People who violate rules and bring pets without telling you

[Tim275]

Ok, I have this issue. I have a guest that booked that did not tell me about the pet. I do allow pets and charge extra for them, but they didn't tell me before hand. Nothing was damaged and I did "catch" them at it (I have outside security cameras and saw the pet) and not sure how to deal with it. I do collect a security deposit up front and was wondering if it would be acceptable or legal to keep part of that as the fee because basically the were not forthcoming about the pet. I guess I need to explain in my listing that the security deposit is not only for damage, but situations like this. I just don't want to do something that is illegal by keeping part of the money and returning the rest.

Has anyone ever experienced this before? How should I word my listing to prevent or at least try my best to make sure I have no loopholes.

Thanks for any advice.

[Cynthia-and-Chris1]

@Tim275 I would request the pet fee through the Resolution Center. 

[Tim275]

Yeah, but does that cover me legally? Since the $250 is really a security deposit. 

[Cynthia-and-Chris1]

@Tim275 I’m not a lawyer, so I can’t tell you what legal in your jurisdiction or in general. I’m just another host telling you what I would do in your situation. 

[Kat17]

@Tim275 I looked at your listing and can’t find any mention of an additional fee for pets. You should probably put it under House Rules as well as prominently in your description. You also don’t state how many pets are allowed. If I were you, I would also want to find out what kind of dogs they are bringing, how well trained they are. Saying this as a person who travels with dogs, but has also had a young dog go peepee on my new carpet. A guest dog, I mean. 

In this case, you might want to

let it slide since you were not clear about fees or requiring permission upfront (unless you said something in private communication with the guest. 

You also don’t have any reviews, except a note that You canceled on a guest. This is not a great way to start out. So I would encourage you to get some good reviews and focus on that. Especially since there was no harm caused by the guest, And they may not have known that they did anything wrong.

[Tim275]

Well, how can I get good reviews if no one books? I have 4 bookings, all thru another site. I have 2 awsome reviews there. Is there a way to input the reviews here?

I can't force people to use this site instead of the other one.

I did update the listing about dogs.

I also cancelled the guest because he couldn't cancel it so I called support and they told me to do it. I think it is not fair for me to get "dinged" on that, but not sure what I can do. I have asked support about it and they said they can't change it.

Thoughts?

[Lisa658]

@Tim275

Also look up a doggie daycare in your area and see if they require any vaccinations or special certificates before they allow the dog to stay.

Lisa