Host accusing us of using pool heater

[Greg17]

This was our first time using Airbnb as the booking party although we have stayed at several over the years in the Palm Springs area. The home has a pool and the host offered to heat the pool for $70/day and we declined as the temperatures had been in the mid 90's and we decided that the cool water would be refreshing. It was Memorial Day weekend and the cost of the stay was already going to be over $800 for two nights with the $200 cleaning fee so we didn't want to spend any more than that. 

The house was nice and comfortable and we had a great weekend. Then, after we left we received a message from the host requesting $140 because he said that his property manager told him the pool heater had been on all weekend. We told the host that we did not turn it on and that the water had been cold. The host then insisted that we had turned it on and demanded that we pay him for heating the pool. None of the four adults had any idea how to turn the heater on or even where the pool equipment was located. The host said that the pool water was like bath water and than we must have heated it even though we had been in the (cold) water at 10:30 AM on the morning of our departure and my four year old's teeth had been chattering due to the cold water. 

The matter has been turned over to Airbnb to resolve so we'll see what happens. Has anyone else had anything like this happen? Any advice on how to handle this in the future? I feel terrible being accused of something that we clearly did not do. 

Thank you in advance for any input you can offer. 

Cheers

[Enda0]

What a shame @Greg17. Sounds like you have done all you can do in politely denying what they have claimed. I hope Airbnb sort it out as best they can. 

[Andrée2]

Yes, i think the Resolution Center is the best place to deal with this predicament. The only other advice I can offer is to keep any discussions with that host in the message stream (as opposed to phone calls or private emails, texts ) so that you can ask the folks at Airbnb to refer to those messages if need be and nothing is left for hearsay. I'm sorry that it is not the best first experience but have faith that Airbnb wants to make it right.

[Greg17]

That's great advice Andrée. Thank you. And thank you for your response. 

[Christine1]

@Greg17, Hi Greg, What a dilemma for you. There are a few plausable explanations that would account for this situation you find yourself. Unfortunately it does not appear that your host has installed a system which secures the heater switch and allows you to verify that you have not activated it.

In this case your group and any future guests are vulnerable to this accusation and have no way to demonstrate that you did not use the heating. It's unlikely that the owners will make endless claims against a stream of guests, but you have been unlucky. 

Can you think of any suggestions that you can make to the owner to demonstrate the need for an alternate set-up that would provide more peace of mind to guests and the host where each would be clear about charges or no charges? Is there any kind of meter reading which a guest can photograph?

Is it possible the cleaner might accidently activate the heater or a timer? The host will need to prove that the expense has been incurred and this may work in your favour. 

By assisting the host with any suggestions about how they can better manage this facility with future guests, you may find that you can assist them to assume more responsibility for the misunderstanding, install a solution and cease the claim against you. 

Good luck.

Regards, Christine.

[Greg17]

Thank you for your reply Christine. I think you nailed it. If the switch for the heater was under lock and key there would be no doubt. After reading your post I suggested this to our host for future guests. 

Cheers, 

Greg

[Lisa166]

Very good ideas from people on this!  Here is another one.

The gas and/or electric company may be able to provide data for the dates in question, and other dates for comparison.  The host may be able to request this and receive written documentation.  With the smart meters now it should be easy to tell.  The property manager may have been mistaken or it may have come on mysteriously after you left.  Consumption data should clarify the situation very rapidly. I would ask the host to provide documentation of usage.

I can see hourly electric usage on my SCE account up to and including yesterday.  The gas company website only shows monthly readings.

Unless the rules have changed,  the host must report a problem within 24 hours. This means he may have reported it based only on the manager info and report of "bath water" temperatures.  Airbnb will know if he has reported problems like this before, in which case he does need to document, and provide a solution.  If this is a pattern with him, then that might indicate a different story.  Was there anything about this in his prior reviews?

Best of luck with this predicament, and thank you for posting.  It is good for us as hosts, but maybe more so as guests.  Sometimes we might have to be a little careful to protect ourselves, especially where there is a fixed extra charge on offer.

I would like to add that last year I had guests in my own home for a whole house rental.  They caught an antique table on fire, and then did not want to pay for the damages which were about double their $700  deposit.  We got a nasty letter from a lawyer who was related to the group that stayed.  I called Airbnb and they had received the same letter the day before and were all over it.  They handled the whole thing very gently and professionally. 

The Airbnb rep said the host guarantee would cover what the security deposit did not, but that they would try to recover it from the guests first, and that they would handle the lawyer.  I am not sure who actually paid, but it was all done in under a week.  Airbnb did go to bat for us.  I did not have to do anything apart from submit photos of the damage, of the repair estimate, and some comparisons to show replacement value.  It was bonafide, so easy to document.  I expect your host will also have to document somehow.

I am mentioning this because I think Airbnb will take good care of you on this. Most people are honest, so I expect it is a misunderstanding of some type. It is odd that he offered to heat it, but you declined, and then he said it had been heated.  Plus I doubt the manager was there 24/7.  Very hot weather will heat a pool too!   Let us know what happens, but I expect it will work out smoothly. 

Thanks again for posting.

--Lisa