First dirty guest

[Emma681]

Hi, I’m after some advice. I have been hosting for a few years and have just experienced my first real issue. 

The guest have left a soiled sheet on the bed which has soaked through to the protector and been absorbed into the duvet, the  mattress is ok. The other thing is the spare sheet is missing which would indicate to me that there was an issue on more than one occasion and the guest has “removed” the evidence. The soiled sanitary products in the bin confirm the cause of the stains. 

Now i I was thinking learn my lesson, perhaps make better provisions , thank goodness I had double mattress protectors on. But I’m pretty annoyed that a sheet has been taken on top of a ruined set of bedding. The guest had generally been pretty inconsiderate, left taps running and walking dirt in so I was relieved when they left, I did however pick her up when lost and agreed to dump her broken suitcase for her, I feel I have been nice and reasonable but this seems too much. 

So, do I chalk it up to a bad experience and move on or request she compensate me for the bed linens ? 

Also I am not sure how negative I should be with her feedback, I can’t in good conscience recommend her to anyone else. 

[Sandra856]

@Kimberly54 In my opinion I don't think this has anything to do with asking anyone about doing any laundry. In fact no one is asking anyone to do any laundry at all. It is a matter of being a considerate guest. It has nothing to do with money either. Should a host renting out a budget place expect more mess than a PLUS Airbnb? When you leave a key to your home to a stranger it is a matter of trust. Leaving a mess like this is disrespectful. And I do understand why Emma feels disrespected. 

[Matthew465]

That sounds terrible!   And I also had a mystery duvet soiling guest, and when i left a bad review, they went off on this long tangent in response.  Some people are just crazy.  Don’t let them get you down, and  don’t be afraid to leave an accurate review- that’s what I’m learning.   Because its often times these same awful guests, the ones you made one exception after another for, and did special favors for, that will actually have the audacity to leave you a bad review!  After everything you’ve done!   Don’t let guests take adventage of you.  Just keep it factual and try to leave out any negative emotions you’re undoubtedly feeling, without sounding passive-aggressive(like the guest I had, who i had jumped through hoops for trying to please, stated in his review, “kind of noisy upstairs, nothing ear plugs wouldn’t solve!  Would have been nicer to be closer to downtown, but oh well, lovely property!”) If you’re like me, you suffer from chronic niceness, and figure, “why leave a bad review, when they weren’t THAT bad”.  If they were bad enough that you’re pondering whether or not you should leave the bad review, skip the dilemma,  you’re only telling the truth,  leave an accurate review.  Nothing is more exasperating than choosing to not leave a bad review because you’re a nice person, and then looking at their review of you as a host, and seeing that they’ve actually had the nerve to leave YOU a bad rating!!  Never underestimate the audacity of others.   There are just sick people out there.   You don’t even need to get into specifics if you dont want you.  Just leave accurate star ratings,  and then you can click “no” when it asks if you would recommend them to other hosts. If guests leave unfactual reviews, take it up with support, and they will look into having it removed. Thank you!

[Yulianna0]

@Emma681, we all know that things can happen, but normal, respectful guest will tell you about it immediately! So it is easy to clean stains and everything goes on smoothly. I don’t see any excuse for her behavior. And running water can cause big damages. Personally I’ll put it into my review. Pigsty guest has to be flagged! And not bad idea to ask money for extra cleaning. People learn quicker when they pay 

[Mike1034]

@Yulianna0 Well said!

[Jackie378]

I feel like periods are kind of uncontrollable and she was probably mortified and too embarrassed to mention it. Get some spray on stain remover and see if the sheet and duvet is salvageable and move on. If I was food being spilt in the bed or cigarettes being smoked, I would be angry, but period and tracking dirt in... I feel like that’s just part of being a host. 

[Sarah977]

@Emma681 @Kimberly54  Just because menstrual blood is something all women deal with on a monthly basis and that getting it all over someone else's bedding is embarrassing, is zero excuse for not informing the host right away. And just chucking some of the linen, or whatver she did with it is totally not okay.  Responsible adults swallow their embarrassment and do the right thing.. I've had guests have "accidents" and they fessed up immediately, one even saying she didn't want me to have to touch it and to please just show her how the washing machine worked and if I had any special washing/stain directives.

I would leave an honest review (of course not specifically mentioning the nature of the mess), and definitely request payment for anything irretrievably ruined and the missing items.

[Sandra856]

Couldn't agree more!! If I mess up I pay. These are grown up women. 

[Kath9]

@Emma681, I agree with @Sarah977,. She should have told you about it rather than try and hide the evidence and throw away a sheet. If that had been the only thing, I would MAYBE put it down to her embarassment and let it go. But combined with the other things, especially leaving the tap on twice, warrants a bad review. @Kimberly54, I can't agree with you that this is a small thing. I'd be furious if a guest left a tap running all night. Water is expensive and scarce, not to mention the risk of flooding. Tracking dirt into the house can happen but not if people remove their shoes or wipe their feet, which is the normal and considerate thing to do. Airbnb hosts are not slaves! Emma, please do not leave a good review or recommend this guest.

[Kimberly54]

@Kath9, @Emma681, @Sarah977 and all, I am truly surprised at how hard you folks are with attitudes about guests.  And this hardness is with such passion.  "Furious?"  Holy smokes, folks, stuff happens!  Not everyone deals with confessions/confrontations well.  Poor decisions can happen.  Not to rate this guest at all would be far kinder than a poor rating. 

And we're basing this "advice" on what kind of data?  HOW MUCH WATER?  Seriously.  Emma didn't say if it was a drip, a trickle, or full-out open flow.  She never mentioned anything about flooding the place, but now at least two posts have suggested flooding. Flooding (unless that detail was omitted) DID NOT HAPPEN.  So there was some wasted water.  And if you're an absentee owner, things like water waste can surely happen.  Heck, if you're an absentee owner a lot worse could have happened.  Nothing in Emma's report indicated a malicious or abusive guest.  Shy, embarrassed, maybe not as pristine as could be (wait... didn't she clean her own dishes?)  You guys are a tough crowd.  

As for the process of bringing dirt in, unless you observe the traditional Japanese custom--remove shoes, SUPPLY THE GUEST with slippers (yes, a lot of cultures seem to miss this step, and it is a critical one--super rude to ask a guest to take off their shoes and have nothing on their feet), wipe all you like, dirt will still get tracked in.  I have mats inside and outside of EVERY door, and guess what?  Stuff still gets in!  It happens.  You're going to be cleaning it up anyway, right?  If you don't like doing it yourself, get help.  Life is messy; clean it up. 

The philosophy of "home sharing" and cultural exchange has been lost to unmatched expectations and a sense of entitlement--very possibly on both sides.  No one "deserves" anything.  It's earned--with every interaction.  And if you are an absentee owner, you have a little hotel, and hotels are often not treated kindly.  Especially the cheap ones.

[Sandra856]

@Kimberly54 Are you a host yourself? I don't see any reviews on your profile so I'm a little confused? 

[Kath9]

@Kimberly54, yes, furious. I don't know what the situation is with water in San Diego, but here it is a precious commodity and if a guest left a tap running, not once but twice, especially after it being mentioned, I would consider this entirely inconsiderate and disrespectful. My Airbnb is a homeshare and I do consider it a cultural exchange and entirely different to a hotel. I have complete strangers staying in my home nearly every night and it takes respect on both sides. My accommodation is very economical and I would be upset about unnecessarily wasted water (not just for economical reasons) and loss of good bedding. I realise that accidents happen, but to leave the tap running? That is just not normal. As @Sandra856 said, maybe you haven't had enough guests to know that some are now treating our homes with complete entitlement and disrespect. 

@Emma681, I also have tampons and pads available for guests in the room in case anyone is caught out.  

[Kimberly54]

@Kath9, I apologize to have offended you.

[Kath9]

@Kimberly54, no offence taken, honestly. It's just that guests are becoming more and more entitled as time goes on and it will become really difficult to continue offering budget accommodation if guests keep abusing the system. Luckily, most of my guests have been great, but I have had some take advantage and it really doesn't sit well! 

[Kimberly54]

@Sandra856, I only have two reviews on this forum (both 5*s).  I have either hosted or been a guest throughout my entire life.  This is how I was raised.  My property is currently on SNOOZE.

[Sandra856]

@Kimberly54 But I don't see any reviews from guests you have hosted on your profile? You can snooze your listing but reviews will still appear on your profile.

It is a little strange to get advice on how to act as a host from someone who has never really had guests who couldn't give a crap about you or your home. Acting like hillbillies. I have had to contact airbnb several times because of guests behaving horrible. I think I'm quite fair and square trying to be a good host.

But some guests are weird and/or inconsiderate. It really has nothing to do with "being born or raised as a host?".