Guest confirmed for my 1 person occupancy -- and wants to bring roommate

[Emily43]

I am hosting for the first time this summer, and confirmed a reservation with a student who is subleasing my apartment for the summer. It is a 1 person occupancy on the listing, and I explained this over our messages as well. The tenant confirmed the reservation, but messaged me today saying he wants to bring a roommate. I said absolutely not, and am getting quite a bit of pushback. 

Any suggestions? 

[Juliette11]

Dear Emily,

I am sorry to hear about this situation. I would tell her that it is not allowed to stay here with 2 guests. If you have set your cancellation policy on strict, you can tell her to cancel the booking and you will still receive 50% of the money. This gives you the chance of finding another tenant for the summer. I would also advice to contact Airbnb already, so they can speak to the guest directly. They will be on your side! 

[Dede0]

Two almost opposite suggestions:

Since your listing uses the Flexible cancellation policy, you'll get nothing if the guest cancels. So, I have to ask... given that you've listed a 1-bedroom space, how much would it really matter to you if 2 guests shared the space? Could you live with that?

On the other hand, the guest knew (or should have known) what they were booking, and that was a 1-person-only space. So, hold your ground. Do NOT cancel the booking yourself, as AirBnB will ding you in many ways for that. Instead, hold your ground (with strong, clear, brief messages to the guest, for the record) and let the guest cancel if they insist on bringing a friend. If they don't cancel and then do show up with the second person, contact AirBnB and have them kick the guest out for violations of your listed policies.

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