Getting fees after reservation completed

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Kristyn22
Level 2
Richmond, TX

Getting fees after reservation completed

So my guest broke all my house rules. Threw an underage party with booze and weed (have pics). They smoked in the house and I clearly have stated there would be a $500 fee if we discovered that (could smell it and found some of the weed). They also left barf in several places. And broke several things inside & outside the home without telling us (like we asked). Is it just enough to ask for this fee plus the security deposit in one go under the resolution center or do I need to separate them? I have pics of everything bc my cleaning gals are awesome. 

1 Best Answer
Emiel1
Level 10
Leeuwarden, The Netherlands

@Kristyn22 

 

Claiming damage on the security deposit can be done like this:

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/264/what-do-i-do-if-my-guest-breaks-something-in-my-place

 

The non-smoking fee can not be considered as a damage claim,  if charging directly to the guest fails, Airbnb’s Host Guarantee will most likely not support it (as being non-physical damage)

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/352/what-happens-if-a-host-wants-to-collect-on-their-security-de....

 

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15 Replies 15
Emiel1
Level 10
Leeuwarden, The Netherlands

@Kristyn22 

 

Claiming damage on the security deposit can be done like this:

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/264/what-do-i-do-if-my-guest-breaks-something-in-my-place

 

The non-smoking fee can not be considered as a damage claim,  if charging directly to the guest fails, Airbnb’s Host Guarantee will most likely not support it (as being non-physical damage)

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/352/what-happens-if-a-host-wants-to-collect-on-their-security-de....

 

@Kristyn22  Notice the first sentence in the link @Emiel1 shared above:  "Host-required security deposits are different from other security deposits in that no authorization hold is placed. "  English Translation:  there is no security deposit for you to claim on.

 

You may, of course, use the Resolutions feature to request that your guest pay the $500 fine that your listing specified, but if they decline to do so, you're pretty much out of luck. In most cases, Airbnb does not enforce penalty fines on behalf of hosts, even if they are embedded in the House Rules. It's frustrating, and I don't agree with it as a business practice, but this is what we have to work with. A damage claim is likeliest to be effective if it is limited to physical damage that can be backed up with receipts (ideally for both the original item and the replacement). Vomit, smoke, and underage drinking do not have any cash value from an adjuster's perspective, but if you had to enlist specialized cleaning as a result of the guests' actions you can try adding the invoice for that to your claim.

Kristyn22
Level 2
Richmond, TX

Thanks everyone. It’s hard bc I’m out of the country dealing with this second hand but I got a professional cleaning out the smell out crew in there and after the cleaning crew was there and my air purifiers (all ready had) running he said it really just needed a little febreeze action on cloth materials in the rooms they smoked in and I would be good. So yay! I will attempt to collect the $100 security deposit. And am debating about reporting their underage drinking and smoking to the police....thoughts on that????

@Kristyn22 What would you hope to accomplish by reporting these kids to the police?

Just not sure if I’m liable or not. Especially since I have evidence that the boys drive home under the influence. I would rather wash my hands if this whole mess. Sucks this was my very first time hosting and they did quite a number on my personal home 😞

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

The time to call the police was when the kids were trashing your home. You can't be a off-site host without having someone on hand close by, a co-host, not a cleaner, to keep things under control and deal with these sorts of scenes.

 

What do you think the police would do now? Go to their homes and tell them not to drink and smoke? I doubt you even know any of their names.

@Kristyn22

I have two of the moms names and camera footage from the front door. Unfortunately my co-host is an hour away and they did this on the last night of their reservation. As long as I’m not liable I don’t really care at this point. I’ll just chalk it up to live &

learn. 

A co-host who lives a hour away isn't all that useful in emergency situations. You need someone closer by who can monitor what is going on and take action if needed.

Sorry your house got messed up.

@Kristyn22

Unfortunately that’s all I have. I’m only doing this very short term with me off site (aka out of the country) so when I return if I decide to continue Airbnb, it will be just a single room and I will be occupying the house so can monitor those situations better. 

@Kristyn22 Sorry for your bad first experience. You should seriously consider snoozing your listing while you are away. A new host launching a brand new listing while out of country, without someone handling things on site, is a recipe for disaster. It's just a situation ripe for disasters like you experienced.

Ambitious for sure but financially necessary. Thankfully only an older couple visiting their family (long term stay) is up next and then I’m done with Airbnb until I return. 

@Kristyn22 But when the damage, cleaning costs etc drain the payout, it's not always worth it. But good you have a less risky booking coming up. I just hope the 'couple' turn out to be exactly as they represent themselves to be! I'm sure the underage teenage gang that just trashed your house didn't represent themselves truthfully when booking. New hosts are often targets for scammers. Best of luck!

I've been a home share host for 4 years (although closed since March due to COVID) and I've never had any of the nightmare scenarios that hosts with entire home listings have. Always had nice, respectful guests. No one can throw a wild party, sneak in extra people or pets, or trash the place when you live there. 

@Kristyn22

Judylyn1
Level 2
AC, Philippines

My paypal done but until now pending in your side