How to review a stupid guest..

Kelly58
Level 4
Vass, NC

How to review a stupid guest..

I had a guest and his dog (the guest is aso a host in another country) that in general were good guests but for one hugely stupid thing.  He contacted me about a plumbing problem (the previous guest left the night before and indicated in their review the shower being on the fritz and used the bath instead...even though they never once told me or used the second shower since they were renting the whole house).  Turns out that shower head ended up with blockage that didnt allow much water pressure.  Replaced that as soon as I got the negative review and well before this stupid guest checked in.  He contacted me saying the shower wouldnt shut off and was making a loud noise.  I asked him if he had turned off both the hot and cold water.  He said he did.  I got there as soon as I could (had to leave work and was there within 30 minutes) and all I needed to do was turn the hot water off.  He had turned the cold water to the right and off but thought that the hot water knob needed to go to the left to turn off (why I dont know).  When I told him he didnt believe me so I had to actually show and teach him.  SO in the end the hot water ran on full blast for 2 hours just because he didnt turn it off!  That and it cost me time and gas to deal with it.  I am expecting he will probably also be stupid about the review, even though it was his issue.  WHen I asked him about the loud noise he had metnioned he said it was the noise of the water hitting the shower...duh!

 

So how should I review him?  Here is my initial draft but I would like feedback before I go final.  I am not very experienced and many of you are very much so.

 

"Roni and his beautiful and well behaved dog were great guests and I recommend them to any host. Very good communication as his arrival time was delayed by his vehicle being slowed by towing a load he was not used to.  However, I was surprised that he contacted me about a plumbing problem when I arrived to learn that the hot water had been running for 2 hours because I had to teach him in person that you must turn both hot and cold water knobs to the right to turn them off."

 

Thank you in advance!

36 Replies 36
Heather32
Level 6
Hawaii, United States

You need to call a locksmith and a reputable handyman and let her know she will need to pay for the repair. The sooner you do this the better. She broke your rules, she didn't immediately fess up, and she hasn't offered to recompense you!

 

You can be tactful, but you must be firm about it.

 

 

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Thanks @Heather32 and @Alexandre205. That bathroom needs quite a lot of renovation, which is why I don't even show it to guests, but it was useable and I peronally used it frequently.

 

My builder is on holiday, but back on the 4th when he is supposed to come round to do some other work (I'm waiting for a quote from him anyway for finishing the bathroom renovation). I will get him to look at the door and see if there's a simple solution. In the meantime, I will tell the guest that is what I'm going to do and that if it's going to cost money to fix, I'm afraid she will need to pay for that.

Helen3
Level 10
Bristol, United Kingdom

Hi @Huma0

 

I would just have a friendly chat with her and confirm that the bathroom downstairs isn't available for guests (that's why you don't mention it in your listing or show it to guests during the house tour). That you are going to get a builder in to fix the lock and will let her know about the costs involved to replace the key lock which she broke.

 

With locked rooms in my home I had the builder have the key locks on both side of the door so I can lock them from the outside or inside. I would suggest you do this for this bathroom too.

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Helen3 thank you. Yes, I did already explain to her why that bathroom was not available to guests when I realised what had happened. I will need now to tell her there might be a cost involved but that I need the builder to look at it first. I don't want to call in someone random. I'd rather wait for my trusted builder to get back from his holiday. There are too many cowboys builders here!

 

Just to clarify, she hasn't broken a lock. She's done something strange to the actual door. This door had been re-fitted to open outwards as the bathroom is very small and it would have been bashing the toilet otherwise. I think she must have tried to force it to open the wrong way, as now the door is stuck on the other side of the frame and completely out of line with it, by a lot. It won't move in either direction more than a couple of inches and not enough to get in and out. The hinges look completely fine though, so I can't figure out how to fix it, hence the need to call in a professional.

 

It's also something very difficult to show in a photo and I know you should document any damages this way, but a photo won't show what the problem is, only a closed door!

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Update on this. I never charged the guest because, luckily, the builder did not charge me to fix the door. He was doing a complete renovation on two bathrooms, costing several thousands of pounds, so never asked for extra to sort out the door.

 

Since then, I have had another guest break my very expensive front door lock (over £400 to replace including labour). Accidents do happen, but this time I did expect the guest to pay as the damage was caused by him ingoring my instructions and being very brutal with the door! He absolutely did not want to pay anything, but luckily Airbnb sided with me in the resolution centre. I have no idea if they took any money from his deposit or paid with the Host Guarantee insurance, as that information was not provided.

 

I'm still happy to let small damages pass. The other day a guest left black marks on new Egyptian linen sheets, which won't wash out, but she told me straight away and offered to pay. Most guests just keep quite about these things and hope you won't notice. Plus, this guest had already bought me flowers and a bag of (expensive) coffee to replace the small amount she used. I'm willing to put the sheets down to wear and tear for a considerate and honest guest.

Wow, yes please please let us know if something like this happens! I do not want to rent to someone who can't figure things out and then to not even believe you when you told him how to turn off the shower? Someone else can be nice and understanding when a numbskull comes to stay. There are not many of them but sometimes they come along and you wish you were warned!

 

 

Marg11
Level 10
Warwick, Australia

Hi, All BnB hosts,

I was concerned recently when a guest complained to me he couldn't sleep because of music at a neighbour's party. We had not been disturbed despite being on site. I replied that our letter of introduction included the number to call the local city ranger if there was noise in the neighbourhood and he would deal with the problem. English was not our guest's first language so my husband said to knock on our door and we would call the ranger.

Two nights later on a significant national holiday, the neighbours, and many others in the area, had a party after the city fireworks, which our guests had attended. We went to sleep with no problem but in the morning we found our guest, instead of following our instructions had visited the neighbours and asked him to turn down the music. Luckily they turned down the music and our guest was extremely pleased with himself. Because of his nationality and limited English, our guest did not understand he could have met with aggression destroying the truce between us and our more recently arrived neighbours.

Fortunately, it was all OK but it frightened me that international guests can ignore local advice.