When to charge and when it’s “normal”

[Melissa1335]

I’m facing an issue with my last guest . I’m not sure weather to charge or not for extra cleaning fee or missing items. Looking for others opinions on if this is then norm or just eat the cost this time. There was food all over the counter, candy in the couch, spilled coffee all over the floor, melted popsicle on the patio. Blood on the sheets, makeup all over the white wash cloths even though I provide black ones specifically marked with “makeup”  Not to mention they walked off with one of my beach blankets and an Uno game. Usually if it had just been one thing I would just chalk it up to the cost of doing business but it’s hard for me to turn a blind eye when it’s so many. Any suggestions? I do have a checkout list. Although it probably could be more detailed with my expectations. I do currently charge a cleaning fee. The fee I charge goes directly to the cleaning crew and in this case I was charged an extra $25.  I’ve thought about just adding the cost to my rate and not including it as an extra so that maybe people are more apt to clean up after themselves. 

[Linda108]

Hello, @Melissa1335 .  You have already had great positive experience with your first 11 guests and the reviews reflect that.  While it is not "normal" for guests to be disrespectful of your space or even to take items with them, it is not okay.  If you wish to claim damages and theft you need to be aware of the process as there are time limits and you are required to communicate your claim to the guest first.  Therefore the issue become one of whether you wish to engage in the claim process.  Many hosts would not, but definitely would reflect the problems in the review.  Becareful of accusing the guest of theft without proof positive however.  Keep the review neutral in that the amount of cleaning required caused an increase in the cost.  No need to go into detail.  

[Mark116]

@Melissa1335  It doesn't sound like anything was permanently damaged, just extra cleaning, so I would probably not make a claim.  Some people, especially those with children, are just much more messy than others.

FYI you can use hydrogen peroxide/cold water to get blood stains out. 

If you are 100% sure they took the Uno game/blanket you could send them a message along the lines of 'Hi, we seem to be missing XX, and thought you may have inadvertently packed these items, let us know and we will send you a request for XX to cover the cost" and see what the response is.  However, this will alert them, if they are bad people that you know they stole the items and might cause a negative review in retaliation.  

Whatever you do, I would for sure give these guests a bad review on day 14, don't accuse them of stealing, but you can say that the place required a lot of additional cleaning. 

[Sarah977]

@Melissa1335  There's debate about whether charging a separate cleaning fee gives guests the impression that it's okay to leave a mess behind them. I think the bottom line is that some guests are the kind of people who would never leave a disaster behind, even if they stay at a hotel, and others who will leave a mess no matter what. It's not even so much a matter of disrespect, in a lot of cases, with the messy, dirty ones- they probably live in the sort of mess in their own homes as well.

 I have read posts here from guests who say clueless things like "I washed my dishes and took out the garbage- why am I being charged a cleaning fee when all the host has to do is remake the bed with clean linen?"  Most guests have no idea what goes into cleaning an Airbnb between bookings.

These certainly don't sound like respectful guests, but it doesn't sound like a horror scenario. I agree with the other advice here- question them neutrally about the missing items, make sure to mention the excess cleaning required in the review.

What you might want to do is to leave the cleaning fee in place (since you pay a cleaner) and add a few bucks to your nightly price, which you then put in a separate account, or at least in a separate column in your accounting books, so that when you experience some extra cleaning costs or replacement of small things that may go missing or get broken, you can pay for them out of that fund, rather than go through a claims procedure (which you may or may not be able to collect on, but will eat up your time). 

Of course if there is a lot of damage, a truly disgusting mess, expensive things broken or missing, you should charge the guest for that.

And do make sure to be quite clear and detailed about what you expect done before check-out. "Leave the kitchen clean" can be open to interpretation.