Guest Damaged Kitchen Table

Peter316
Level 2
Dublin, Ireland

Guest Damaged Kitchen Table

Hi Everybody,

 

My current guest messaged me on Saturday afternoon (they check out tomorrow, Sunday) to tell me about something that happened on Friday night regarding one of his friends falling in my kitchen. HIs ring caught on the kitchen table "as he went down and it has scratched a line into it", he also knocked my €2 gingerbread man shaped bowl off the table and broke it. I'm having difficulty understanding how this guest managed to slip in such a way to cause all this... but I imagine alcohol was involved. 

 

I've not seen the damage to the table myself and I appreciate that the guest informed me in advance and didn't wait for me to discover it on my own, yet I feel the scratch must be quite noticeable. I will find out for sure tomorrow morning after the guest has checked-out.

 

I take pictures of the apartment before each guest checks-in, in the event of something happening at the apartment that requires me to put in a claim. Since I began hosting in 2016 I've only ever had to put in a request for money once before for a guest who lost a set of keys. For something like this where a guest has scratched a table, I have no experience.

 

Depending on the severity of damage caused do I claim simply for repairs or for repairs plus overall devaluation of the table?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Peter

7 Replies 7

@Peter316:

A few months ago I had a guest purposely damage our dining table. The table was about a year old and I sent the guest a claim through the resolution center for the actual replacement cost which was about $300. The guest refused to pay so after 72 hours I contacted Airbnb for assistance and within a day the guest paid the entire amount. I'm not sure if the fact that she threatened in her refusal message to write a bad review made a difference or not, but I was able to replace the table.

 

I would start with replacement value and actual repair costs and then go down from there only if I had to do so in order to get a settlement. Be sure everything is documented with pictures of the damage, pictures of the repair estimates and links to the items needing to be purchased to prove all expenses.

 

One more thing, the policy is that all claims must be made through the resolution center before the next guest checks in.

 

Good luck!

I'm unhappy with the level of protection Airbnb gives me for coverage under issues of damages to the home. Having recently had a disturbingly negative experience with the trust and safety department, I no longer wish to rent my home through Airbnb.

Peter316
Level 2
Dublin, Ireland

Thank you @Tim-and-Holly0  for your response it was very informative!

 

Just to follow up on this situation, the guest said on Saturday that he would pay for the little ginger bread man bowl that was broken. There was no money left at the apartment but that's small potatoes compared to the big ticket items.

 

Table Scratch 4.jpg

 

The scratch is pretty bad; it's deep and long. Not sure how a ring can cause that. But the table isn't the only thing damaged... 

 

Blind Messed up2.jpg

 

The strings to raise and lower my venetian blinds were also damaged. The blind now sags and bunches when raised and can no longer be locked in place so is always down. 

 

On top of this, the guest used the spare bedding I keep at the apartment for change overs then after using it placed it with the clean bedding so now everything needs to be washed, my couch was left with stains, my house rules say no smoking but there is ash on tables and window sills and filters on the floor (also in the common areas of my building). This is the worst any guest has left my apartment so far in almost 3 years of hosting. It had to happen eventually...

 

 

 

Now my questions are do I put in a claim before or after writing my review? If I put in the claim before the review I'm sure his review will be bad despite messaging me on check-out that "the apartment was lovely and we had a really good time!". Can his bad review be removed? How do I claim for additional cleaning fees when I do the cleaning myself? I've kept mum to him so far about my intentions to charge him for the damages his group caused as I know this will affect his review of me and maintaining my current rating is very important to me...

 

Thanks again in advance!

 

Peter

Lisa723
Level 10
Quilcene, WA

@Peter316 you must submit your damage claim within 14 days after guest checks out OR before the next guest checks in, whichever is first. Regarding the review, it's tricky. I think the best plan is to submit your own review immediately, which will hopefully trigger the guest to submit their own, then submit the damage claim after the guest submits their review or at the last possible second, whichever comes first. You will need photos of the damage, and estimates or receipts for professional repair.

 

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/361/how-do-i-request-reimbursement-under-the-host-guarantee

@Peter316:
Like Lisa said, knowing when to write the review is tricky. Normally I wait until after the damage claim is settled because then I have the option of writing a review that states there was damage but the guest took responsibility right away, OR there was damage and the guest refused to take responsibility. Both points are something future hosts will want to know.

@Tim-and-Holly0 yes this is the altruistic and community-minded approach.  🙂

@Lisa723:

🙂