Guest flooded the bathroom. Need some help for steps forward.

[Patrick2453]

Current guest just messaged me saying they flooded the bathroom by overturning bathtub knobs and breaking off something behind the wall. 

1. The water extraction service I called said it has to be addressed immediately which means the guest has to leave early. How do I best go about refunding the guest? Should I work this out with the guest directly? Should I not refund the guest at all but instead take the route of filing a claim and pursue them paying for the damages? I don’t know if filing a claim will work considering I do not have any evidence that shows they caused the damages. 

2. What is the best route to take for canceling future guests? I really want to avoid cancellation policy violations. Is a pipe bursting in the wall considered an event that would not be a violation for canceling the next guest? 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Patrick2453 An interesting situation.

If I were the guest and I hadn't applied excessive force to the knob then I consider the faucet hadn't been properly fixed in the first place.

If it is classed as guest damage then Airbnb should allow penalty free cancellations of subsequent guests but you may have a fight on your hands as customer service usually don't know the latest rules. Better if you find the rules in the help centre and supply these to customer services when you ask them to cancel future reservations.