Advice to those who charge a pet fee who have trouble collecting

[Suzanne302]

Well, I tried! When I first started out (I'm still pretty new to hosting) I learned quickly that guests are quick to accept refunds, and slow to accept "extra" charges via the resolution center or the "change reservation" feature. Yes, most of the time they eventually pay, but not without reminders and prodding and even threats of not being able to check-in if the pet fee isn't paid.

So, I added the pet fee into my cleaning fee and gave a REFUND to guests who did not bring a dog. This worked beautifully, although I wondered if it made my listing seem too expensive to those who didn't pay attention.

So I switched back. And guests never fail to disappoint me! The first guest with a dog after the switch ignored the pet fee altogether even though it was clearly documented in my rules and via our messages. Still trying to get payment for that one. Second guest still has not paid the pet fee even though we have exchanged messages since the request was sent. They will NOT be allowed to check-in until it is paid.

So......I'm going back to including the pet fee in the cleaning fee and offering refunds. When I offer a refund, the guest accepts within MINUTES!

Airbnb, IT'S BEEN ASKED FOR FOR YEARS SO ADD A PET FEE OPTION ALREADY....PLEASE!

[Kendra19]

Hi, I am fairly new to all this. You said AirBNB does not actually collect the security deposit?  How does it work if I need to keep the security deposit?  Thanks

[Lizzie]

Hello @Suzanne302, @Letti0, @Jim-and-Marcia0, @Ali40, @Emilia42,

Thanks Suzanne for starting this conversation. I know that having the ability to add a pet fee or extra fee in general is a high priority for you and other community members and so from a personal point of view it would be wonderful to see this feature added. 

It was touched upon at the last Q&A and it was mentioned that there are quite a few different things the team need to think about when implementing this kind of feature. 

This got me thinking, how would you and others like to see this implemented, taking into account the different booking processes and occassions when you might need to add an extra fee?

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Suzanne302]

@Lizzie  There are two types of pet fees I've seen from hosts. Some charge extra per night, and others, like myself, just charge a flat fee.

For those who charge a flat fee, I think a simple check box for the guest during the reservation process would make things soooo much easier...

"Are you bringing a pet?" Check yes, pet fee is automatically added to the total. Boom, you're done!

I think the main issue many of us have is the extra "work" required to collect the fee. First we have to explain to the guest that we have to request the fee separately. Then we have to make the request and then the guest has to accept the request. The fewer the steps the guest has to take, the better!

[Joy209]

Hi Lizzie .. I am very new to AirBnB hosting but things are going well and I am enjoying the immediate results and trying to figure every thing out.  One is about pet policy, where I have said no pets, a guest was accepted.  That confused me and I can only think, the guest did not read my rules, or choose not to?  Either way, this occassion we worked it out but I do not wish for this to become a common occurance or problem as I am reading here.  Currently I do not charge any cleaning fee.  I see a lot about it is being discussed here and if guests are bringing pets I do want to know prior to their arrival. 

Other wise, there is a doggie hotel almost across the street from my home and I may need to send them there to first check in their pet.

.. Joy

[Emilia42]

@Lizzie - 

@Suzanne302 has probably thought a lot more about this but what first comes to my mind is adding a pet fee as you would add an extra person fee. When searching, guests could indicate that they are traveling with a pet and the fee would be built into the price breakdown. They would have to confirm pet or no pet just as they would confirm 2 people or 4 people. Messaging would be used to confirm the exact type of pet if necessary.

[Lizzie]

Thanks @Emilia42, it is great to hear your thoughts on this. Do you also think there should be the ability to add it at a later stage, say after the booking has been made? 

[Emilia42]

Yes, just as extra people can be added (and the price reflected according) to a confirmed reservation, a pet (and the fee) can be added as well. Adding this after the fact would be an important component.

[Medina9]

In my experience, this does not work.  I am new to hosting and allowed pets.  The charge I stated under house rules were that if you brought your pet just add them as an extra guest.  An extra guest is a $10.00 fee.  I've had two different guest so far who brought pets and neither of them added them as a guest.  I just lost out on that money.  The last guest brought a medium size beagle, no crate (which I state they have to be crated) and the dog slept in the bed with them leaving dirty marks and dog hair in my nice clean white organic sheets.  I did not appreciate one bit!  After they left, I went in and changed the policy to NO PETS.  I can't image if that dog had fleas what kind of infestation that would have left in the bed or the house!

[Suzanne302]

@Medina9  Since I made this post a looooong time ago (haha!) I changed my policy and I collect the pet fee through the resolution center.

I'm very clear that the pet fee must be paid prior to arrival and as a homeshare host, this is easy to enforce. Literally, if it's not paid, they do not enter my property!

[Annette76]

I was thinking of making  the pet fee as the extra guest fee.  My place is $99 per night for 1 or 2 people. It’s not really set up for more than that because it is an open loft, no separate bedroom. So if they plan to bring a dog I would add a $10 per night extra guest fee. As my place is mostly weekenders then the pet fee would be $20 most of the time. 

Does this sound plausible? 

[Kathleen302]

I agree with you, @Suzanne302! It's so much more work to have to message back and forth, request via resolution center, and then have to send constant reminders to go in and accept the additional fee. After my last guest with a dog dodged paying the fee (Airbnb finally collected it from them), I have updated my rules to state that the fee must be paid prior to check-in or there will be no access to the house.

@Lizzie, I think @Emilia42 has the right approach. I currently charge an additional $10 per night per pet. If this could be built to be a separate line similar to number of guests, where they can select how many pets will be accompanying them and the rate automatically adjusts as it does for extra people. Having the ability to add or adjust at a later stage is critical, because I envision guests not putting accurate numbers in, just as they do for guests to dodge extra fees. Hosts would need to be able to modify the reservation to reflect the correct number of pets just as they do number of guests. Having a separate security deposit line item for pets would also be ideal.

Having this feature would save so many headaches and also confusion on the guest side as well. It's not only a hassle for hosts but also for guests, since those traveling with pets are used to paying additional and typically have no problem with it to begin with - it's easier for them to  pay once for everything rather than feel "nickel and dimed" by hosts requesting more money after booking.

[Suzanne302]

That's exactly it @Kathleen302! It's just too many steps right now.

[Lizzie]

Thanks @Annette76, @Kathleen302 and @Suzanne302, it is great to hear more of your thoughts on this. 

I often see here in the CC, that many host would like the ability to add an extra fee. Do you think you could make the pet fee, based on what you have outlined above, a more general one to incorporate more situations, or do you think this might cause confusion to the guest?

[Janet394]

Thanks for engaging in this conversation.

Personally, I love pets, and when travelling, do look for places that are pet-friendly.  So that's why I decided that small dogs will be allowed in our flatlet.

However, I'm beginning to think that I need to reconsider that decision due to the extra cleaning involved in trying to get rid of dog urine smells. 

The others involved in this conversation have all made some valid points and suggestions, and hopefully changes are in effect soon.

[Ivana61]

Yep, cleaning and size. What is small dog? Age or weight...