Dealing with property that gets taken accidentally

[Amy380]

Hello, I just need advice on when and if to charge for items that guests take from a rental.  I have a garage that guests can use, and on three occasions the guests have accidentally taken the garage door opener. Although they say they will get it back to me, it has never happened, and I end up having to get a new opener recoded which costs $40 if I do it myself and $100 if I have to send my maintenance man. I provide checkout instructions to leave it. Is it reasonable to add to my house rules that the guest will be charged a replacement fee or is it better to just not provide one.  Not only is it a hassle and a financial hit, it is an inconvenience and safety issue for the next guest. I guess the bigger question is - at what point does a damaged or taken item go from the normal cost of doing business to a need to be reimbursed. I appreciate any input.

[Kimberly419]

Not a comment on how to charge guests, but an idea for preventing the problem.  Our big worry is that guests forget to return our keys to the lockbox in the condo stairwell (we live 3 hours away) -- so we ask guests to text us a picture of the keys IN THE LOCKBOX as part of their check-out procedure. So far every guest has done it. I would do the same with a garage door opener. Create a special place for it and make sure it ends up back there at the end of every stay. 

Good luck!

[Sarah977]

@Amy380  If a guest accidentally makes off with something and then doesn't bother to return it and it's pricey, like what you're dealing with, I would charge them and of course mention it in the listing info and re-iterate when they arrive. 

Do your guests really need to use the garage? Can't they just park in the driveway? If it's important that they have access to it, I'd put a big sign on the garage door that they look straight at when leaving and closing the door-"Remember to leave the garage door remote!"

Also, I don't know if you can do this, but my daughter has a garage door that opens with a keypad just outside the door. That would totally solve your problem.

[Kelly149]

@Amy380   prevention better than cure...

1. Keypad

2. Giant obnoxious fob attached to the clicker

3. Lots & lots of clear reminders “$150 charge for not leaving the clicker”, signs, etc

and yes, charge them if they take it!

[Kaylee18]

@Amy380  I'd personally just take away garage access if it's becoming a problem. 🙂 

[Amy380]

Thank you for great suggestions. I actually went and look at a keypad for the garage. I already have one for the door so makes sense. Unfortunately we live in a city with the #1 rate of auto theft in the nation so having a garage attracts renters and is a necessity. Thanks again and I welcome any further discussion on this topic.