And then it was my turn... (guest caused damage to my house - no help from Airbnb)

[Trude0]

I guess the day had to come...

After almost 2 years of hosting, 18 months as a Superhost, around 50 hosted stays, and a perfect average rating of 5, I finally needed to make my first claim through Airbnb for damages caused by a guest.

(Here I should mention that I have previously refrained from making claims about the guest that broke my dishwasher, the guest that broke my TV stand, and the one who broke my sewage pump by flushing diapers in the toilet.) 

In short:

A guest (from Hong Kong) has caused damage to my house by somehow creating such high humidity in the inside air, that large amounts of condensation seems to have gathered on the floor-to-ceiling windows. This condensation has then apparently been allowed to run down to the floor and not mopped up, causing the skirting boards/baseboards/mopboards under ALL windows to swell up, crack and start developing mould. In just one week.

I had close contact with them during the week, but not once have they mentioned any issues. I should probably have sensed something was wrong when they asked for more kitchen paper and paper napkins after only 17 hours in the house...

This is a modern house with good ventilation, fans (kitchen + bathroom), and air conditioner etc - and it normally has a very good inside climate.

And the instructions on importance of and how to handle the fans, the air conditioner, open windows now and then, have been given both in the house manual, vocally during check-in, vocally when they accidentally set off the fire alarm by boiling water WITHOUT using the kitchen fan, and in an Airbnb message.

So I am at a loss at how they succeeded at this damage. I've had guests from all over the world before, and there have been no issues with the inside climate. The house looked brand new before this family checked out.

So I made a detailed claim yesterday (Sunday, day after check-out), including lots of pictures. I had not yet had the chance to have a person here to assess the extent of the damage and give an indication on the cost to fix it (as it was the weekend), so I just put an arbitrary amount in the claim to be able to post it, and then wrote that I would come back with an accurate amount a.s.a.p.

And I got the same treatment that so many have before me:

- Airbnb are delighted to help me

- They commend me for hosting with the highest standards

- They truly appreciate my dedication, and I am a valuable member

- I should rest assured this will be taken care of by a specialist 

- They say I fully documented the damage done by this guest so there should be no problem (GREAT!) 

- They will make sure that I and my guest will be represented fairly

I make the claim, the guest denies the claim, but the good news (...) is that I may be eligible for compensation from Airbnb. 

So I need to involve Airbnb, and I will get a case manager - so I do.

It takes this case manager (the "specialist") just an hour or so to carefully review the case, conclude that they are "unable to process my request". 

Why?

"Our Host Guarantee Terms and Conditions provide payment for direct physical loss or physical damage to an accommodation caused by a responsible guest subject to certain terms, conditions, and exclusions. After careful review of the information submitted, we’ve concluded that the reported damages are consistent with ordinary wear and tear and unfortunately excluded under the terms of our Host Guarantee. Mold is not covered as per term of service."

I replied and asked them to explain 2 things:

- How can the damages caused be considered "ordinary wear and tear" - when no such damages have been caused by any of the other 50 hosted stays?

- How is completely damaged (swelled-up, cracked, miscoloured and mouldy) boards "ordinary wear and tear"?

I also reminded them that the mould is not the only issue, all boards have swelled up from direct exposure to water, and some have cracked. Is this kind of damage also "not covered as per term of service"? Then what is? 

And I asked for information on how I could escalate the case to a higher level.

The response?

45 minutes later, I got the exact same text back again "ordinary wear and tear - mould is not covered", with no reply to any of my questions. 

But with the not so friendly addition of:

"After once again, reviewing the case details, we consider this decision final and this appeal closed. We would like to mention that this will be our final engagement with regards to your appeal. Please note, that any further communication in respect of this case will not change the outcome of our final decision on this matter, from which I now respectfully disengage.
Gonzalo"

I guess I'm not surprised.

Just disgusted. 

This is how how they value their hosts, who go above and beyond for the guests.

I am so sad about this, I don't know if I feel it is worth it anymore.

Does anyone know if it is in fact possible to appeal a decision like this?

Or does this Gonzalo have full authority to decide that the guest did nothing wrong, and I get to pay the for the damages?

Any advice at all - or shall I just give up?

[Anonymous]

@Trude0  That sounds like a nightmare experience! I don't know how much of a chance you have on appeal, but before making a claim under the Host Guarantee, you have to go through that policy with a fine-toothed comb and eliminate any items that will trigger one of the Limitations & Exclusions (sec. III). See article 8: 

any losses, damages, claims, costs, expenses or other sums directly or indirectly arising out of or relating to mold, mildew, fungus, spores, virus, bacterium, or other microorganism of any type, nature, or description, including but not limited to any substance whose presence poses an actual or potential threat to human health. This exclusion applies even if there is (i) any physical loss or damage to Covered Property; (ii) any peril or cause covered hereunder, whether or not contributing concurrently or in any sequence; (iii) any loss of use, occupancy, or functionality; or (iv) any action required, including but not limited to, repair, replacement, removal, cleanup, abatement, disposal, relocation, or steps taken to address medical or legal concerns.

Unfortunately, Airbnb's rejection appears to be valid in this case. But if your STR insurance plan requires that you first attempt a claim with Airbnb, I hope the closure of your case will help you advance a personal insurance claim.

Side note:  were you able to work out what the guest was doing that resulted in this damage?  It sounds almost like your guest tried to turn your cottage into a 24-hour sauna, but if that were the case I'd expect an astronomical reading on your utilities and severe damage to the furniture. It's just altogether bizarre.

[Trude0]

@Anonymous:

Thanks for the tip about the "fine-toothed comb". I should probably have thought of that. I just assumed that if I was honest and described the damages, then surely they must be covered... 

I see now that costs for damages related to mold, are not covered. 

But the main problem isn't the mold (that could probably quite easily be removed).

The main issue is that the boards appear to have been soaked with water, making them swell up, crack and be miscoloured (see photos below). That is what makes it neccessary to replace the boards, not the mold, so it feels very unfair that the whole claim should be thrown out because there ALSO is mold, on top of the other damages.

No, I don't know yet what the guests did, and I have not been able to get someone here yet to have a look at the damage. Right now I am hoping the wet has not affected the floor, the insulation etc...

This is what Airbnb calls ”normal wear and tear” - to be expected from a 1 week stay: 

[Sarah977]

@Trude0  I have to admit that your post had me laughing as to how you so truly captured the placating standard responses as to how much we hosts mean to Airbnb.

But I know it's not a laughing matter and sorry you're having to deal with it.

The only thing I can think of that could have caused this is that there has been discussion on this forum before re some Asian guests consisently flooding the bathroom. The reason for this is that in many Asian countries bathrooms are "wet rooms"- it's all concrete and tile construction, the subfloors are also concrete, so there is no shower curtain (therefore these guests don't understand how to use one)  and the whole bathroom can be awash in water with no damage caused. Those bathrooms have a drain in the floor.

So maybe this is what happened- the bathroom was constantly wet throughout their stay, they didn't use the extractor fans, and created a high humidity situation.

Good luck with this. I hope you can manage to get beyond the " This is our final decision" wall.

[Anonymous]

@Trude0   Yikes, that looks like more than just a residual humidity issue to me, but @Sarah977 has much more expertise in carpentry than I do, so I'd defer to her suggestions here.

Your photos definitely indicate some serious problems, but I hope you also have some recent "before" pictures to contrast them with. In the absence of a proven cause of the damage, it's an uphill battle trying to hold a single person or incident accountable for an issue that could plausibly be attributed to climate or structural flaws. This is where I hope that you have a good home insurance to back you up, because the Host Guarantee (as you've learned the hard way) is really more of a marketing scheme than an actual insurance.

[Sarah977]

@Anonymous  Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I loathe carpentry 🙂 I hate even having to saw a board. But I did have an old wooden house in Canada and oddly enough, two longish term relationships with carpenters.

If the guests were only there for a night, flooding the bathroom floor would likely not cause an issue, but it sounds like they were there for at least a week, so daily flooding could easily soak down into the wood subfloor and creep throughout, especially since they failed to turn on any of the extractor fans.

A friend of mine couldn't figure out why the parquet floor in her dining room was delaminating, then caught her 5 year old using the hose in the greenhouse/sunroom, attached to the dining room, to spray the floor just for fun.

[Emiel1]

@Trude0 

I wonder what the level of competence is at Airbnb to review such damages. Commercial insurance companies have specialists for this, but I think at Airbnb damages are reviewed by people not specifically educated for this. It makes the so called Hosts Guarantee often being a disapointing experience.

added:

Looking at your pictures just as a  "handyman" (not as a specialist) i see damage more as a result of flooding/leakage by water then of a high humidity.

The mould is a side effect, but not the main damage. Only the guest can answer the question what really happened.

Repaircosts maybe are limited by just replacing the elements exposed to water, but be prepared for damage not visible  (like underneath the floor...)

[Trude0]

@Sarah977: 

I’m happy to have made you laugh! 😄 But you’re right, it is certainly not a fun situation.

Yes, they were there for a full week, hardly left the house, and it seems they ran the washing machine, dishwasher and shower ALL the time. I know this because sewage from the guest house is led into the main house basement and there is a pump inside the main house, that I can hear.  That pump has never been as busy as it was the week these guests were here...

[Sarah977]

@Trude0  Everyone wants clean guests, but there's a limit as to how much washing and showering one needs to do to be clean 🙂

A friend who has a few rental houses told me she's in need of a new cleaner because the one she has is constantly firing up the washing machine to wash 2 dishtowels.

[Trude0]

@Emiel1 :

Thanks for the input! 
The guest has given a statement to Airbnb (is not answering me), and has been very evasive in his comments regarding windows/condensation, so I actually don’t know what happened.

The reason for my theory about condensation causing the damage, is this:

- Only the boards under windows/glass door are damaged - and all of these are damaged. All other mopboards are fine, as new. No signs of issues anywhere else. If there had been flooding, then the other boards would probably be damaged, too?

- There is also one window in the upstairs sleeping loft, and there is the same issue under this window. Any flooding downstairs could not cause issues upstairs.

- In the instruction manual for the house, it is explained that should there be condensation on the inside of the window panes, this would be a sign of too high humidity in the air. If it is hot inside and cold outside (this is Sweden, in the winter...), humidity will gather on the glass, where hot air meets cold glass. Such condensation would be an indication that something is not right, and you should handle it. 

- The guests were using water constantly during their stay (washing machine, dishwasher, shower...), and declined the offer to dry clothes in the drier in the main house. If they were doing a lot of laundry, and hanging it all to dry in a tiny house (25 m2 = 269 m2), and not airing out/using the air conditioner, I’m guessing there may have been quite a lot of condensation running down those floor to ceiling windows...

- Even if they claim to have been running the air conditioner all day, only turning it off at night, I know this is not true - I passed by the outside unit many times during the week (it is right next to our garage). I never heard it running. 

Hopefully I will get someone in this week, that can assess the damage. But Airbnb refuse to comment, other than saying this is ”normal wear and tear”, ”mold is not covered”, they consider the case closed, and that nothing I might add will change this. 

[Ute42]

.

@Trude0 

Your english is excellent.

[Michael504]

@Trude0

I am sorry you are experiencing these problems due to irresponsible guest behaviour.

I had exactly the same problem, and twice now. It is exaclty as you described - moisture accumulating due to lack of letting in fresh air and condensing on the inside of windows. Nothing to do with structural issues.

The condensation water runs down the windows and gradually destroys the baseboards. Plus there is usually mould on the window seals and often in upper corners of walls. It happened to me two years ago, the guests had to pay because the booking was not on Airbnb so I had a deposit. Now, my most recent guest did the same although in my house rules I ask all guests to open the windows at least twice per day for at least 10 minutes. Explained it again to the guest, obviously he just did not care. I even bought smart humidy sensors just for his stay and still had to remind him several times when I received an alert on my smart phone that humidity was too high. Only because I noticed that this guest was generally behaving rather strange- he put the heat at maximum day and night (28 degrees Celcius),  I managed to prevent even further damage by going to the flat and inspecting the walls and baseboards (all in his presence).

Now comes the problem: Will Airbnb reimburse me? Probably not due to their exclusion of mould and a ridiculous interpretation of "wear and tear". So what can I do? I can try to sue the guest who is from another country. Does this make sense? Not at all because close to impossible to get hold of him.

So, whose fault is it?

1. A) The guest's since he did not follow house rules, extra advice and instead claims that my flat has a problem. It is a flat in a modernized and  officially certified energy-efficient building with 35 other flats. None of the other owners have had this problem because they apply common sense and let in fresh air. By the way: How can somebody be comfortable staying in a flat with the windows closed all the time and with 28 degrees Celcius?

1. B) Airbnb's since they do not allow us to hold a real deposit.

Conclusion: I will stop renting out long term on Airbnb to prevent this happen again in the future. Less money for Airbnb, less guests who can rent long-term at a heavily reduced price.

Very sad.

Best wishes,

Michael

[Trude0]

So sad to read your story - and that you had this issue twice, and in spite of all the measures...

And the saddest thing, is that you're probably right, Airbnb will probably not reimburse you, either. 

[Sarah977]

@Michael504 @Trude0  If a place is prone to humidity issues if guests don't use the ventilation fans or open windows, it would make sense to me to put a dehumidifier in the unit. They aren't expensive and would be a way of idiot-proofing this problem.

It's one of the problems with newer places that are really well-insulated, with well-sealed doors and double-pane windows, etc. Older places that aren't so well insulated, where windows may be single-pane or let a little draft in are more expensive to heat and cool, but don't have the excess humidity build-up.

[Trude0]

@Sarah977 : That's just the thing, my place is NOT prone to humidity issues! I've hosted for 2 years, 50 guests from all over the world, never any issues with humidity - until now.