Dishonest, messy guest and cancellation policy

[Nika1707]

Hi Airbnb community, 

I hope this message finds you well. I am reaching out to seek advice and assistance regarding a recent situation with a guest who booked our apartment for 82 nights but later decided to cancel their stay.

The guest initially informed us that they needed to cancel because they found a larger apartment suitable for their family of four. Unfortunately, instead of proceeding with the cancellation process properly, the guest presented a false claim about roaches and safety issues knowing that Airbnb does not issue a refund for long term cancellation (for the upcoming 30 days). Airbnb promptly canceled the reservation based on these false allegations.

Upon inspecting the apartment after the guest's departure, I was dismayed to find significant damage and neglect. The condition of the apartment was far from acceptable, with food remnants, crumbles, and stains throughout. No wonder bugs appeared!

The vacuum cleaner had been discarded on the balcony in extreme heat, and the apartment had clearly not been cleaned throughout the stay. This resulted in greasy stains, marks on walls, and stained furniture, including the ruined stove and mattress protector. This is particularly troubling as the apartment was newly renovated with brand-new furnishings just a few months.

What steps can I take to address the damage and prevent it from happening again?  This was my first guest, I did not put deposit request or high cleaning fee. 😞

WIth all the long term discounts, bills included and now this I almost made 0 € but had a lot of stress...

Thanks so much for any tips!

 

 

[Elisa]

Hi @Nika1707 😊,

I'm really sorry to hear about this difficult situation!

It must have been frustrating, especially since this was your first guest and you had put so much effort into creating a beautiful space for them.

Let's see what experienced Hosts in the community like: @Angela1056, @Bob297, @Marisa182 and @Nicholas439 can suggest you regarding 👉 what steps can be taken to prevent future damages?

Thank you in advance everyone!

Warm regards🌻,

[Greg2406 · Accepted solution]

@Nika1707 @Elisa 

Sorry for the damages.  Suggest detailed photos of before and after a long term stay.   Always make Guest take out a damage insurance policy.   Have a licensed pest control company spray the unit once per 3 months and have the record of spraying posted below the kitchen sink on the cabinet wall.   

Next, in the House Rules, that the Guest is required to sign prior the LTS period, that the Guest "must report any and all issues to the Host immediately" and that "failure to do so will result in damage charges and additional maintenance fees".    

During the LTS contract period, establish in the House Rules that you or your authorized representative will be allowed entrance into the property every 3 to no more than 4 weeks to conduct maintenance and inspection of the property.   

If it's covered in writing, then any complaints filed with ABB CS should be rejected or at a minimum inspected prior to letting the Guest out of a contracted period.  

[Marisa182]

@Nika1707  Sorry to hear about that, especially as it was your first hosting experience. I'm not sure that I would try to resolve the problem through Airbnb. It would be a long frustrating process, and in the end, even though you have photos, your guest can claim that they left the place in good order. I agree with @Greg2406 regarding before and after photos, but also be very specific in your house rules about what you expect from your long term guest. You can learn a lot from a booking gone bad, and use that knowledge to prevent the same from happening again. Best of luck with future guests!

[Frances3408]

@Nika1707. Hi Nika, it would specifically help if we could see the listing in your profile. Are you the host or someone else?

[Nika1707]

@Greg2406 , @Frances3408 , @Marisa182 Good morning all, thank you so much foruour responses. I really appreciate them. After the stress I went through in the past 10 days with this, I decided to take my property down and I am still not sure if I will put it back or not. This was our first Airbnb experience and it just went wrong in every possible way. Thanks again for your guidance amd I will definitely follow it if I decide to host again after this. This thread may be closed.

[Greg2406]

@Nika1707 

Know how you feel.  We also thought about taking our property off, but we learned quickly how to handle most ever situation that arises.    If you can, stick with it and learn from other Hosts and get a detailed House Rules.   

[Frances3408]

@Nika1707. Nika, its always good to take a pause, or in Airbnb terms, take a snooze. I have a listing currently snoozed and its easy enough to update listing details in the interim. Just note to keep checking the snooze end date and extend if necessary. Its better than cancelling and starting over unless you have bad guest reviews early on you cant get Airbnb to remove and then you may be better off starting again. Good luck.

[Elisa]

Thank you everyone @Greg2406, @Frances3408  and @Marisa182 for helping @Nika1707! 😊

@Greg2406 gave you some great suggestions. 

@Nika1707 Are you thinking about trying one of them out?

Warm regards🌻,

[Nika1707]

Hi Elisa, Thank you so much. I decided not to host for a couple of weeks after this experience. If I don't switch to other platforms, I will definitely implement these useful tips 🙏

[Nika1707]

Good morning,

Unfortunately, the guest above left a negative review as part of an attempt to get a refundInthis was my first and only guest as I naively positioned the property as a longer term rental. In the review, they blamed me for factors beyond my control, such as the area's population density. Given this, along with the stress and time wasted dealing with the dishonesty and lack of support from

Airbnb for several days, I’ve decided to remove my listing while I consider my next steps. Thanks again all and I am sure this thread will help many of those facing similar issues 🙏