Violated house rules and collecting security deposit

Answered!
Irene93
Level 1
Ottawa, Canada

Violated house rules and collecting security deposit

Hello All,

 

My most recent guest has left my driveway and entrance way littered with cigarrette butts.  It clearly states in both my house rules and my house manual that there is a strict no smoking policy and also states that the damage deposit will not be refunded if there is evidence of smoking.  They also left an obscene amount of empty alcohol bottles behind, seems like way too much for four people that checked in a 8pm and left at 11am the next day.  I gues it is possible that only four people were here but it appears as though there was a party.  Also not allowed according to my booking restrictions.

 

This is my first negative experience and I'm really dissapointed. 

 

My question is, if I request the security money from my guest, can they then retaliate by leaving me a negative review? That doesn't seem fair if they can as I took great care in preparing my place for their visit as I always do.

 

I also can't find any sort of contact airbnb info, like a phone number or email or anything at all.

 

I would love some advice.

 

Thank-you,

 

Irene

1 Best Answer
Bob39
Level 10
Goldfield, NV

First, document all the evidence by taking photos of the bottles, the cigarette butts and any other anomalies or damage.


If some repair requires professional service, get a written estimate and take a photo of that estimate.


I would then contact Airbnb, by phone or by Twitter, to let them know this happened. See what they say and follow their advice.


Go to the resolution center on Airbnb and start a claim for the full amount of the deposit. Do this within 48 hours of the time they checked out.


Go through the resolution process, when the guest denies, click Involve Airbnb, and watch your email carefully. Check to make sure email from "response@airbnb.com" is not blocked or sent to a spam folder as that is the "from" address.


If they threaten you with a bad review in retaliation for making a claim, report that fact to Airbnb. That is against Airbnb rules and it should be reported.


Don't worry about ferling like you're "the bad guy." They are not your friends. You're in business and you're simply protecting your assets.

 

Don't worry about what they write in their review. You will have a chance to reply.


In your reply, you can accomplish these 2 things:


1. Set the record straight on the facts


2. Make yourself look good


If you know you will never let them enter your place again, begin your review with "I would not host (name) again." That will send a red flag to any fture potential host that may be reading it.


State any facts you want to. Just facts. Leave out any opinions, judgements or feelings. Whoever reads it will formulate their own opinion of that guest, based on the evidence you provide.

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36 Replies 36
Giovanni100
Level 1
Las Vegas, NV

I have had issues with guest smoking pot in my house and I live in Las Vegas where it is highly illegal. I charge the security deposit and I ask Air BnB to monitor their review if the review seems unfair they are pretty good at working with you. There is a number to call you can typically google it it's a 415 number it's takes a little work but it will get you through.
David126
Level 10
Como, CO

Those issues can be addressed in the review.

 

Not sure you understand what the Security Deposit is, what it is for and what you can collect.

David
Bob39
Level 10
Goldfield, NV

First, document all the evidence by taking photos of the bottles, the cigarette butts and any other anomalies or damage.


If some repair requires professional service, get a written estimate and take a photo of that estimate.


I would then contact Airbnb, by phone or by Twitter, to let them know this happened. See what they say and follow their advice.


Go to the resolution center on Airbnb and start a claim for the full amount of the deposit. Do this within 48 hours of the time they checked out.


Go through the resolution process, when the guest denies, click Involve Airbnb, and watch your email carefully. Check to make sure email from "response@airbnb.com" is not blocked or sent to a spam folder as that is the "from" address.


If they threaten you with a bad review in retaliation for making a claim, report that fact to Airbnb. That is against Airbnb rules and it should be reported.


Don't worry about ferling like you're "the bad guy." They are not your friends. You're in business and you're simply protecting your assets.

 

Don't worry about what they write in their review. You will have a chance to reply.


In your reply, you can accomplish these 2 things:


1. Set the record straight on the facts


2. Make yourself look good


If you know you will never let them enter your place again, begin your review with "I would not host (name) again." That will send a red flag to any fture potential host that may be reading it.


State any facts you want to. Just facts. Leave out any opinions, judgements or feelings. Whoever reads it will formulate their own opinion of that guest, based on the evidence you provide.

@Bob39

I recently has a similar issue. 

The guests came in, had a party in violation of the house rules (you can tell there was a party as there were a lot of beer cans and bottles left and a huge cluster of trash for the number of the guests for a short stay), took a bottle of perfume, left a mess and drapery rod hanging from the wall...

I took some pictures of the mess, and got a handyman immediately to fix the drapery rod as I had to host another guest group very soon. 

After all that, I sent a request for money to the guest who created the mess, attached pictures and invoice from the handyman. I waited a few days, no response, then I involved airbnb.

 

Airbnb basically dismissed all the claims.

They cannot accept the invoice as it's not "issued on official company letterhead by a registered company".

They said I have to file a police report to recover the missing perfurme (about $20 value).

They said I need to keep original receipts of all the towels that I need to replace which I didn't think of keeping in the beginning at all...

I didn't even try to claim for additional cleaning services...

 

Apparently, there are a lot of "rules according to their accounting department" so the hosts can claim the deposit and recover from the damage. When I came to the case, I realized how difficult it is and how vulnerable hosts are in the face of abusive guests. 

 

I left a negative review for the guest and she stayed quite throughout all these. Since she didn't write a review for us, the negative review for her remains unseen. This seems to be an easy way to get away?

 

I'd appreciate any advices how to handle such incidents. 

@Ann190 , just curious, you say, "Since she didn't write a review for us, the negative review for her remains unseen."

I have seen some other hosts say that as well, however I believe a review gets posted also when the other party does not write a review. It just takes to the end of the review period to get posted, which is 14 days. So it would be of interest to know when that guest left, and when the review period started and ended, Then we'd know for sure. Can you say?

Hi @Annette33, the guest left on 3/25 so I should know if the review is posted over the weekend. 

I did not know about the 14 day review period. Thank you for the tip!

yeah, @Ann190,  be patient, so look for your review to get posted on April 9 or so. 

Hi @Annette33, thanks for the note. The negative review has been posted to the guest's account. Thanks!

About the same thing happened to us Ann.  Not only that the guest did not comply with the rules, but beer bottles apparently were placed on the floor and kicked by mistake I guess, the liquid spilled on my laminated floor, and nobody cared about drying it so it got damaged. The walls were all dirty as well. I sent the pictures and the estimate of Ace Hardware, however, Airbnb is requesting an estimate with a letterhead of a company, which I consider ridiculous when I have already told them how much paint and flooring I will need in order to repair the damages. Needless to say that a security deposit should be withhold just because the guest did not comply with the rules as agreed when making the reservation. Needless to say I am very hesitant to accept groups of guest now since I feel myself not backed up by Airbnb as a host. 

I am questioning myself now too, if we should require a security deposit at all, since we might be losing some reservations because some guests cannot come with the money for the security deposit, when at the end, this security deposit is not going to be used when needed. 

 

I'm sorry to hear that @Rita219. It always involves risks when you leave the entire place to the guests who you have never met. In the end, Airbnb sent me $20 for the damaged towls as an "one-time exception" since it's my first resolution center claim. I would not count on Airbnb to back me up and settle the claims in any constructive ways.

 

Now that I think of it, I could have picked up some clues from the conversations with the guest prior to the reservation. The guest said she had a wedding around the corner and wanted to find a place to "prep" for the wedding. This should have sent me a red flag but I decided to take it regardless. 

 

I'm no longer hosting now. Although most guests are cool, it requires too much work and when things happen, hosts are on their own. 

 

I agree completely! The security deposit is useless and may be losing me guests

What you wrote is basically exactly what I just went through. Airbnb denied my claim for financially compensation for the additional cleaning time. I pay a local person to clean vs using a large expensive company with approved letterhead so they said they could not use that "proof". I provided photos but those didn't seem to be enough. We had only a 3.5 hour window (as the guests rudely left late) to clean the home before the next group arrived. Therefore, I ended up helping the house cleaner and sending the next group a message letting them know the house had been trashed and that we were doing our best to get the place ready by their check in time but may have to push the time back. Airbnb saw these emails, yet didn't care. Of course, I didn't have time to get a contractor out to the house that day (with less than 4 open hours) but the repair was not urgent. Yet, damage was made and should be repaired ASAP. Since I am booked all summer with back to back reservations for the next 2 months, I have been unable to get someone out to the house to repair the damage. However I provided an estimate for repairs. Yet, after the photos, messages, review of the guest, estimate for repairs and estimate for cleaning time, Airbnb denied my claim stating "We do our best to fairy and reasonably mediate these cases. In our efforts to be objective, keeping in mind we were not present during the reservation, we must consider all available documentation and communication when coming to a decision which aligns with our policies and procedures. Airbnb reserves the right to make the final determination with regard to these disputes, which is outlined in our Terms of Service. After careful review of the documentation and communication from both parties, we are unfortunately unable to process your security deposit for this reservation. As we mentioned in previous emails, we are unable to reimburse the damage without documentation per our policy." I thought the security deposit and Host Guarantee would protect me and my home. What a joke! The claim experience was absolutely horrible. In doing research I found tons of stories such as mine, your, and those on this thread where Airbnb did not support the host, assist them with property damage, and denied them the security deposit and failed to offered them the host guarantee. 

Thanks for sharing!

I had some similar problems with no explanation of why extra cleaning and trash removal was denied. I just get links to articles which do not address the issues.  I am stuck holding the bag and am concerned about not being covered for future guests as well.