Threatening messages from guest

[Jennifer1411]

Guest booked for 3 couples a week ago on instant booking. He is a first time user of Airbnb and had no reviews.

He and his partner arrived and loved the house. The other two couples arrived later and one claimed she is allergic to dogs. The dogs were not there but it is my home and I have pets who normally live there. The listing says pets live on the property.

They want a full refund and are accusing me of misrepresentation because I had not mentioned that I had dogs in exchanged email messages. After contacted the resolution centre they now say the house smelt of dogs.

He obviously did not read the listing properly.

I have a strict cancellation policy.

He says he has rights according to the consumer act laws of South Africa  and stated " I was smart enough to get your detail in you house. I will deal with you accordingly"

I have had to pay rent elswhere, pay for cattery fees and many other expenses getting the house ready for them. I only rent out once per year.

How do I make voice contact with an Airbnb person for advice?

[Carla615]

I call the 800 number and takes with someone when I had a question 

[Mark116]

I don't think he has any 'right' to a refund for failing to read the listing he booked that says there are pets on the property.  Make sure to remind him of this via the airbnb messaging system.  Always be very polite.

[Helen3]

I can't see anything on your listing that says pets live on your property or dogs specifically.

You have no photos of animals on your profile and no pictures of dogs on listing photos.

If this happened to me I would be upset as I have a son with severe allergies to dogs.

[Sandra856]

Hi @Helen3 🙂

It says under houserules under things to accept that 2 dogs and a cat lives in the house when it is not rented to airbnb.

[Helen3]

Thanks I didn't read all the way down to the end to the house rules (why Airbnb put them right at the end of the listing I don't know).@Sandra856

@Jennifer1411 I would make sure you mention animals living at your place in your opening paragraph and as I said before have them in your listing photos so it is impossible for guests to miss.

Having said that the guy is behaving like a jerk.

[Sandra856 · Accepted solution]

@Jennifer1411 Make sure all communication with the guest is through airbnb message board. Also under the reservation press contact airbnb and write to airbnb. I would not communicate any further with the guests. They should under no circumstance bully you. Horrible people. If they have allegi problems then they should be extra carefull when renting a private home. Make sure to read the listing, ask any relevant questions to the host so they get a house suited for their special needs. I'm sorry you have this awfull experience. Hopefully airbnb will help you out. Please keep us updated on how things develops 🙂 Kind regards, Sandra

[Jennifer1411]

I have tried to contact Airbnb as you suggested. I received a reply that it was being referred to a team member but have received nothing else since.  I wrote to the guest through the airbnb message board offering a 50% refund as a final resolution,  just because its possible we are not aware of a dog smell in the house from being used to them. But there has been no response. 

[Jennifer1411]

Thanks so much for all the feedback.

In the end I decided to offer the guest a 50% refund out of goodwill. 

I finally managed to get hold of Airbnb who helped but it took ages to find the place on the site that connected me to a human. I would never have found it without your help.

I must admit it has put me off renting out my home. Getting it ready is such a huge and expensive task and then when something like this happens it makes it all a waste of effort.

[Emilia42]

@Jennifer1411 

This is strange to me. The guest is getting angry because you did not mention that dogs live in the house during your messages with them. How are you supposed to know they are allergic to dogs? Are you suppose to message the guest with a complete list of all the things that have taken place in the house within the last year just to be safe?? "Last week my wife and I cooked with a Thai peanut sauce so just letting you know that if you have a sensitivity to peanuts it is probably best that you not stay here." If the presence of dogs is such as issue the guest should have asked YOU if dogs are or have been in the home. It is not right to assume that just because there are not pictures of dogs or no dogs mentioned in the first line of the listing that dogs have never been in the space! And now these people expect a full refund because they did not clearly communicate their needs and purely assumed (even though you have it listed under house rules!)

[Susan17]

@Jennifer1411

You're being scammed. Firstly, am I correct in thinking that Airbnb in SA transacts through Airbnb Ireland? 

[Tif1]

Once a guest has booked I usually ask if they have any allergies, or if they are vegan, vegetarian, gluten free and so on as I usually leave a few goodies for guests. I also figure that this is a good opener so that if there is some kind of allergy such as pets, or washing powders or whatever then I can point out that we have 2 cats on the property who do not have access to the flat, and also it means that if there is any issue, I have already covered it. You don't have to leave much for the guests, just some biscuits for example but it does give you a heads up if there could be any potential issues. Essentially it is the guest's responsibility to manage their allergies and ask first if it is such a concern.  I feel for you, I do. It seems so wrong 😞

[Huma0]

Yes it is wrong. They may be scammers but unfortunately a lot of guests simply do not read the full listing description, let alone the full house rules. As for the 'guests must acknowledge' section, one would think that is pretty important, so why does Airbnb hide it in the place that guests are lesat likely to read? Believe me, that is not accidental, it is intentional, as Airbnb wants as many bookings as possible, even at the risk of hosts being put through this kind of nonsense with their guests.

@Jennifer1411this guest has no right to expect a refund for having not read your listing properly and you were already too generous to offer a 50% refund. When a guest books, they are agreeing to your house rules as a sort of contract, so natuarlly the 'Guests Must Acknowledge' section includes that. You might point this out to your problematic guest if he insists on harrassing you.

However, I would advise that, as so many guests DO NOT READ, the other hosts who suggested you make it more explicit are right. I mention my cats fairly early on in the description, as well as the house rules, and state that guests should not book if they have a probblem with this. I have also included a photo of one of my cats. Finally, I ask every single one of my guests before they book (or as soon as they book if they used IB) to confirm that they understand about the cats.

That doesn't stop the occasional one slipping through because many people say they have read the listing/rules when they blatantly haven't. I'd be d*mned if I'm giving them a refund though! Cover yourself by making your listing and initial messages crystal clear so that scammers or otherwise problematic guests don't have a leg to stand on.