Demanding guest

[Deann216]

Im currently hosting a guest who is demanding i put another lock on our door. It is a perfectly functioning door with a deadbolt. The guest just arrived yesterday and will be staying with us for two months. I'am concerned if i refuse it will result in a bad review and hostility towards me. What should I do?

[Katrina79]

@Deann216 You should keep all your communications on Airbnb with this guest. If your guest asks for something verbally, you can use the platform to communicate what the demand is and what your answer/response/solution is. I would ask the guest why they require another lock considering the one you have is a deadbolt. Ask the guest for pictures to prove the current lock doesn’t work or isn’t sufficient. Do you get the feeling the guest is looking for excuses to get a free/discounted stay? Or is it just the one request that is making this guest demanding? Is the guest afraid or paranoid without reasons you know of? Two months is a long time to host someone and gives the guest tenant rights. IF the guest instant booked you have the option of calling Airbnb and cancelling the stay under the reason you are not comfortable with this guest. Don’t worry about the review, do what is best for you. Your other option would be to try and find out why the guest requires another door lock and either install one or not. If your guest is reasonable  it should be easy to alleviate any fears with communication. However, it is alarming to me that this guest is demanding another lock. It makes me wonder who or what are they afraid of? 

[Gordon0]

You're not new to Airbnb, @Deann216, so perhaps ask why the guests wants another lock when hundreds before her have managed without one. 

[Lisa723]

@Deann216 is the lock keyed and is the guest concerned that others (previous guests) might have a copy? If so, I might be inclined to comply, and maybe take the opportunity to switch to a keyless (keypad) lock.

[Anonymous]

@Deann216 Among the excellent points made above by @Katrina79 , one that stands out as particularly important is that (depending on your local rental laws) this guest may acquire the legal right of tenancy during a 2-month stay and become very difficult to get rid of. When this happens, there's nothing Airbnb can do to help. With this in mind, things are off to a very ominous start.

The guest may have a valid reason for requesting an additional lock, so it's worth hearing out this person's reasoning with an open mind. But there's a big difference between a "request" and a "demand."  Guests do  not have the right to demand that hosts add features that weren't advertised, and those who attempt to do so right at the beginning of the stay are almost certain to become toxic tenants. If you have any inkling that the guest is trying to back you into a corner here, it can't possibly be worth it to keep this booking.

A small demand like this usually turns out to be a little test to see how easy you are to manipulate, and this is not a test you want to fail. Just imagine how easily a complaint about the locks at the beginning of the stay can shift to a phony robbery claim and a full refund a month later - sadly, this kind of scam is rampant. Personally, I would ask the guest to leave immediately and refund the remainder of the stay the minute they became demanding.  However, before taking such a drastic action I'd want to be sure that there wasn't a miscommunication. 

A written record of your dialogue should be kept in the Airbnb messenger for reference, but I think you get a better assessment of the guest's character and intentions if you first have the discussion in person.