Bizarre Guests

[David1193]

We've been hosting a nice condo in the USA NE for about 8 months, and we have all five star reviews.  On Father's day we had a guest and her two friends scheduled for arrival for what they called "either 5 or 6 pm "  for a two-day visit.  Our house rules are 3-6 pm check-in.  Our guests indicated they would contact us 45 minutes prior to their arrival so we could check them in and provide keys.  At approximately 5:30 pm the guest contacted me and said they had not done socializing with some friends at a party from our so they would arrive around 7pm.  At 730pm they contacted me and said they would arrive

around 7pm.  At 730 pm they contacted me and said they would be there at 815.  I met them, showed them the condo etc. As I started to leave I noticed two more guests walking towards the condo, one more guest than was authorized.  It was around 845pm and dark but I noticed none of the guests had luggage, tote bags or purses etc.  I left the area and approximately 90 minutes later I rec'd a msg through airbnb from the guest indicated she had discovered "feces" in the toilet and "feces" on the hand towels.  As I had just been in the condo with the guests, had cleaned the condo myself, my heart sank as I knew I had a problem as these complaints were bogus.  The rest of the guest msg indicated due to the late hour of their check- in (which they created) they would spend the night in my condo but felt they shouldn't pay for a second night due to the "feces".  I live near the condo in a small town and felt troubled so I called the police and asked if an officer could meet me at the condo.  I drove to the condo, spoke to the guests and noticed they were eating fried chicken /fries take out on our sofa.  There was no luggage in the condo.

The guest showed me to the bathroom which was immaculate and said she had cleaned up the mess and decided not to photograph.  I noticed one hand towel with a brown substance on it.  When the police arrived the guest admitted the condo was clean upon their arrival but that someone must have broke into the condo and soiled the toilet and towels while they were out grabbing dinner.  The officer pressed the guest asking her how she cleaned up the mess and she indicated she used toilet paper.  The toilet paper roll still contained a full roll of paper.  The officer made some documentation on their vehicle etc. and the guests said they were leaving.  The officer then proceeded to check the condo and the vicinity and found no sign of forced entry into the condo either at the outer door or residence door (two different keys).  The officer told me it was obvious to him the guests had no intentions on staying in the condo.  I contacted Airbnb, they were very helpful; however, the guest began to send rambling messages through the Airbnb site one of which stating her father had died that morning and she was being mistreated (Airbnb advised me to document the facts via a msg to the guest which I had and the guest was responding).   When the officer had arrived the guest told him her father was a police officer in a certain place and she had the highest respect for the police.  Later that evening I checked that Department's Association website and confirmed the guest's father had died 18 months earlier. Airbnb stated the guest wanted a full two-day refund and asked me if I'd accept 1/2 of the two-day rate and I agreed and Airbnb refunded 1/2.

When my wife checked the condo the next day we noticed the guests had consumed some complimentary chocolate but spit it out into the trash. This was the source of the brown stain on the towel. Even though the guests had only been in the condo for a couple of hours, we had the condo re-cleaned and sanitized.  I am not conflicted about leaving a bad review but I don't look forward to the retaliatory review I know will be waiting for me.  

On another note, I have only had great people utilize my condo via Airbnb from all over the world.  Every time I check someone in and return home my wife asks me "How were the guests"?  On this particular night I told my wife that I did not have a "warm and fuzzy about these guests".  Basically they ruined my father's day as I spent almost five hours that evening dealing with them.  No doubt they did not expect the police to arrive and I feel that's when they decided to depart the area immediately.

I also feel they had either found other accommodations or were trying to scam me out of the rent with veiled threats to leave neg feedback regarding feces in the condo.  Airbnb advised that in the future if a guest begins to push the check in time later and later and I'm not comfortable with that advise them of a certain "deadline" arrival time. If that is not met, advise the guest they'll need to look for other accommodations, as you won't be able to check them in. They told me not to "cancel" the reservation, but call them and advise them of the circumstances.  

The guest has yet to write a review..I plan on writing a non emotional review, just the facts etc.  Just throwing this out there as I'm a novice..thanks

[Annette33]

@David0, o wow.... you handled it very well! Hopefully such guests will never show up again!
Glad to hear you are going to write a review. I would try not to make it too long.
Don't worry about a retaliatory review: they cannot see yours before they write theirs - if they even do! And you'll always have the last word on your own pag

[John806]

Wow that's one insane story lol bless you for dealing with them!

[Lyndsey2]

Thank you so much for sharing your story. I would not have thought to call the police straight away but now hopefully I will think of it if a similar situation ever occurs. Makes perfect sense... either they were trying to steal from you or someone had broken into your property. I think you handled it brilliantly. Your listing is also lovely and I will add it to my wish list. 

I also employ the tactic of advertising that I will check the ID of all guests. And I think emphasizing that the host lives very nearby is also helpful in discouraging the wrong kind of guest.

[Judy162]

What a horrible experience.  I feel so sorry for you to have to handle this all.  I have never had this happen and hope I never do.  I let people come in very late since I live here.  I think you did a great job handling it, David.  Especially since its the first time.  I know you learned a lot and so did I.  I hope none of us ever experience this again.  What a nightmare.  I agree with the rule about no extra guests at the last minute and all the late calls were so rude.  Some of us need the money and we agree sometimes for that reason.  Good luck in the future.  My Best to you, Judy

[Eugene28]

My first guest was a prostitute. She said she was a massage therapist. (Duh right?) she even brought in a table which looked like it was for that occupation. I let it slid with one person until she started to bring in more men all hours of the night. Her friends would be on my couch all the time as well. As soon as I told her there is too much traffic she packed her things and left quick! So I learned quickly to raise the days to at least two nights (might
Raise it again after this blog) and to state no locals! Locals bring friends and family around. I also jacked up the guest fee to 75$ (and that might go up again) but overall the extra income is worth the trouble. Can't complain too much. (There is also something wrong with the writing cursor in this site. It disappears so it's forcing me to us notepad)😳

[Dale-and-Kim0]

One of my first guests was a prostitute, too!  We were using AIRBnB's smart pricing, which set us way too low, like in the Motel6 range.  She told me that she stays in a lot of AIRBnB's.  Should have been my first clue.  She booked for herself and her child, but I didn't see the kid.  She asked if it was alright to have a friend come over, I said okay, but only to visit, not for the night as they weren't in the reservation.  She then had two friends come over, one of whom took a shower and left the towels put back on the rack and folded as if they were unused.  I'm glad I felt them, they were damp.  Now, I've learned to just assume everything is dirty and wash & sanitize it if it's sitting out.  They slept on top of the comforters, so they had to be washed, too.  She left behind a bag of groceries, which I refrigerated for her for 3 days until she meandered around to pick them up, and a bottle of chocolate syrup and a tube of personal lubricant.  She later sent me a message, "accidentally," she said, asking if I would babysit her four-year-old while she went on a "date."  She left the apartment looking clean, but I sanitized everything anyway.