Guests said bedding had lots of blood stains, but I am suspicious

[Paul993]

I have an apartment for work that I just started renting on weekends when I’m not there. I’ve only had 3 bookings and only 1 good experience, so am feeling like it isn’t worth it.

My last booking used instant book and wrote a mostly good review, with a mishap, but then gave me 2 stars for cleanliness and 3 stars overall. A few hours after check in, they sent me photos of the sheets and pillows that were covered in what they said were blood stains. The strange thing about this was that I made the bed myself that morning and did not notice any stains at all. If it had been 1 or 2 small specs, I would have believed it, but this was the entire top half of the sheet and both pillows that were sprayed with something reddish. I did have brand new sheets and pillows delivered, but was never able to inspect the original bedding, because they threw it out. The bedding in question had only been used once and was bleached on a hot wash before I made the bed. (I really do think I would have noticed it).

Secondly, they still kept the same comforter on the bed and did not use the spare one, which I thought was unusual. If it was me, I would not want to use that comforter either. They also mentioned in the review that it was blood, but it could have also been wine, make up or something else. They didn’t touch any of the towels I put out, but then later mentioned to AirBNB that the towels were not clean either. I know this is a flat out lie, because the towels were freshly bleached/laundered and had no stains at all. I also made sure to closely inspect them after they checked out. On another note, this guest was quite demanding, wanting early check in, (which I allowed free of charge). They then asked to stay an extra night the morning of the check out, which I declined due to the apartment not being available. They did say really nice things about the apartment, but complained about the long walk to the car and then gave me 6/10 for their stay.

My gut tells me they had a spill and were worried about me taking money from the deposit I required. I also think they might have been shopping for some kind of discount or free night, but I wasn’t going to offer this, because I was suspicious about the whole thing. It really upsets me that someone can write a review like this and then the onus is on the host to prove otherwise.

This is only my third time hosting. My first guests (no reviews, but we promise to look after the apartment) trashed the place, left used frying pans on the stove, and used every glass and cup which they then left all over the apartment. They also left all their food and leftovers in the fridge along with their stinking trash. Bathroom and bedroom had towels and bedding on the floor and the bed was pulled away from the wall with pillows shoved between the bed and the wall. They also left the heating on and back door unlocked. While I charge a small cleaning fee, which goes towards overall weekly cleaning costs, I felt that this was out of line.

My second load of guests were perfect, left the place spotless and even washed their towels.

After AirBNB sent me all these emails about my 1 bad review and cleanliness, I decided to remove instant book,  because I want to screen guests and get their ID. Of course, they make it as difficult as possible to remove and then send me threats that I will show up lower in search rankings. I really only do this to help subsidize the apartment I use for work. I feel like that with the amount of prep involved and guests just taking advantage of my hospitality, it really doesn’t seem worth it overall.

I attached photos of the stains that I apparently didn’t notice on the bedding.

[Paul154]

 @Paul993

Very sorry you've been having bad luck.

It sucks. 

Have you been a landlord before? It can be tough at times. You learn little tricks over time.

You will get better at getting better guests.  

One step you can do is put up your face picture and round out your blurp.

Become a person.  It may seem unneccesary, but it is helpful to humanize the business transaction.

That said, being a host is not for everyone.  There are a million better and easier ways to make money.   Good luck

[Pete28]

Bleh. Use dark colored sheets so they don't show the blood 🙂 ? 

Airbnb is such a crap shoot - I only rent out my lower level so I keep an eye on stuff, but even then I get bad parking, garbage left outside, vaping, canabis and smoking, extra people, piles of washing up not done, partying at 3am etc etc. And they know I'm upstairs, 6 feet away...

You might want to increase price, make it clear you live nearby (even if you don't), and make sure you meet people when they arrive and walk over condition of unit with them.

Unless you really need the money, I wouldn't rent out somewhere if I wasn't resident. Just too much stuff can and will go wrong for $100ish.

[Sarah977]

@Paul993   You say you "think" you would have noticed the stains. Is that just a form of speech or is there any doubt in your mind that you really might not have noticed?  I don't see how anyone could have missed those when making up a bed, so you probably didn't, your listing looks immaculate, so I don't get the impresion you're careless, but for all I know you were in a rush and not an observant person. 

What's weird to me is that the guests threw the sheets away in the garbage. It's not okay for guests to dispose of sheets, towels, or anything else in the listing. That's not their call. They could have just stuffed them in a garbage bag for you to deal with. I suspect the guests damaged the sheets themselves and then made up a story, which would be an explanation for why they threw them away- it would be pretty obvious if those were fresh blood marks or ones that had already gone through a wash.

Yes indeed, this may not be the best thing for you, listing on airbnb. A lot of people go into it thinking they'll be able to subsidize their rent when they're not there, but as you've found out, it's really not just easy money. It's almost a job in itself and off-site hosting seems to be full of pitfalls that you may not have the time or interest to bother with.

[Paul993]

@Sarah977 I have no doubt that the guest did this, but I have no proof. I agree, it was not her call to throw out the sheets. I’m going to try and contact AirBNB and take it up with them, but I don’t see me doing this for the long term.

[Fred13]

@Paul993 Considering that you do not 'have' to do this (financially), perhaps follow your gut instincts; hosting will only work ~IF~ you get good guests, not hustlers which it 'sounds' like these people were to some extend (the throwing away the sheets was way too weird). So give that a shot before throwing in the towel. Be selective and cautious at first; host on your terms and see what happens. Good luck.

[Michelle-And-Michael0]

Hi @Paul993 I'm so sorry you had this experience so soon into your Hosting. 

Your place looks lovely, well kept and clean. I've read the review that the guest left you, and in my opinion it really just seems to be a cover up for their own really bad behaviour! 

The first thing I thought of when I saw the photos of the blood, is that someone has obviously had a cut or sore that bled through the night as they rolled around in the bed. In your guests review, she says that they didn't find the stains until AFTER 'they rolled around in the bed'!! That's just totally unbelievable.... these stains would have been very obvious from the beginning! 

If you do decide to keep hosting.... my only suggestion would be to be a little more passive/aggressive in your response to their review. Other potential guests will see both the guests review, and your response to it.... and from that alone, they will conclude who they think was responsible for the blood. 

All the best 🙂