reimbursement

[Miklos5]

After having a guest smoke in my home and making in inhabitable for 3 days, I got denied reimbursement. I had to cancel an incoming guest reservation AND I had to do deep cleaning for 3 straight days. I even got a company come out and do ozone cleaning for 80 euros so that the stench goes out. 

Here is what the reimbursement specialist wrote after a month of waiting: 

"We came to this outcome because extra cleaning and house rules are not covered under the Host Damage Protection, therefore not considered for compensation.. "

They are either completely ignorant or just lying, I cannot decide. If they went to their own aircover rules page (https://www.airbnb.com/aircover) they would know I am eligible for extra cleaning cost and income loss protection as well (by the way they didn't even mention the income loss in the email).

I am thinking about moving my business to booking.com even though I have really enjoyed this platform so far.

[Helen3]

You can appeal through their arbitration system if you don't agree with their decision. 

and yes never rely on one channel to promote your STR business . 

[Sudsrung0]

It's difficult to stop people from smoking, we do have 2 ozone machines they come in handy not just for smoking but also cooking smells, Also make the properties smell fresh, buy yourself one not expensive on Amazon.

In our villas we have smoking areas outside or around the pool, we also have smoke alarms

We have one condo and it is in the rules No Smoking it is a smoke free building which is a law in Thailand we tell the guest if you set that alarm off it's $50 fine,

Our smoke alarms are hard wired so the guest cant remove the batteries  

[Gillian166]

i've had a guest suggest to me I put in a smoking area outside, but it's not just the smoking inside, it's them breathing on the pillow that is also gross and will make the pillow stink. A non-smoker will be able to smell it! I am no smoking on my whole property (it's a farm) and we also have the bushfire risk thing, that so many city people (and int'l guests) don't quite understand. 

I'm going to buy an ozone machine this month. So far we've not had any serious violations, a couple of smokers who snuck outside, but i'm sure between pets and smokers we'll have use for such a machine. 

[Sudsrung0]

There is no harm in being listed on other sites but in our experience most of the bookings come from airbnb, when on other sites there is lots of things to consider like with BDC you as the host pay all the commission we pay here in Thailand 17.5%, you have to make double sure your calendars synchronized 

[Gillian166]

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@Miklos5 wrote:

Here is what the reimbursement specialist wrote after a month of waiting: 

"We came to this outcome because extra cleaning and house rules are not covered under the Host Damage Protection, therefore not considered for compensation.. "

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Have you got it written into your house rules that if a guest smokes you will charge them an extra cleaning fee? This is another angle to try with airbnb. It's not really enforcable but i've heard of people getting compensated for smoke damage. 

[Miklos5]

Sure have, @Gillian166. Check what they wrote to me below in their reply email.

[Max-And-Stephanie0]

AirCover is a joke and much worse than the previous system. We had about $6,000 in damages and were very meticulous to gather photos, videos, invoices, and statements from the cleaning and repair crews. And as expected, our request was slashed, but without any kind of reasoning. There were about thirty people staying for 4 days, drunk and smoking the whole time with unsupervised young children, from diaper age to preteens, running around wildly (per the Ring doorbell). One of the most frustrating examples is that for the smoke remediation service, we used the same crew we've used twice in the past, and we had no problem getting reimbursed 100%. This time, the invoice was cut from almost $1,000 to $250, with the only explanation being "That's industry standard." Excuse me, no, it's not. Industry standard in our area is $4,000 for a whole-house service. I've called three times and nobody knows where to refer me. The resolution team member who handled our claim said I didn't need to submit a written notice of dispute (which is what the fine print says to do, by the way), and instead he said I can call and ask to talk to the "concerned department." So I did, and yep, the next person I talked to had no idea what I meant. We've moved to sending a written notice of arbitration. Atrocious service.

[Miklos5]

Wow, I am so sorry to hear that, @Max-And-Stephanie0. I wonder if this is just incompetence from AirBnb or they are doing it on purpose to pay out less reimbursements?

[Max-And-Stephanie0]

@Miklos5 Honestly, it might be a little of both. Airbnb didn't have to offer this kind of program. I would rather not have it and plan accordingly than have something that's going to make me tear my hair out. An unfulfilled promise is worse than no promise at all...if they aren't ready to put their money where their mouth is, they should, you know, not open their mouths. AirCover talks a big game but doesn't back it up.

[Emilie]

Hi @Miklos5, 

I'm really sorry to hear you've run into some issues with these guests and haven't received the support you needed yet. I've raised this on my end, and a Support ambassador will follow-up with you as soon as possible to find a solution. 

I hope this helps, and thanks @Helen3 @Gillian166 and @Sudsrung0 as well for your advice!

Emilie

[Max-And-Stephanie0]

@Emilie Want to try looking into my request as well? I've tried and tried to escalate and eventually had to resort to mailing a dispute letter. But now I'm concerned I didn't send it to the right place. The fine print had one address, and our support ambassador gave me a different one...

[Miklos5]

Thanks @Emilie, although I have heard the same promise every time I called airbnb support (about 15 times already regarding this issue). Maybe it is not just an empty promise this time. 

Below is the email I got from reimbursement. And above is a screenshot of the official AirCover/Host Damage Protection policy. Contrary to what the agent says in the email, AirBnb does cover extra cleaning costs AND lost revenue (the agent doesn't even bother including that in his email even though that issue was addressed in my email/reimbursement request to him). 

Please do let me know what you have found out on your end. Maybe you can get through to AirBnb reimbursement team because I sure as hell cannot.

Regards, 

Miklos

[Max-And-Stephanie0]

@Miklos5 I feel that last sentence in my soul 😅

[Emilie]

@Miklos5 As I'm not part of the Customer Support team myself I'm afraid I don't have any more details to share, but the team has confirmed to me someone will follow-up with you!

@Max-And-Stephanie0 I'm sorry to hear you're experiencing a similar problem. I've just checked in with the team as well and they've added notes some notes to your ticket to reflect what you've been sharing here on the CC. A Support ambassador will follow-up with you to hopefully find a solution shortly.