Guest claiming ants

[Ebrahim11]

Hi everyone,

The guest claimed ants suddenly shpwed up and covered her entire bag that did not have any food in!! No photo from her. And I could not find a single ant! I believe she is lying to see if I could refund her so she doesn't leave a bad review. What should I do?!!

[Anonymous]

@Ebrahim11  You've done your due diligence by inspecting the home, and you should confirm this in the Airbnb messenger in case you need a paper trail. If the stay is in progress, and the guest is unhappy, you can persuade her to leave by offering a booking alteration and refunding the unused nights. 

If the guest only complained after the stay was complete, she's probably trying to scam you for money. Don't offer any. But there's also a mental disorder called delusional parisitosis, which causes the patients (mostly women, for reasons unknown to science) to experience visceral hallucinations of bug infestations. It's rare in the general population, but not uncommon for people living with schizophrenia or meth addiction. I know someone who has this symptom sometimes, and even though they're very well aware of their psychosis diagnosis, it's impossible to persuade this person that the ants aren't real when it's happening. You'll probably never know for sure whether this guest was lying or delusional, so when it comes time to review, just stick to the facts without speculation.

[Fred13]

Was the fact the bag she was talking about says 'Dunkin Donuts' on it, is what gave her away? 

Say @Ebrahim11 you do have a most interesting price structure and in the long run may bring you grief, or not what you intended. You have 1-8 guests welcomed tom your place for $400 total, yet the 9th & 10th are charged $35 extra. Why not charge all along the way, meaning start say at $400 for the first couple (2) and jump by $25 every person after that. If 8 come that is $400 + $150 (6 x $25=$150) = $550.

In essence what you are presently appealing to a certain clientele at $400, which is probably a good one, BUT by rolling out a mat for 6 more guests to come for 'free' you are guaranteeing yourself to now appeal to a different clientele, meaning one only wanting to pay $50 per person on the average a day ($400 / 8).  In fact the '$400 guest' that makes the reservation may not be able to afford that at all, may be a $50 a day wonder that knows he could get many of his cohorts to join. Hmm 8-10 people in that nice place of yours would get me nervous, which makes me think of the word 'party'.

I also get the impression you rather have 8 maximum; if so, stick to it - the larger the group the more the problems that tend to materialize.

Just a thought and good luck.