pursue this?"  They always drop it.  But then write back and say they want to come back with their significant other, which is exactly what one inquirer just did last week.

Do you get mostly couples, or do you get mostly groups of 3 or 4?  If the former, I might in your position consider entering a maximum of 2 people, forcing groups of 3 or 4 to write and ask if you'd accept more people.  Then you would know exactly how many people would be coming and could open the listing to that number with the extra-person charge in place.  Kind of twisty but might have a purpose.

[Kelly149]

@Ann72 @Laura2592 

Taking that idea a step further, you could have 2 listings: 1) for 2 guests only, either include pets as an option or not 2) for 4 or 5 or 6 or whatever combo you’d allow and have this one setup with a higher cleaning fee, more blocked days, higher rate, etc

But really, after twisting myself into knots about all the odd things I could charge guests for I just made it simpler and started saying no more. No pets. No drop in guests. No reservation changes. No, but my last host did it this way. No. 
@Emilia42 idea is a good one. Project what you want to host and stick with that. 

and btw, the 4 living beings is super clear & super reasonable. There are plenty of cabins for larger groups & there are kennels for pets. You having a limit harms no one. 

[Robin4]

@Laura2592 

I can't say I have had trouble with guests trying to sneak in extras....I do get guests booking for one and turning up with two, they don't consider it matters because my minimum charge per night is for two guests, so it's no big deal as far as they are concerned. It does become a problem when they are not a significant couple and require the other bed to be made. Airbnb do not have a facility for charging by the bed, I can only charge by the guest after my basic stated number. So two guests in two beds screws me somewhat. Where the issue comes in, you have already agreed to let them enter as two people and when you ask extra for use of the second bed they have suddenly requested, which hasn't been allowed for in the room preparation, they get somewhat shi*ty! 

However, I do strike a number of guests who will ask if there is some way I can accommodate another one, or two above  my listed three. They are prepared to pay, they are seeking a logistical solution.

They ask if it's possible for me to provide an air mattress for a 4th adult or if they can squeeze another into the existing beds . I only gave in to this request once and fortunately I got away with it, they were very relaxed and good about it . But generally my feeling is, after they leave they would never remember they asked me to compromise what I offer, they would only remember that it was tight and did not suit their requirements. Their request becomes the hosts fault!

I think providing more than what you state you offer is a recipe for disaster and I would not recommend it!  It probably should be considered that guests who want you to squeeze in extras are trying to do their accommodation on the cheap and would not be good guests anyway!

I think your idea of an outrageous extra guest fee is a good one @Ann72 , as long as it is prominent and they can't miss it during the booking process.

Cheers.........Rob

@Emilia42  @Andrew0

[Marg11]

MMMMmmmm.......,
Hi All,

Be firm with your house rules. It's your place! You can say "any sign of a party will result in eviction".
Our flat is secure with steel screens on all windows and doors, comfortable with a/c run from solar batteries, mains pressure hot water, comfy bed, quality equipment as well as close to transport and shops.
We have lots of clear photos online, specific descriptions, flat rate $50 a day for 2 includes bread, milk, cereal, spreads, tea, coffee & milo. We charge $7 each for more, maximum 4, no 3rd party bookings, no pets, no children under 2 as the bedroom opens onto our back yard with a pond, spiders so all children to be supervised, no eating sitting anywhere but the kitchen table and only booked guests are covered by insurance. Each group receives an introduction letter summarising the house rules with the wifi code at the end.
Grim reality? We rode out 2021 with 94.5% occupancy. One young boy saw my husband was elderly so visited with his chessboard hoping for a game but I had to say 'no', not because he doesn't play chess because he was trying to complete a client's books for tax. The lad politely said he was surprised such an 'old' man was working.
Occasionally a potential guest asks for a discount, extra guests or something we do not provide so we refer them to the Youth Hostel in the CBD which charges $50 a night per person in dorms.
In return, for our cheap rates we say we do the cleaning ourselves so expect guests to strip the beds & bag up their linen for washing before they leave, wash, dry and put away dishes daily, sort their rubbish, report stains and breakages, tell us if something doesn't work, introduce all visitors to us. Many of our guests return. Starting firm and easing up is easier.

[Basha0]

During Covid era, I clearly state no more than 4 people, no additional guests including day use.  I also charge enough that takes care of beds and linens used. It still halls me when they go in the linen closet and need fresh towels every day. But, in the end I’m ok with it as I charge a higher nightly fee for my area and get better quality guests.