What is a fair "guest showed up with a pet despite my 'no pet' policy" charge?

[Erling2]

Hello, 

My guest just checked in and informed me that he has a kitten with him. He wants to keep it inside but has said he will keep it in his car for the duration of his six night stay. He says he didn't think about it when booking and this is his first stay with AirBnB. That being said, I'm not upset and I'd rather an animal be indoors than think about a kitten in a car for a week. So he's offered to pay an extra fee and I've agreed. What seems fair? 

Consider:

I charge $18-ish USD per night. Minimum 6 night booking. He is staying for six nights. I live in the house and have a roommate, but he has assured that he will keep the kitten in the room, in the cat carrier while he is not home. 

I'm thinking $5 USD per day? Or just a flat fee of $30? I want to be fair but also, this is a business/income source for me and it isn't fair for someone to put me in this position without recourse. It is not what we bargained for and I likely won't know of any damage/extra cleaning until he has checked out. 

Thank you! 

Erling 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Erling2 

in theory, if the guest breaks or intends to break your house rules (no pets for example) then you can cancel penalty free but should call Airbnb and let them cancel for you. This is in theory... in practice, some hosts said they were penalized anyway by disabling their instant booking option and search ranking.

Regarding pet's fee - In Croatia, usually, some hosts don't charge it at all and some charge 10 € / stay. My friend goes on skiing in France, Austria, and Italy and usually, she pays 10€ / day for her small dog.

Maybe you could research pet fees in your area and see.

[Erling2]

Hi everyone!

I REALLY appreciate all the replies and want to take a moment to update. I failed to mention that I have a cat in the house! My baaaaaaaad! 🙂 So allergies are not a concern, per se, but the inevitable "my cat would never do that, oh my gosh I can't believe he did that" situation is my biggest concern. I spoke with the guest and reached out to AirBnB. 

The guest was apologetic from the start, and I will make my posting clear near the top that pets are not allowed. He also agreed to pay $30 total for an extra charge and gave me his word that if there are any additional charges, he will pay them, no questions asked. I'm a trusting person because I believe I get a good feel of trustworthiness fairly quickly, which is possible because I live on-site, and I'm willing to get burned rather than take a more cynical view of people. I explained my previous disaster-hosting-experience and he was very sympathetic and reassuring. 

Additionally, I asked AirBnB for advice and they said I would have to submit a claim. I figured as much and I had already started to get great answers from all of you, but I figured I would reach out anyway just to create a paper trail should a claim end up being necessary. 

Thanks again for all the thoughtful responses! 

Cheers! 

Erling 

[Suzanne302]

@Erling2 

I would charge a flat fee that you're comfortable with. $30 seems fair. Sometimes a flat fee "sounds" better than an extra per night charge, even if it ends up being the same amount!

I only allow dogs and charge a flat $25 pet fee, regardless if they stay one night or six.

Just remember potential damage from a kitten could include shredded furniture, and an extra smell from the litter box.

And if the kitten pees in the room outside the litter box, you'll need a special cleaning to get that smell/stain out!!

[Helen3]

There is no way your guest 'didn't think about' the fact he was bringing his cat with him. Sounds like he turned up with cat in tow, knowing mosts hosts would say it could stay.

Personally I would have suggested he put it in a local cattery or would have asked Airbnb to cancel the booking as it could cause issues for future guests who have allergies and are booking your place on the basis it is animal free.

Sorry I don't know what charge hosts make as I don't allow pets, but I agree if you want to do this see what local hosts who accept animals charge.

If he is keeping it in his room most of the time with a cat litter tray and food in there it is likely to smell. Did you check that the cat was house trained and can use a litter tray?

[Inna22]

@Erling2   My husband is allergic to cat hair. When I search for Airbnb, I look for properties that do not allow pets in hopes that they will not be contaminated.  And of course look to make sure they don’t have their own pets. I understand it does not guarantee me a sterile environment but his allergies are not that severe so I feel like this has been good enough for now. By allowing a cat to stay, you are in a away contaminating the place.

also, don’t forget that those who charge a pet fee do that not to make extra money, but because pets may ruin things (this cat will not have its usual litter set up)  and  also require a good amount of additional  cleaning. When this cat leaves, you will need to do a much more thorough job of vacuuming and cleaning as the next guest, even if he has no allergies, will not appreciate finding that hair in the vents and all these other places it seems to stick to. Don’t be shy to make the amount worthwhile your extra effort. 

[Clara116]

@Erling2 @Inna22  Exactly, you are setting yourself up for possible problems. Like Inna says....my brother is severely allergic to cats - if they have been anywhere in the area he will suffer greatly. So if he were your next guests. He would immediately know that a cat had been there and be forced to be rehoused  and maybe to the hospital......and go somewhere else AND you would loose your booking and have no guests and also probably get a bad comment on your reviews.............since people assume when a listing says NO pets - they are safe. I have guests tell me they book my place BECAUSE they know it is PET ZONE FREE - just to think about. Just because they show up with a cat ---- YOU do NOT have to accomodate. I would NOT let them in the cottage door if I saw signs of an animal.

I love animals - and have 2 dogs myself..............BUT they do not go near the cottage. good luck and happy hosting, Clara

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Erling2 

Heres what a cattery charges for accomodation in your area:

Our Kitty Hotel Offers 5 ROOM sizes:

Luxury Suites 8' x 8' x 8' high $30.00 per day

Grand Condos 5-1/2' x 8' x 8' high $27.00 per day

Cozy Rooms 4' x 6' x 8' high $21.00 per day

Kitty Studios 4' x 4' x 8' high $19.00 per day

Budget Cubicles 4' x 4' x 3-1/2' high $15.00 per day

Charge your guest $15 or more per day for the cat or alternatively he can board the cat at Kitty Cat Condos. Whether you want to charge an additional fee for him breaking your house rules and potentially causing allergic reactions to future guests would be a decision for you. Having a person who is allergic to cat hairs in our family, I know that if they were to stay with you in your rental room - they would not be offering a favourable review afterwards.

However, looking at those rates you might be better off kicking out your guest and just accomodating the cat!

[Mark116]

@Erling2 @Clara116 @Helen3 @Inna22 People with allergies are basically out of luck for airbnb, because since all hosts are mandated to accept emotional support animals and service animals, it doesn't matter whether you have a no pet poilcy or not, the unit may still have hosted animals in the past.  Someone with an allergy will always need to ask.  

As far as this case, $30 seems fair, you could probably go to $40.  If it's a kitten it's probably too small to tear up any furniture, but unless your guest is very careful there will be some cat liter that will be left around where the liter box is situated.