$816 damage. I wonder how this is gonna play out?

Donald28
Level 10
Lithia Springs, GA

$816 damage. I wonder how this is gonna play out?

I had an idiot child of a guest throw a football into my prized $3000 VW dealer neon sign and break it. It's gonna cost $816 to fix. I can't imagine the guest will pay up and sure hope airbnb stands behind me and pays when the guest refuses. 20190627_101549.jpg

17 Replies 17
Ian-And-Anne-Marie0
Level 10
Kendal, United Kingdom

@Donald28 

In this situation, is the guest culpable for the reimbursement or does the guest just need to accept it was their fault and refuse to pay insisting that Airbnb have insurance for these types of things? Have you looked into it?

Kath9
Level 10
Albany, Australia

@Donald28 so sorry this happened. If the guest doesn't pay for this, it technically should be covered by Airbnb but they may well decide not to reimburse you (as the host insurance policy seems to be extremely arbitrary). You'll need to go through all the proper channels i.e. provide photos and quote or receipt for repairs and as soon as possible as i believe you only have a small window of time. Send the guest a request for money through the resolution centre asap and then follow up with Airbnb if they don't pay.  Otherwise, can you claim it on your own home and contents insurance?

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Donald28 

Don, I have said before, when I started to host, a wise person said to me...."Don't put anything out there in the cottage your are not prepared to loose"! 

You go the other way, you are an Airbnb icon, guests come to you because you embody that core Airbnb philosophy ....to provide a genuine Airbnb experience. You have  340+ reviews and most of those are generated around the uniqueness of what you offer Don.

Such rotten luck but it is going to happen.

You are in every probability right....... the guest will say, "well that's what happens when you have guests, accidents happen, that's why you have insurance, claim it on insurance, he is only a kid, he didn't mean to break it!.".......and they will refuse to pay, other than possibly make some token gesture to settle on $50 or some small amount! And if they do that, then that strengthens your hand because they have accepted responsibility! That at least puts the negligence thing in their court, not yours.

 

How this gets handled is, to major extent, is up to you Don. 

 

I feel the best approach is via Twitter. At least that way you will end up in the US with someone who will have a better understanding of your circumstance rather than ending up in the phone pool in Manila! 

You may already be familiar with Twitter Don, but just in case you aren't......

Step 1: Log into Twitter

Step 2: Search for @Airbnbhelp and choose "Follow" them.

Step 3: Send a Direct Message (DM) explaining your issue and wait for their response.  They may ask for information such as your listing but always provide it over DM so it is not public.

 

Staff who man the Twitter feeds are quick to respond, and from what I am told seem to have a higher level of authority than the phone pool. I have no basis for saying that Don, it is purely an observation that has been made by many users over the years.

 

When they respond keep the annoyance under control Don, these people have their patience tested many times every day. Be that 'island' of pleasantness that they can heave a sigh of relief and put their energy into for a while.

Ask them to look at your hosting history, see what you do, maybe even put in that video link, and say to them......."By doing what I do, I bring guests to Airbnb, I am the company's front man here. If I didn't offer with my unique arcade game facility what I do, it would not just be a loss to me it would be a  substantial hit for Airbnb as well.

If this guest refuses to financially cover the cost of repairing this  iconic sign, can you guys cover me here so I can keep on doing this and keep on making Airbnb unique. I don't want to take all the good and uniqueness here to another platform! 

 

Don, it's going to require a bit of patience on your part but, I truly feel you have an excellent opportunity here of having Airbnb cover you regardless of the guest. It's not as though you are trying to hit them up for 5 grand, I am sure they will see the benefits obtained by supporting you far outweigh the reasonable cost you are claiming.

Good luck Don, I would love to know how you get on!

 

Cheers......Rob

I have just done exactly what you said to do. I een used some of your wording. Thanks. I will let you all know how it works out.

 

Kelly149
Level 10
Austin, TX

@Donald28 I hope the guest takes care of it, bc best I recall ABB HG specifically excludes art.

 

Please keep us posted!!

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Kelly149 

You are right about that Kelly, but I really hope Airbnb steps up to the plate here.

Don has put an amazing amount of effort into what he offers, he has a fantastic collection of arcade games which he freely offers to guests and he is becoming a draw-card for Airbnb, and I just hope they can see the value in supporting him here.

If they hide behind that 'artwork' clause I would be so disappointed in the company.

 

Cheers......Rob

Donald28
Level 10
Lithia Springs, GA

I rec'd the response from the guest today. As expected.... they're not paying and refuse to answer the airbnb request for the funds. So now I guess I pay out of pocket to get my sign fixed and wait for airbnb to step in and badger them relentlessly until they finally cave in and pay me a portion of my losses. At least that's what happened when I guest peed on a $1000 mattress and I had to buy a new one within 90 minutes of the next guests arriving. We have to keep airbnbs guests happy at any and all costs right? Can't let them show up and sleep on a peed soaked mattress! But it's ok to make a host to stress out while waiting for a couple months for partial payment!!!  

 

@Robin4  I really appreciate you understanding what I am doing here. You get it! The collection (neon signs, pinball and arcade games) are the reason my airbnb is becoming a "destination" not just a place to sleep. I put my expensive things "out there" so guests can enjoy them. Most do just that... enjoy them. But some people (kids usually) are irresponsible and break stuff. On purpose or not... it doesn't matter.... it's still broken and I still have to repair it. 

 

I made $5036 the month of july with 24 different  reservations &  just 1 night not booked. How much money do you think airbnb made for doing absolutely nothing? I suspect, a lot of money. You are right, they need to keep me happy if they want me to keep putting my collection "out there" for them to profit from. 

 

 

Donald28
Level 10
Lithia Springs, GA

The item is a light for lighting an area. It'd be a long stretch for airbnb to call it "ART" and refuse to pay the claim. 

Kelly149
Level 10
Austin, TX

@Donald28  I hope your review effectively removes this guest from the platform. 

 

 

I had recent guests: their kiddo threw a ball & broke one of the outdoor cafe bulbs. 

They went to the store, bought multiple bulbs & then still told me about it bc it wasn’t an exact match. 5* review even though I still had to replace the bulb bc they tried to do the right thing. 

 

your guest broke something and has refused to take care of it. 1* review bc they figure their mistake should be your problem. Exactly the kind of guest that none of us want. 

sadly I left them a decent review (although would not recommend) in hopes that they would pay for the damage. 

Donald28
Level 10
Lithia Springs, GA

airbnb paid $720 of the $931. I'm out $211. Not too bad considering. 

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Donald28 

I am disappointed Don, I would have hoped they would have supported you fully here as you were not asking for the cost of a space shuttle!

Is that their final offer or is there a bit more 'wiggle room' there? I am glad you are getting somewhere but disappointed they are not fully meeting your repair!

 

Don, a setback, but don't stop doing what you are doing mate, you are what makes the company great!

 

Cheers......Rob

I wonder if the guest would now cover this last bit, since that was part of their original beef (abb insurance has more money than me...) OR did abb withdraw from the guest??

 

glad you received most of it @Donald28 

Airbnb told me I could request the extra monies from her which I did and got this response... 

 

Had you not been so rude and snarky, I would not have a problem paying the difference that you are out after Airbnb covers the repair. The fact that you didn’t even consider using the insurance that was available to you until I requested it coupled with your comments about my laissez-faire attitude and “unruly kid,” I don’t think I will. I was never ugly or rude to you, but you made several comments that were just mean.

 

She is totally deflecting and making excuses. I was never mean or rude to her when we spoke via airbnb messages. I did say she had a laissez-faire attitude about the damage to my sign and had unruly kids though. If I was truly mean or rude, airbnb would have centured me somehow. 

 

I started to shame her on facebook but then realized she is not worth my time. I pulled the photo from my FB account. She (Laura George Segler) sure deserves to be made public but i am not wasting my time doing it.

 

though! 4919ae4e-7ff5-4382-9a8e-9f1a49c23120.jpg