Filthy guest - stolen towels/coat hangers

[Cecilia155]

Hi Y'all

I've had a guest stay with me for over 81 days - this was the first time I've ever had someone stay with me for so long - a HUGE learning curve.

The guest just checked out yesterday.  I advised the guest I'm happy for him to stay all day and wait until I finish work to give me the keys and anything else.

I receive a text to advise he has left and and where the keys were located.

I arrive home to find the guest has taken towels and coat hangers.  I then proceed to strip the bed to find stains everywhere.  (This guest wouldn't allow me to change his bed sheets every week)  He waited 6 weeks until it was okay.  - That's another story for another day!  The stains won't come out.  They've actually gone through the mattress protector!

Recently he damaged towels/bath mat & hand towel and I requested to be reimbursed - he advised buy the towels show me the receipt and I will pay.  I provided a receipt for the towels and he only gave me half.

I know there is the resolution centre, however, I actually don't want to have anything to do with guest any more - he has moved to a home about 20 mins away.

Should I just see this as a blessing that he has gone now and count my losses or pursue this further?  Are there any other ways of obtaining payment?

Kindly advise - appreciate feedback.

Cecilia

[Ali40]

If you want to be paid, send a request through the resolution center. If you don't want to deal with the guest anymore, the take the hit and buy new towels and bed linens and chalk it up to a learning experience. I only allow guests to stay a maximum of 2 weeks. I prefer even shorter stays. 

[Cecilia155]

Hi Ali

Yes, I've actually, just reduced my stays to now 2 days.

I'm concerned that if I raise the issue through the resolution centre, he may make contact with me via the phone, as he has my number now.

[Linda108]

Using the Resolution Center is the process available to you on this platform, @Cecilia155.  To receive reimbursement for damage and loss, unless the guest agrees, you would have to be able to prove to a third party that the guest was the sole cause of the damage.  Can you do that?  

If you just want to get on with your life and cut your losses, then you could examine this experience to see if there is anything you would do differently in vetting a guest and developing house rules.  I see  from your postings that you have been dealing with this problematic guest almost since he arrived.  I also see that you plan to not accept long term guests.  To have a stranger live in your house and share your bathroom for over a month, is a scary proposition.   Short term is safer, but requires a different mind set.

I hope you will take advantage of the review process to give a thumbs down review to this person.  The host community appreciates your honesty.  I wonder what reviews your problem guest had to make you feel safe to have him long term.

Anyway, we all learn from our guests and I hope you feel supported by the host community.  Take care and good luck for the future!

[Cecilia155]

Hi Linda

Thanks for your feedback.

The guy wasn't familiar with Airbnb, he was a nurse on a long term contract and needed somewhere to stay.  As stated previously in the beginning it was great, but as time wore on, things started to wear a bit thin.

I am concerned about his feedback, I have made contact with Airbnb first to advise of this guest and they have advised they will be escalating the matter further.

Yes I do feel the support of the community and many thanks to you all for your feedback.

Cecilia

[Mandi-S-Just-Business-Ro0]

Hi Cecilia,

I am dealing with a similar situation at this end.

A 3 month guest with no previous experience on Airbnb just left. I have hardly any hangers left, and a container I lent him to store food has gone.

How do I know? Because I drove for 3 hours yesterday taking him to another city so he could relocate. As I helped offload I noticed these things. I didn't say anything at time time - I did not want to cause a scene in front of his friend - but today I sent him an email.  He insists that the hangers I dropped off are his, and he will deliver the container at some point in the near future. I have to take him at his word. And I apologized.

I do long terms. There is no algorythm to determine who will or will not work out, just your own confidence in your abilities (and eventually, your ratings history).  Instead, there is a gut feel that things are or are not working out. You can look back in hindsight, but even a guest with multiple positive reviews is a risk. All you can really do is to control your own behaviour, do your best, and what you could do better next time.

Who cares about hangers and a tub? If I examine my own behaviour, part of it came from the frustration of constantly providing over and above service that was taken for granted. It's a $21 dollar a night room; I made a fair chunk of money on it; that's my reward. And it's a 3 star review waiting to happen.  I can always find ways to generate 5 stars with short terms to offset his review.

And that's the real beauty of long terms. They're just one review, and a lot more cash in the bank. 

[Cecilia155]

Hi Mandi

I was told once from a very good friend of mine, trust your gut feelings, if it doesn't feel right, it never really is.  I shouldn't have taken him in from the beginning..  However, he was struggling to find somewhere to stay as it is quite difficult in Boston for a male to find shared accomodation.  (I've also just heard after he has moved out, he still can't find anywhere to live).

He admitted to taking the items, I have a text message to prove it, then I raised the issue with the resolution centre, he declined to make payment.

I think the biggest learning curve for me was, you need to put a stop to it immediately and if it continues then get Airbnb to relocate him.  I now only do short term.  I've had MANY people request long term, and I've just simply said no.  If it costs you your piece of mind, it's too expensive!

BTW you won't be getting that container back!  A 6 hour round trip to drop off a food container.....forget it.

Focus on your future guests now and make it as pleasant for them as possible.

[Cathy172]

@Cecilia155 From my perspective this is pretty minor stuff. Forget about it and move on.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

Ah @Cecilia155 he stained sheets, took hangers and towels but stayed 80 days. Some of my guests manage to do that after 2-3 days stay, what can I tell you...

Make 1 x weekly cleaning mandatory so you can check your property. Our max stay is 14 days 

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Cecilia155

I host a private bedroom+bath in my home and mostly get long-term guests (exchange students) who stay with me for about 4 months. One thing I do is, take pictures of the room the morning of check-in. It will show the clothes hangers and cushions and basic state of the room. I also state that I will enter the guest room regularly to change sheets (every 2~3 weeks, or as needed), vaccum floor and under the bed, and open/close windows as needed. This way, I can keep an eye on the state of the room/bathroom regularly and there are no surprises later. This is non-negotiable, and I mention this several times in my listing description. My guests are responsible for cleaning up after themselves but also seem to appreciate that I vaccum their room regularly. Henry and I also "air" or shake out the bed and blankets, sometimes we use a sticky roller to pick up hairs and particles between sheet changes, and we believe it's just as important as changing your sheets.

In terms of payment, you might be able to get Airbnb to compensate you if the guest refuses and Airbnb is not able to MAKE the guest pay, but like other hosts have mentioned, consider this a lesson learned and focus on things you can do and implement to "prevent" these types of things from happening. Good luck~

[Cecilia155]

@Jessica-and-Henry0

Thanks for the feedback - love it.

I should've trusted my gut feeling about the guest prior to accepting him and actually asked him to leave after leaving my front door unlocked on more than one occasion.

Regarding compensation - he admitted to taking the items in a text message - which I have kept.  I sent a detailed report and photos to Airbnb and they did compensate me for those items - even though I didn't get the money from him.  I have been advised that Airbnb do persue the money from the guest - however haven't heard anything more from that.  I think the most disappointing thing for me, is the trust issue - you give guests access to your home and they disrepect it by taking from you and being dishonest to Airbnb in the process.

I now only do short term stays - it's a different mindset, but I enjoy it more.  I have been asked on MANY occasions to do long term - however am reluctant to do so.  As the saying goes....."If it costs you your peace of mind - it's too expensive"

Many thanks once again for the feedback -