Raising Electricity Prices - are we raising AirBnB prices or learning how to save electricity?

[Valentina351]

Dear friends,

We do not want to raise prices this year, but electricity prices have been raised significantly in our region.

Tell me, is it correct to ask guests to save electricity or can this cause a negative reaction to such a request?

Share your experience and how do you solve this issue?

Best wishes,
Valentina

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Valentina351 we have locked our thermostats to limit the temperature people can set the heating to. No adverse reviews or comments so far.

[Sudsrung0]

@Valentina351 

It happened to us here in Phuket last year a huge increase, 

What I did was the biggest bill I divided into 30 days and increased my rates to cover it and for the first time I added a cleaning fee, so far nobody has said anything and we are fully booked till march.

I have made a page I leave in the apartment asking people to try and save electric and the environment as we live on an island, 

Guest to close the windows and doors when they have the A/C on, also if they go out for the day not to leave it running, so far so good.

Charging extra for electric doesn't go down to well we know from experience we used to do it in our villas some years ago and we were getting bad reviews because of it, We didn't hide it when the guest arrive they sign our contract and we read the meter and make a note of it on the contract and it was mentioned 3 times in the listing profile,

The guest who did listen you watch them turn everything off we even had guest turn the pool off, 

[Fred13]

After some trial and errors, we started charging up front for the 'likely to happen' (waste resources, breaking things, etc) and now everyone is a happy camper and so are we since we are no longer in the nickel and dime business.

[Deidre1]

I think it's absolutely ok to ask your guests to be mindful of utilities and to TURN OFF lights, heat/air, and water when not in use. My guests don't always do it, but I have included the request in my house rules.

I also recently changed out all my thermostats and outdoor lights to Nest/Google Home/Wyze products so that I can schedule lower use when my units are not occupied.

Best wishes to you in Spain. We Americans feel for you in Europe with the crazy energy costs this year. Let's look at it as an opportunity world-wide to get a little smarter about energy consumption.

[Elaine701]

We are entirely solar powered, so we're not subject to increasing electricity rates, but we've noticed a trend toward higher consumption by guests. 

Our system keeps logs of everything including consumption, and what we're seeing is that guests seem less conscientious about leaving lights on all day and night, using major appliances more frequently (e.g., running dishwasher 3 times per day with 2 plates and some silverware in it)...

...and more consequential, charging electric vehicles all night, which causes the generators to run, which uses a lot of expensive petrol. 

We've written that the house is not suitable for charging electric vehicles in the property description, but of course, few ever read that. And of course there's little you can do about it when they ignore it.

Adding a per incident surcharge is only inviting conflict, since it's unlikely that guests would read or pay any attention to it, and so it becomes an "after the fact" unexpected charge. We all know the fury and outrage that comes from that. I want happy guests, not angry ones. 

We'll just have to find some way to either support it (e.g., investing another 20+k in more solar and batteries) ...

... or find a way to diplomatically make it clearer that it's not allowed and violations will be enforced ...

...which I hate to do because we prefer to accommodate guest needs, rather than limit their ability to enjoy their stay. And electric vehicles are becoming more and more common. 

And just raising rates across the board would be unfair to those who don't do that, and would likely impact bookings to some extent. 

It's usually just an innocent assumption that it's "free", since we are solar powered. But I can assure you, solar power is not "free". Yet most people can be forgiven for not knowing that. 

[Sudsrung0]

@Elaine701 

Funny how people think Solar power is Free,

We have looked into it here in Phuket, wow it's so expensive to install as most of it is imported, You think any government with half a brain would allow zero import duty, 

I know my husband has looked into solar pumps for the pools but they are 3x the price.

[Elaine701]

@Sudsrung0 

We actually do have zero or low import duties on renewable energy products, so that's helpful, but it's still a big investment. It's not cheap or free. 

But we also have a lot of bureaucracy when connected to the grid (inspections, standing charges, etc) , and since we're an island, there's one monopolistic electric company which finds any means to circumvent anti-monopolistic laws, so to be independent of all that is a major upside. 

[Huma0]

@Elaine701 

Wow. Yeah, solar power is definitely not free. It's a massive investment that takes years and years to recoup.

It's interesting though that you report that (apart from the charging of eclectic vehicles, which I think is becoming or going to become an issue for many hosts), guests are becoming LESS energy efficient, rather than the other way around, in the middle of a global energy crisis.

Seems some people just like to spend other people's money. Or, rather, if they are paying to stay somewhere, they want to max the value out of it, even if that means turning on the heat and opening the windows.

It does make me despair for the future of man(woman)kind...

[Elaine701]

@Huma0 

I sense it's because a "vacation" is supposed to be a respite from the restrictions one has in real life. 

I don't care. I'm on holiday 😎 I'm not obliged to worry about that stuff. 

And you know, there's some truth in that. This is actually what we're selling them. So I believe that it's my responsibility as the seller to do my best to deliver that experience. Underpromise, overdeliver. 

What I can't appreciate are those who demand a worry free luxury holiday on a shoestring budget. If you want it, be prepared to pay for it. Or go elsewhere. 

[Huma0]

@Elaine701 

All good points, and I totally get that people don't want to worry about that stuff when they are on holiday. I travel a fair bit for work and am lucky in enough to stay in mostly 5* star hotels. I noticed that, usually, when you check in, they have every light in the room and bathroom and the TV left on for you and the air con blasting. I often arrive in the evening, sometimes very late, so who knows how long all of that has been running unnecessarily.

Personally, this drives me crazy and the first thing I do is switch off whatever is unnecessary, but I guess they do it because most guests like it.

The thing is, my guests are very rarely holidaymakers. Most of them are either working or studying here and need a temporary place to live, plus it's my home. Yet, most of them are still wasteful with energy and water. And I am certainly not selling luxury. While they are nicely decorated and the furnishings are not 'budget', it's still just someone's house and VERY affordable compared to hotels here.

So, I can only conclude that those people behave the same way in their own homes (many of them are young and I suspect have never had to pay their own bills) or they just don't care. It's not their money they are wasting.

I would have hoped though that these (mostly) young people would be more environmentally conscious. Most however don't even seem aware that there's an energy crisis. If I mention it, I just get blank stares. They have no idea what I'm talking about.

[Debra300]

@Huma0,

I believe people conserve in the same manner whether at home or away.  We let our friend stay in our Atlanta home for almost 2 years while she regrouped from a divorce before we decided to put it on Airbnb.  She was responsible for the paying the utility bills, but she was very wasteful.  She'd let the water continuously run while hand washing the dishes, or washed less than full loads in the dishwasher and washing machine, and would leave the heater or air conditioner running while she traveled.  Which was frequent, because she worked for an airline.

I met her at her hotel suite that she was sharing with some friends during one of her visits to St. Lucia.  They had all of the lights on, TV running, AC blasting and kept the balcony door open while they constantly went in and out.  Yet they asked for a discount when they wanted to stay at our guesthouse on a subsequent visit to the island.

[Huma0]

@Debra300 

Yes, I certainly know people like that. It baffles me though when people are paying their own bills why that would not be enough incentive to be less wasteful. And I am not just talking about rich people.

However, I have found that, in general, when I rented rooms to lodgers and we all split the bills equally between us, most people made an effort, whereas when the bills were included, they didn't. Housemates would also get annoyed when one person in the house was wasting energy because it affected us all, and that was well before these soaring energy prices. There was always the odd one here and there who was careless regardless. 

I think you are right overall and it's more to do with how people are brought up, but I have found when people are not paying the bills, they are even worse.

[Mariann4]

Hello @Valentina351 

In Norway private homes gets subsidised pricing on electricity at the moment. This is not the case for cabins. And we have a huge amount of cabins being rented. Owners have now begun to include a limited amount of kWh in the price. For example: the price is included 50 kWh pr day. The rest is to be paid with x Norwegian kroner pr kWh. Same with charging electric cars (the last 6 months more than 90% of EVERY new car registered in Norway is electric and people EXPECT to be able to plug it in). This is possible due to smart meters where a host can tap in remotely on the meter and read the usage by the minute. The meter is read before and after a stay. And the charger stations can be pre-programmed with a price pr kWh.

Many host report that this has been a good choice. Guests understand the issue. The limitations make them act more considerate. Few people choose to go bananas with the usage and pay extra. The limit is not small. Normal living is more than possible. But you will get in trouble if you move in to the shower or open windows when turning up the heat.

This practice has now started to move into the renting of private homes. Although the price is subidised, it's still many times higher than normal here.