[Hosting] Guests ruined my apartment and AirBnB does not back me up

[Laurens14]

AIRBNB HOSTS BEWARE: January 1st I walked into my own house to find it COMPLETELY RUINED by AirBnB guests. COCAINE on the tables, pungent WEED smell, a wool carpet (which I inherited) full of STAINS and BURNED SPOTS (my house could have literally been burned down to the ground) and a COUCH THAT WAS PEED on. TOTAL DAMAGE over 2.000 EURO. The guests did not respond anymore after confronting them.

AirBnB always communicates that they are insured for cases like this and that they will help you out as a host. In my case they only got to action after 3 weeks of calling them every day and compensated me for a fraction of the material damage. I advise you to read the terms & conditions of AirBnB very carefully. From my experience, this is in no way worth it. The extra money is fun, until something like this happensCarpet and sofa that was peed onThe apartment was left with all kinds of hard drugsBurned marks on the wool rug

[Richard1850]

Wow....

this is very disturbing to see as a fellow host in Amsterdam. I have been hosting my own home during travels for quite some time now and was always under the impression that if anything like this would happen that Airbnb would compensate. Airbnb pushes very strongly to let you automatically accept all guests. Even though the guests behavior is shocking, what disturbs me the most is the attitude of Airbnb not backing you up. Airbnb sells this image of a secure base/platform but when the **bleep** hits the fan they are no where to be found. @Laurens14 , keep us updated on the response/coverage of the damage. If they do not handle this the way they should i will be looking for an other platform.

Good luck @Laurens14 

[Laurens14]

Thanks Richard.

Very valido points you are making there on the pushing of guests. There is quite some risk in it as I unfortunately had to find out.

I will keep you guys posted on how the case evolves.

[Danielle476]

Oh my goodness - I'm so sorry you're going through this, and I'm disgusted that people would so flagrantly disrespect someone's home like this.  I've had the misfortune of dealing with two nightmare guests during my time as a host, but experienced nowhere near this level of damage.  In both cases, AirBNB reimbursed me 100% for the damages - though I admit I had original receipts for everything that was broken and understand that this may not always be the case.

I really hope they come through for you, as this is horrifying.  If they don't, you'd do well to take this to Twitter and tag them as much as you can.  Those photos are abhorrent and I'm sure they wouldn't want them associated with their 'image'.  Best of luck to you moving forward, keep us posted on how it goes.

[Laurens14]

Hi Danielle, thanks. I always assume the good of people but this experience made me doubt if I shouldn't be more careful. Thanks for the advice. I still hope AirBnB will step in and take responsibility.

[Eva1940]

I must say this is very shocking as I was always under the impression that airbnb would cover you should you experience anything like this. The material damage is something that can be dealt with easily and I would assume that a platform as airbnb would take full responsibility. The emotional damage is of a whole different level. This is a violation of your private home and I can imagine it takes a while to feel at home again. Not getting everything reimbursed makes it even worse. I will now think twice before I will list my home again. Good luck Laurens, I hope they will follow up on you. 

[Laurens14]

Hi Eva, it is a indeed a real invasion on your privacy since you live in the place. I am currently discussing a new proposal. However all this takes time. Thanks anyways!

[Danielle476]

You really shouldn't count on a hosting platform to cover incidents of loss or damage 100%.  You should have rental insurance in addition to whatever AirBNB may/may not choose to cover - lest you be left footing the entire bill!  It's unfortunate that they market their 'Host Guarantee' in a way that makes it appear as though they'll cover any damage, no questions asked.  Always read the fine print!

[Susan17]

@Danielle476 

"It's unfortunate that they market their 'Host Guarantee' in a way that makes it appear as though they'll cover any damage, no questions asked

That's not "unfortunate" - it's deliberately deceptive. 

[Danielle476]

@Susan17 Well yeah, obviously.  That's why it's unfortunate.

[Susan1404]

@Laurens14if you do much searching on these forums for this sort of damage occurrence, you will discover that the majority of hosts who have suffered thru this type of incident did NOT have good luck with Airbnb compensating for the actual amount of damage done.  Like @Danielle476 stated above, it is wise to carry your own insurance as a back-up because you cannot count on Airbnb.  I carry full coverage on my guest cabin because of all I've read thru here.  I'm so sorry you had such horrendous damage and it does make you very distrustful. 

[Laurens14]

Hi guys, thank you for all the replies. Unfortunately AirBnB only refunded about 1/3rd of the damage and I will have to fund it myself.

In the last email from the CEO AirBnB writes in bold letters: "when something goes wrong, AirBnB will be there for you". Well, not so much.

I am really disappointed and will spread the word on how AirBnB treats its hosts.

[Alex-And-Rhea0]

@Laurens14  Hi! This is very disturbing, I was under the impression that Airbnb would actually have your back in these cases but I can see I was wrong.

How many reviews did these people have?

Do you greet them before they check-in?

Don't they verify their ID with Air Bnb?

I mean this is shocking, can the police do anything about the damage to your place?

I've been lurking in these forums as I am thinking about declining people with no reviews, but have to say I hope you can right this terrible situation. Good luck mate.

[Trevor243]

It's always bad when things like this happen. Luckily, as responsible hosts, we have insurance on our properties to cover damage like this ....

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Laurens14 

The damage inflicted on your property is inexcusable.

If this was a child causing the damage he/she would be chastised by the parents in such a way that such damage would not happen again. THIS is what Airbnb should do. They should chastise the guest in such a way that they do not do it again. You should be entitled to the full replacement cost of your damaged items and the guests should be prosecuted for wilful damage, this fully paid for by Airbnb.

Airbnb has a reputation which attracts guests who know they can avoid responsibility.

Frankly... STUFF the idea of depreciating furnishings and remedial work. Good quality furnishings don't need replacing if cared for, electrical goods don't need changing if they work and remedial work doesn't need doing unless damage is caused. The consequencies of irresponsible guests should not be the financial burden of hosts.

When you place your home available for rent on Airbnb you place it there accepting the responsibility for its state. You place it as available open to public criticism and negative reviews should the furnishings, decoration and ammenities not be up to an acceptable standard. That standard is higher than many guests keep in their own homes. No host will offer their let which is only 30% acceptable. 

YOUR PAYOUT FROM AIRBNB IS AN INSULT  !

I know of no other platform which makes the responsibility of guest damage the hosts liability.

Airbnb do promote a despicable business model, if ever you need to find an irrevocably broken business set up it is right here.

Coercive review system.

Double standards on 'standards'.

Hosts pay for Airbnb customer loyalty - even though they are found to be scroats.

A solution pathway which deters from their own terms of service in fact, and overidden by 'help' notes.

Very, very, very sorry about the damage you incurred, the losses you incurred for unaccountable time and effort and the 70% (marketing) charge you incurred for all your inconvenience and for the purchase of market share by Airbnb by them not 'smacking the hand' of their obnoxious guests.