Disrespectful Guests & Missing Items

[Priscilla150]

I received an Airbnb message that one of my rooms was booked.  The lady that book did so with Instant Book and had already paid.  The room she booked  clearly states ONE guest only.  Yet she booked for two guests.    I sent her an Airbnb message and clearly told her that this room states it is for ONE guest only.  However, since she has already booked and paid, I would setup an air bed for the second guest, which she readily agreed with my doing. 

I called her the day of arrival and they were coming in several hours later then planned.  So I gave her the Key Code and the directions to both beds and told her about the amenities, etc...

This morning I found out that they both stayed in my ONE guest room and broke the house rules by drinking.  After they left I noticed a complete set of my guest  towels missing.  I called and politely asked if perhaps they put it some place that I didn't see.  Of course, they knew nothing about my missing towels.    I take an inventory after each guest leaves, so I know how many were there prior to their arrival.    

I am disappointed that they blatantly ignore my number of guest per room restrictions, broke my house rules by drinking and appears as if they have stolen a set of towels.  Not to mention setting up and making the airbed and privacy screen is not easy for me at my age only to not have it used.   

My question is, if someone books my one guest room with two people, do I have the right to refuse them after they have paid and still maintain my Super Host status?  

AND if I give them a unfavorable review for these things, I will probably get a bad review in return as retaliation, which is unfair.

Opinions/Ideas?

Thank you.

[Pat271]

Hmm, where to start...

1) You can set the maximum number of guests in the Airbnb app.  Set this to 1.  If you do that, guests will be unable to book your place for more than 1 person.

2) The way the reviews work is that neither of you sees what the other has written until BOTH host and guest have written a review, or until 2 weeks has passed, whichever is sooner.  After 2 weeks, neither party can write a review.  Therefore, you don’t have to worry about a “retaliation review” based on a review you wrote.  She might write a bad review, but it won’t be because you left a bad review.  Just be honest about your guests; it will help other hosts, and if all hosts are honest, it might also help guests improve their behavior overall.

3) As far as towels and drinking, each host may have a different approach.  If there was no damage other than the missing towels, I wouldn’t go after the guest for compensation or involve Airbnb.  I would, however, absolutely mention these things in her review.

4) I think you should turn Instant Book off until you feel more comfortable with the Airbnb system.  You might even decide to leave it off permanently, so that you can get a better feel for your guests before you accept reservations.  Depending on your area, having Instant Book off may not make a perceptible difference in your booking rate.

5) Above all, stay calm, and remember this is a business.  I sense the emotion in your writing, and can tell this guest has really upset you.  You have every reason to be upset, but unless you toughen up, the next few guests like this will do you in.  Be firm and strict as needed, but try to let things roll off your shoulders more, if you can. 🙂

Best of luck to you,

     Pat

[Priscilla150]

Thank you Pat for all of your advise..  You are correct, this ordeal was upsetting.  I have changed my maximum number of guests to 1 and that should eliminate future problems.

[Sandra856]

Hi @Priscilla150 🙂

I just took a look at your listings and the room with 2 single beds are a bit confusing. It says that the private room got 2 bedrooms and 2 beds but it is just for 1 person? 

If it were me I would change it so it says 1 bed and shared bathroom and make sure to write it clearly on the listing that despite that the pictures show 2 single beds it is only for 1 person because guests do in general not read anything - they look at pictures. 

Sorry about the missing towels 😕

[Priscilla150]

Thanks Sandra.  The room with 2 single beds is called Sweet Dreams and I put one person per bed, because I had a 350 pound guest who, believe it or not, tried to fit two people in that one bed.   When I heard a loud noise and after they left, I went in to check it out, and the board supporting the mattress had fallen, leaving the mattress without support.  I am surprise the bed did not break.   So I added that to my site hoping it would offer some sort of protection since I disclaimed the beds are for one person per bed.

The room with the double bed is called Safe Haven and that is the room where my last guests were.   

You are probably correct that they look at the pictures and do not in general read anything.

[Emilia42]

@Priscilla150 

You need to change your listing description. Technically, a guest can book for two. Change it to 1 guest and the guest will not be able to input a higher number. Once you do this and a guest books for one but says "we" ect. Then tell them to cancel as you can only accommodate one guest or ask Airbnb to cancel for you.

[Priscilla150]

Thank you Emilia.    I have updated my listing to show 1 guest.

[Sarah977]

@Priscilla150 As has been pointed out, it was your error in your listing info, as well as the confusing nature of your bed configuration that led to this guest being able to book for 2, but I'm sure you'll correct that now.

But something to keep in mind for the future is that you shouldn't try to accommodate guest requests that fall outside your rules, # of guests, etc. Once you indicate to a guest that you are willing to make an exception for them, they may very well take that as license to ignore more of your rules during the stay.

In your review of these guests, you can certainly mention that they disregarded your house rules (don't mention drinking specifically, or Airbnb might remove the review), and that there were missing items after their stay, but you shouldn't say anything about them booking for 2, because that was actually your error in your listing, and you agreed that you would accommodate her request for 2.

[Priscilla150]

Thanks Sarah,

Great advise on not trying to accommodate guests request that fall outside of my rules.  That is a lesson I certainly need to learn and I am glad you pointed that out.

[Kath9]

@Priscilla150, I agree with the others here. I have had a look at your listings and it is very confusing indeed.

'Sweet dreams' states 1 guest, 2 bedrooms and 2 beds and has a photo of twin single beds. So, it would appear that two people could easily stay. Later on in the same listing you state 'only one person per bed', which again implies that you could have two people stay. 'Safe Haven' on the other hand states 2 guests, 1 bedroom and 1 bed, but later on in the listing is states that the room is only available for one person. So, the first thing you need to do is fix your listings.

If your guest booked Safe Haven, she cannot be blamed for booking for two people. However, if she booked Sweet Dreams and arrived with two people, then that is grounds for cancelling. Never cancel anyone yourself though as you will definitely lose Superhost status. You can contact the guest and state that the room if for one person only and therefore they can arrive with one or cancel the booking from their end. Alternatively, you can contact Airbnb and get them to cancel for you.

Regarding the review, they cannot see your review until they have left one or until the 2-week review period passes. So there is no chance of a retaliatory review. Just review them honestly, and don't mention the two guests given that you agreed to it in the end.

[Priscilla150]

Yes Kath, Sweet Dreams can handle two people.  As I was telling Sandra, I had a 350 pound guest who, tried to fit two people in that one bed.   I heard a loud noise and after they left found the board supporting the mattress had fallen, leaving the mattress without support.  I am just glad it didn't break the bed.  I did go in and change Sweet Dreams to read 2 guests, but I left 1 person per bed for safety reasons.  

Thank you for all of your information I appreciate that.

[Robin4]

@Priscilla150 

I am afraid I can't make 'head nor tale' of this. 

You say Priscilla, she booked the listing which is for one guest which in fact has two beds and two bedrooms and you then offered to set up an air mattress in addition to the two beds that are already in the room for one additional guest!!!!

It doesn't matter how many times I look at it this just doesn't make sense!

I think you need to clearly state what you are offering here Priscilla or you are going to keep on getting confused guests. To make matters worse you go on to describe in your listing description that a second guest is allowed for an additional $15. 

You need to be concise and remember what seems obvious to you Priscilla is going to be totally foreign to someone else! Looking at your listing description I have no idea what you are actually offering in this listing!

I am sorry if you struck a guest who removed a set of your towels, no host should expect to put up with that. But it does seem a strange thing for a guest to deliberately steal. Are you sure you haven't put that set in another cupboard, I am all the time misplacing linens and things that belong in my listing. Have a good check around before you accuse the guest, that could backfire on you in the review process.

Cheers......Rob

[Priscilla150]

Hi Rob,

The listing you are looking at is Sweet Dreams which has two bed and is a different room.  She booked Safe Haven, which has one bed.   I only have two bedrooms total.  Sweet Dreams with 2 beds and Safe Haven with 1 bed.   I have changed the number of bedrooms shown for Sweet Dreams.

 Thank you very much for pointing that out. 

[Kenneth12]

Also,  if you're going to try to enforce a NO USE OF ALCOHOL rule in a jurisdiction where it is perfectly legal,   you'd also better make that perfectly clear.

What were this PG's prior reviews and profile like?   My approach is to attempt guest screening and make expectations of behavior clear at every step.

[Priscilla150]

Hi Kenneth,

Thank you for your information.  I had thought I had made No Alcohol clear, but obviously not.  I will work on that some more.  Their prior reviews were good for the most part.  

Thanks again.