How to collect additional cost for cleaning and time spend when a guest breaks the house rules

[Lorena249]

How do you handle guest that break the house rules and cause additional work and time spend bringing the place back to standards?

I submitted a charge for additional cleaning and his response was: aren't you supposed to clean and wash everything after a guest leaves the property?

[Anonymous]

@Lorena249 Your guest has 72 hours to either accept or refuse the charge before the case is escalated to an agent. From then, it can take weeks before the issue is resolved.

If there was no physical damage, you're unlikely to get any compensation - or a small token amount at best. But if your House Rules were very clear about what cleaning duties were required of guests, you might have a better chance. 

[Lorena249]

Thank you for your feedback. I am working on editing my house rules, this is a lesson learned.

[Sarah977]

@Lorena249  Many guests have a skewed idea of what cleaning entails. This is a problem sometimes for hosts who charge a cleaning fee, as some guests think that means they can just leave a slovenly mess behind them. They have no concept that even if they wash their dishes, wipe the counters and put all the garbage in the bin, that the host will still end up putting at least an hour or several, depending on the size of the place, into heavy duty cleaning between guests.

And even if you don't charge a cleaning fee, some guests will leave it quite clean and tidy, and some like a pigsty.

I think it's important to clearly state what is expected from a guest before they check-out. "Clean and tidy" is open to interpretation. "Please ensure that your dirty dishes are washed, all garbage collected and placed in the bin, counters and stovetop wiped down, and floor swept. Thanks for your cooperation." No leeway for interpretation.

I've found that some guests leave it immaculate, some fairly messy. It seems to balance out, so I don't get fussed about it. Even if the bathroom counter looks clean, I'm still going to wipe it down and sterilize it, so if there's soap and toothpaste slimed all over it, it really doesn't matter to me.

If it's really bad and disgusting, some hosts will charge for extra cleaning time, but as Andrew said, it might not be worth the hassle unless they also caused damage.

If a guest sent me a message like that, I'd probably write back"Yes, I certainly do clean and wash everything between guests. But guests are expected to be respectful and clean up their own personal messes."