Security Deposits

[Carl59]

Hi All,

The wording for the security deposit is 'If you submit a damage claim within 14 days of checkout, guests will be responsible for damages up to this amount.'  What happens if the guest trashes my cottage which far exceeds the security deposit.  Do I or my insurance company have any right of recovery to pursue the guest for the full damages?  Most of the security damages I have looked at wouldn't even cover the cost of replacing a television let alone anything else.....any comments or help would be appreciated.

many thanks 

[Jackie196]

Carl, 

I had a guest ruin some of my belongings (urine on a coffee table and area rug) and feces in my shower.  So what I had done was immediately contacted the guest thru Airbnb and took pictures, then filed a claim with Airbnb.  

Airbnb was quick to respond and so was the gentleman (thank goodness) he replaced my belongings as he did not want a bad review.  

Try reaching out to the guest thru Airbnb and also make a claim with Airbnb.  Take a lot of pictures as you will need them and also any additional cleaning to bill the guest.

I hope this helps and don’t let 1 bad apple ruin your experience!

[Carl59]

Thanks for your quick response Jackie.   I am sorry to hear about the experience you had.  Fortunately, nothing terrible has happened yet but I just wanted to be sure what my position was with regards to how much I could claim.   Did your damages fall within your security deposit or where you able to claim a higher amount?

regards

Carl

[Jackie196]

Carl, 

The damages exceeded the security deposit, however, when I contacted the guest he wanted all of the receipts and e-transferred  me the money.  

So it all worked out for me and Airbnb followed up with me to make sure all was settled. 

[Letti0]

@Carl59  & @Jackie196  Another issue here is the guest admited to the damage in Jackie's case. If the guest doesn't admit to the damage, they usually give you nothing from the security deposit. 

[Andrea2496]

True! So even though I had lots of pictures, in the end I received a big fat zero! Shouldn’t a security deposit be given to the host regardless of the guests “opinion” of their responsibility? 

[Lisa722]

Are you saying that because he paid for the damage, you gave him a good review? Why would you want to foist someone who pees on the furniture and **bleep**s in the shower on another host who would believe your good review?

[Ange2 · Accepted solution]

@Carl59   

You, your insuarance company can do what you need to do, it is your property.  It's tough to get any compensation from Airbnb.

As for : 'If you submit a damage claim within 14 days of checkout, guests will be responsible for damages up to this amount.' "   It's not quite as straight forward as that, especially if the guest challenges the claim.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/140/how-does-airbnb-handle-security-deposits

You could also try Airbnb Host Guarantee to claim for other damages.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/361/how-do-i-request-reimbursement-under-the-host-guarantee

[Carl59]

Hi Ange,  thanks for your response.  The Host Guarantee program looks like the exact 'peace of mind' I am looking for.

many thanks

[Ange2]

@Carl59   I would read it carefully there are many exclusions and precise documentation is needed with photos, quotes for repair, replacement, which Airbnb decide whether to accept or not based on seemingly arbitrary rules. And there is a strict time-limit so keep an eye out for emails, if you miss them you may miss being reimbursed.  btw: Airbnb give depreciation value not reimbursement, replacement value (see the legalize covering this), if the claims are even approved: for example,  I only received 199.00 for more than 1,000 worth of damage.

[Doug8]

It's not.

[John1080]

I'm wondering how much of a security deposit others have set? 

[Michael2388]

I'm wondering as well, and whether the security deposit amount has any impact on bookings?

[Letti0]

@Michael2388  @John1080  The security on AirBnB does not effect bookings as it is not actually charged to guest unlike HA/VRBO where the higher it is can effect bookings. I have my security deposit set at $500 which is actually ridiculous because just one of my Le Creuset pots can cost that much if they walk off with it. I do have commerical insurance though, so I would only use the security deposit for minor issues. I am probably going to raise my AirBnB security deposit to a $1,000 though, just to be safer. 

[Team-Kazemaru0]

This was my question as well. I normally set a security deposit of $100 or $200 although the value in the homes I host is above that. I did think the security depost would affect the bookings but it seem they actually don't really pay much attention to that number if i am correct as it does only get charge in case of a dispute. Since 2012 I only had to dispute a claim once as the teens trashed the place rather badly. They started to threaten with attorney and the likes so I just got reimbursed what I had set the deposit to, which was $100. I am considering to raise the deposit. What is your experience / How much do you usually set it to?