Pet rule broken

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Michele255
Level 2
San Antonio, TX

Pet rule broken

We just had our 2nd guest come and go after 3 nights in our guest house (which is not on our home property).

 

We have a 'No Pet' rule as we are sensitive to those having allergies.  I was not able to meet our guest when she checked in/out.  We also had so leave town the day she left so I was not able to do a detailed look around the house.  When I was able to go in and clean, I found a cat toy, cat dander in multiple places, small traces of kitty litter, few dry food kibbles, and 1 turd.  It has been frustrating as there was more laundry involved to remove the cat dander.

 

We did not put in a pet fee as we felt our rule would be respected.  Do I have any recourse with this guest at all?  I will definitly be adding an additional fee to curtail/prevent future guests from sneaking in pets.

 

She has not yet written a review for us and I am not sure how to write hers as I am very disappointed.

 

Michele

 

 

 

1 Best Answer
Gerry-And-Rashid0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Michele255

 

Review the guest and say they brought a pet into the property which resulted in additional cleaning.

 

If you include a fee going forward that means you are going to accept pet - do you really want to do that?

 

AirBnB does not allow hosts to 'fine' guests for breaking house rules. You have to prove damage - so the only way to get money for extra cleaning is to use a professional company and try to claim the money back for that cleaning. So your $400 fine is unenforceable, however having there in your rules may dissauade anyone thinking of bringing a pet from doing so.

 

Good luck

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72 Replies 72
Jack90
Level 6
Queensland, AU

Hi Michele,

 

I sympathise with your situation. Generally, it's quite hard to demand payment from guests. You could try calling them and explaining the situation, and with the right touch, may be able to get some compensation.

 

As there isn't really quantifiable damage done, I don't think Airbnb would likely side with you. Write a review that reflects your feelings and your experience with the guest, note it down as a lesson for future guests and move on. The best way to avoid these sort of situations is to prevent them from happening all together! If you can't physically meet a guest, definitely make sure to try call them and explain what is expected from them.

 

Do be careful of guests writing spiteful and untruthful reviews, just because you tried to claim compensation. Unfortunately, these reviews might hurt you more than you stand to gain in compensation.

 

Best of luck!

 

Jack

Hi Jack,

 

Thank you for your reply. I agree with everything you suggested. As of date she has not written a review for us. I did edit our house rules in our listing to explain our 'no pet' rule and that if violated there would be a $400 additional clean up. I do not know if it will hold up if there's any future damage but I hope it will deter future guests from sneaking in pets. I am thankful that there was not any real damage.

 

I think I am really more frustrated with the lack of respect, especially with her not at least contacting us if there might have been an extenuating circumstance requiring her to bring a cat, that maybe we could have worked something out (as we had been corresponding through texts).  She was here for a work project and I was hoping she might be a repeat guest.

 

Thank you again,
Michele

I am having a problem with people wanting to bring pets as well.  We have a small farm and I have noted that we have animals, but where can I post that we do not allow pets?  The issue keeps coming up and I don't want "denied" plastered all over our host site.

 

You can mention "no pets" in the listing narrative and house rules, which guests agree to by proxy when they book.

So, if you have it in the narrative and they bring an animal in anyway, what do you do?  I think the extra cleaning fee should be added. 

I have the same question - for me it is a building rule, as my property is in a multi-unit building. What do I do if someone shows up with a dog, when it's in my house rules that no pets are allowed? I asked AirBnb support and they had no answer, but I figured this has happened to someone before?

no pets is in my rule and a renter brought it anyway and claimed it was for "emotional support" so in that case, i cannot refuse her.  It is the law....so instead, i am now adding an extra $100 per day for a pet.  Hopefully that will dissuade them.  I have RING on my front entry gate so i saw her dog.  

I just had this same issue.  Guest insists that she does not have a pet. She has a service animal so I cannot legally deny a service animal.

Regarding pets,  AirBNB said that  there is no way to add a security deposit only for guests with pets but I can request money and refund  thru the resolution center. 

As a fellow host, I do read the reviews of potential guests, from other hosts. Truthfully review her, saying she did not disclose her pet, and all the damage the pet did, so that fellow hosts can bring it up and be aware of the type of host that MAY be in their home. There is nothing wrong with theTRUTH in reviews. Whatever review she posts about you, you can place a rebuttal on her page TELLING THE TRUTH AGAIN. Good luck!

I met the guests at the door.  They came in by plane, so I didn't think there would be a problem.  However, I found lots of animal hair on the floor, on the couch and on the sheets.  So, I should be able to charge an extra cleaning fee for the furniture.  I plan on renting a steam cleaner and cleaning solution and submitting it as a fine.  That should be at the minimum agreed to.  My extra time should also be compenstated.  I will also say they weren't clean and didn't follow the no animal rule.  I have a feeling they had an extra person as well, since they had relatives nearby. I am ending being a host with Air BnB because of the break in trust.  

Gerry-And-Rashid0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Michele255

 

Review the guest and say they brought a pet into the property which resulted in additional cleaning.

 

If you include a fee going forward that means you are going to accept pet - do you really want to do that?

 

AirBnB does not allow hosts to 'fine' guests for breaking house rules. You have to prove damage - so the only way to get money for extra cleaning is to use a professional company and try to claim the money back for that cleaning. So your $400 fine is unenforceable, however having there in your rules may dissauade anyone thinking of bringing a pet from doing so.

 

Good luck

Thank you for your input so quickly.  I was not aware that you could not do that, also I did not think that and additional cleaning fee would give some guests the idea that it was 'ok' to bring a pet.

 

Thank you,

Michele

 

 

I need to vent, as none of the answers seem acceptable to me.   Twice now I have had two recent guests bring pets.   My listing specifically says pets are not allowed, and in the House Guide, which I send to all guests, in advance, it says if an animal is found on the property, you will be asked to depart.   I normally do not greet or meet my guests personally.   One guest informed me as they left they brought a service dog.   I did a lot of research...apparently anyone can call any pet a service animal.   And you can't charge extra cleaning as that would be discriminatory.   Sorry, I have a friend who has the worst behaved pets - they have accidents all the time, and she conveniently calls them service animals to get whatever she wants...takes them on plans....no rules apply to her.

 

So as I'm re-arranging items in the kitchen, after guest #2 leaves.....I find doggie treats.   And there are several dead areas on our otherwise beautiful green lawn.   I'm just really mad that people are so disrespectful.   I don't want to add "Service Animal" verbiage or extra cleaning verbiage to our listing, as that just give these people an out to bring an animal.   As a side note....I love dogs, well- behaved dogs....but have found there is a large variance in definition of what is well-behaved.   I don't want animals on my beds or furniture.   Does anyone have any other ideas? 

@Michelle509My suggestion is to always be at the property when guests arrive.  If you can't be there, make arrangements for a friend, co-host or neighbor to meet your guests at check-in.  It seems many of the problems hosts have with guests are due to the fact that guests are allowed access to the property without any "Adult Supervision".  No one is watching to see if the guests arrive with more persons than booked, throw a party, brought a pet or service animal and so on.  You have a lovely listing and it would be a shame for it to be damaged by an irresponsible pet owner.

Linda