Guest brought a dog to the property when rules state no pets/animals due to allergies.

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

I just had a guest check-in for the next 4 nights. She has great reviews, and so far seems very pleasant. She also lists a small space herself on Air Bnb. Her space is not suitable for animals. 

I am aware that guests have to acknowledge my House Rules and agree to them before booking.

In my house rules, it clearly states no pets/animals due to allergies. We spend a lot of time at the house when it is not rented, and have a family member who has allergies.  I have been asked three so far since I have been renting (for a little less than a year) if the house is allergen-free. I confidently said yes because the house has been gutted, with all new furniture.  My Rules also state that the house is monitored by an external security system. 

This past week, I installed exterior cameras. And at 9:58 tonight, I saw a woman on video (who is one of the renter's guests) walking down the hill on my property toward the side entrance of the house walking a small dog. I am really annoyed about this. Now that house is no longer allergen-free. The dog will most likely sit on everything and have walked all over every wood floor and carpet, which the entire downstairs is carpet.  Clearly this woman brought her dog thinking I would never find out, and that it's perfectly fine to bring a dog when the rules say no.  Now everything will have to be disinfected, sanitized, cleansed due to dog fur & dander. Hopefully the dog doesn't have fleas.

I have worked very hard to make the house what it is today and for my Superhost Status.  I am extremely concerned about this situation. As of now, it's 11:23 pm and there is no sign of the woman or dog leaving the property. 3 outside cameras are installed to monitor coming & going, so I know everything is as it should be.  

What do I do? Wait and see what happens at the end of 4 days? Do a drive-by or stake-out and wait for her to emerge with the dog? Message her and say a neighbor, out of concern let me know that she saw a woman walking in with a dog, when she knows I don't allow for that? I charge a security fee of up to $800. Can I get reimbursed for having to deal with cleaning up after the dog was in the house? Ask the main guest to have the woman with the dog leave? How can I now say it is truly allergen-free?

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Russell-and-Jennifer0 

well, if you didn't install security cameras you would never know they brought the dog. So, maybe it wasn't the first time and maybe your house wasn't so allergen-free as you thought 🙂

The good thing is, dog's flies don't bite humans, only cat's flies does.  And people are more allergic to cats than dogs.

The bad thing is, Airbnb will not cover any damage done by pets and that's why so many hosts don't allow pets.

What you can do is to go there, sit with them and say: Girls, you broke my house rules, I will have to deep clean everything because this is allergen free home, it will cost xx $. Are you willing to pay for it now or you prefer we alter/shorten your stay and you leave immediately?

See what they will say.

It would be smart to add a very high pet fee to your house rules. So you can charge for a pet if this happens again.

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

Thanks, but the issue is that my family member is allergic to both, and I have often either met the guests, as well as drive-by the house during their stay just to check (I don't wish to disturb them), and in my inspection after they check out, I am extremely neurotic about cleaning every square inch of the house, so I don't believe a pet has been in the house. But I suppose you are right that it is always not impossible.

Most importantly, what I did not know is that Air Bnb will not cover damages due to pets. What if the dog ate apart a couch?

I do not want pets in my house, as my family member would then never be able to stay there. 

I just wish they had never brought the dog, as it is blatant disregard, especially since the guest who booked the house lists thru Air Bnb as well.

Guess this is just part of of it all.

🙂

[Helen3]

Well if you don't want pets in the house the simple answer is to a) ask the guest to put the dog in kennels and b) if they can't commit to that then ask Airbnb to cancel the booking.

(I am presuming you have it clearly listed that you have camera's outside your property).

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

That is a good suggestion about asking them to put the dog in a kennel.

I guess I didn't think about canceling the booking. Damage has been done as of now, being that they spent the night and slept in all the beds, and sat on all the furniture. I guess I am thinking that if someone is brazen enough to bring the dog in the first place, why not give it free-reign of the house?  And do they not then have to pay for the night they stayed?

My listing states "The house is monitored by an external security system." I found that wording in other listings and presumed it was sufficient. 

[Helen3]

No it isn't I'm afraid, please look at the Airbnb Help Centre for details on how you should be alerting guests to your cameras @Russell-and-Jennifer0 

And absolutely there is a point in cancelling the booking, the less time they stay the easier it is to clean and why should they be rewarded for their bad behaviour and lying to you?

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

Good points, @Helen3 .  Thanks.

[Janet-And-Stuart0]

OK ... here is the problem with this answer ... is that dog owners cheat.  We've studied the issue carefully and talk to experts ... who train and own dogs.  Indeed ... I own dogs too.  Dog owners cheat because they think their dog is "special" ... which I understand ... but that "special" status in their mind means they don't have to follow rules.  If kennels were the answer ... then we wouldn't be having this conversation.  The other thing to note is not only are dogs "special" in the minds of dog owners ... but this "special" animal sleeps in their ( your ) bed at the home you are renting.  Again ... they do not think twice about this.  In my house ... my dogs have very specific rules and areas they can go into ... and certainly not the bedroom.  Another rule is I never take my dogs to the cabin I rent on AirBnB.

[Anonymous]

@Russell-and-Jennifer0 Generally it's best to address a rule violation immediately, if you're privy to it in real time. It's also important that your guests were made aware of the surveillance cameras (not just "external security system") before the booking was confirmed; this is not the way you want them to find out that they were being filmed.

You can request payment for the disinfection treatments via the Resolution Center. If the guest does not accept the charges, an Airbnb rep will demand documentation from you (receipts, invoices, photos) and make a final assessment. Be aware that Airbnb will never grant you a claim that isn't specifically for tangible damage/expenses. Don't expect them to acknowledge a "security fee" as valid, even if it's agreed in the rules. 

@Branka-and-Silvia0  Dog fleas can, and do, also bite humans. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_flea

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

That is a good point about saying "surveillance cameras." I used the terminology "external security system" because I found that wording listed on several other listings, thought it sufficient, and also read that many hosts said they wish they had installed security cameras because something bad had happened with guests at their house. Previously, I myself, was the "external security system".  I thought that would alert people into following the house rules.  The cameras are mounted outside the house, only facing the road/driveway. Really meant to monitor how many people are there. (to be sure of no parties).

I naively thought no one would ever actually bring a dog when the rules clearly state no animals due to allergies.

And that's good advice about requesting payment for disinfection. And interesting about the Security Fee not being acknowledged.  Seems rather unfair to a host to have to pay for a guests blatant disregard resulting in damage to the hosts property.

It was real-time at 9:58 pm, and it would have taken me a few minutes to get to the house, but I didn't want to creep-out the guest who rented the house by messaging her as soon as I saw the dog. And it was dark out.

Before installing the cameras, I had to decide that it was the best thing to do or not.  I know of a host who had her house completely destroyed. She wasn't even far away, but never checked on it. There ended up being a huge party, and they caused thousand's of dollars worth of real damage.  That host's house is big, like mine, so I got nervous and decided to install cameras. But I do believe that guests are inherently good, and so far my renting has been great.

She is at the house until Sunday. Do you think it would be ok if I message her and say my neighbor was getting the mail and saw a woman walking her dog on the property and remind her that dogs are not allowed?  Because of the real-time which the incident occurred, it is clear that the dog will be spending staying there. 

Thanks for all your input! I really appreciate it!

[Anonymous]

@Russell-and-Jennifer0  You could use this "little white lie" approach, but maybe coordinate that with an actual neighbor so it doesn't backfire.

You'll still have to decide what you want the resolution to be. Do you want to terminate the booking? Demand pre-payment of the disinfection as a condition of allowing her and the dog to stay? Or simply remind the guest of the rules and eat the cost of the remedy?

Any of these actions will almost certainly result in a lower rating, which is why "Superhost" is to many just another word for "Doormat."

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

I think I like your thoughts on what I want the resolution to be; perhaps just eating the cost and reminding the guest of the house rules.  It seems like an extraordinary amount of effort on my part to go thru Air Bnb to try and get any money from them. I also can't imagine a guest would be willing to cough up extra money on the spot.  I can only imagine nothing positive coming out from them for me confronting them. I also don't want to give up the amount I earned to have them stay. It will be a loss for me, but lesson learned. I will rate her at a 1 and noting she broke the house rules, along with my private message to her.  Thanks again for your advice!

[Anonymous]

@Russell-and-Jennifer0  It's unfortunate when hosts feel they have to tolerate rule-breaking, but sometimes it is the easier option on the balance of things.  Since you do have a fairly long list of rules, you might consider adding extra emphasis to the most important ones - and due to allergies this is definitely one of those!

[Russell-and-Jennifer0]

True, Andrew. Thanks. 🙂

[Emilia42]

@Russell-and-Jennifer0 

Your listing needs to say external surveillance devices on property or else a guest can get you in big trouble for not disclosing this.