Cigarette damages!!

[Alexandrea8]

Am I allowed to enter the Airbnb before the guests stay is over to collect evidence of smoking inside? This Airbnb is in my basement, so I have pretty good reason to believe they are smoking inside. This guest booked for the entire month and already paid, but we're only two days in. I can't possibly wait until the end of the month to find evidence, but when I asked the guest directly if they were smoking down there, they said no they had just blown out a smoky candle. I am very worried about the damage it will cause. There is a smoking area outside and no butts are in it.

I don't want to invade their privacy, but am I allowed to look to ensure they aren't damaging my house??

[Zheng49]

No, definitely not. That would be a breach of privacy guidelines. 

What you can do is to call Airbnb support and let them know that they have broken your house rules regarding cigarette smoking etc. Be careful not to involve the specialized safety team, etc. and you should be good. 

If you can show Airbnb that they are breaking your house rules etc. it may be possible to terminate their reservation ahead of time.

I would honestly just communicate with the guest etc. regarding where they can smoke, and where they can't. ie. they can smoke outside, but not anywhere inside the home. 

[Bronwyn100]

By law you must have a smoke alarm fitted. That will certainly warn you if they are smoking. I would not recommend candles in a basement. 

[Joelle43]

Hello @Alexandrea8 

If you do this, you will get your listing suspended and your guest may also receive a full refund!! Like @Zheng49 says, communicating with your host is the best way.

Your place is listed as being non smoking I imagine and is it also reiterated in your house rules?  Did you send these to your guests when they booked so that everyone was on the same page?

[Angela3989]

@Alexandrea8 Hello! While someone is renting your space, it's their private space for that time. You can't enter it without permission. That would be extremely egregious! How would you feel if someone just came into your hotel room whenever they felt like it? I think your concerns about smoking would be alleviated by working smoke detectors as someone mentioned. It should be posted in the unit somewhere and also in the listing information. I don't sdvise telling Airbnb. It will be hard to prove to Airbnb, who generally have been known to do nothing but get you a 1 star review by angering the guest. They will still let them do a review when you start a case! If it were me I would just wait and see how it's left. If they are smoking you will need to just wash the blankets and curtains if you have them. A good airing out after they leave and cleaning with good smelling supplies will be enough to remove any smell. It's not the same as someone living there for years and smoking. You could charge them for the extra cleaning if it's truly required but it will be your word against theirs and IMO, it's not worth the risk. Do you have any cleaning policy for stays that are so long? If you implemented a policy that stays greater than 6 days require a bedding change for example, you would be able to smell any smoke on the bedding and bring it up to them (in the app messaging of course). And your bedding will be in better shape as a bonus! You can also disallow candles in your listing as they are fire hazards. Best of luck!