Guest is complaining and requesting money

[Gabe50]

However I have posted my home as unfurnished, and let my guest confirm it, before checking in, but now he complains about the bed and wants his money back. What should I do?

[Emiel1]

@Gabe50 

Your listing says it is "not furbished" but your photos show a bedroom with a bed in it.

[Sarah977]

@Gabe50  Is the guest complaining that there is no bed, or that the bed is uncomfortable or not as pictured. If there isn't any bed at all, you need to fully refund the guest, as you show a nice bed in your photos. That's false advertising, no matter what you think you got clear with the guest before he arrived.

Listing an unfurnished house on Airbnb is pretty odd- that's the sort of situation you rent to tenants who have signed a long term lease and have their own furniture. Airbnb guests at least need a place to sleep.

[Gabe50]

Hi Sarah977,

Thank you for taking the time to address my question.

Regards,

Gabe

[Lyn3]

Hi @Gabe50  The guest maybe read your listing as it is written...’not furBished’...there’s a difference between ‘furnished’ and’furbished’. 
FurBished means refreshed, renovated, etc

Could the typo in your listing description have caused the  confusion (although most of your pics do indeed show that there is no furniture other than the bed...

[Gabe50]

Hi Lyn,

To avoid this torture upfront, I have him to confirm, that there is no furniture in the apartment at all before he checked in, and he accepted it. I think he should let me know his needs, right after checking-in when he realized the situation early in the afternoon, and not after checking-out at the following morning. In other words, don't complain about the taste of the cake, after you ate the whole slice.

Thank you for your opinion

Gabe

[Sarah977]

@Gabe50  So why did you post a photo of the bedroom with a bed in it, if there isn't one? It says in your amenities list that you provide bed sheets. Yet there's no bed. That doesn't make any sense.

It seems to me like you just got this place, can't afford to buy furniture, but are trying to make some money on it anyway. Like I said, not really suitable for an Airbnb listing- a big, nice house, with not even anywhere to sit down except the floor. Not even a table to sit and eat at. You are trying to appeal to hikers, I guess assuming they have camping foamies and sleeping bags, but why would hikers need a big, unfurnished house when they could stay in a hostel, where they would at least have a bed, or rent an Airbnb room in a private home?

[Gabe50]

Hi Sarah977,

You have a very interesting business approach as you are blaming me for trying to get the most out of my investment. Secondly, that is bit insulting, that you are judging my financial condition for not furnishing the apartment before starting Airbnb. Anyway, I'm not feeling guilty to post it on Airbnb, and let the market decide if there is a need. I think my guests are very happy now to find a home with their pets, until they are closing their new home...

You are right with the galery though,  I should have been more selective before I simply upload all of the images I got from the realtor.

I still strongly believe that a written confirmation must be stronger, than an assumption.

Thank you again, for sharing your thoughts.

Gabe

[Sarah977]

@Gabe50  I didn't mean to be insulting. And I can see where the place would work for people who are relocating, have their own furniture, and need a place to stay while they secure more permanent housing. 

But aside from removing the bedroom photo with a bed in it, if you want to avoid future problems like the guest demanding a refund, I'd suggest you edit your listing description to better reflect what you are offering and appeal to the type of guests who it would be suitable for. When hosts end up with misunderstanding guests, we go in and reword our listing descriptions so things which may prove a problem are front and center. If I were you, I'd speak about the fact that it is an unfurnished house in the very first paragraph of the listing description, putting the info about what is is close to, and the other features it has after that.

Whenever a host has a listing which is in some way outside the norm or what most people might expect, it works best to be super clear about that, whether it's unfurnished, or whether it's in a remote loction with roads that may be hard to navigate in the winter and with no Wifi.

And do make sure that your amenities list actually conforms to the amenities you provide.