Guest Broke All Rules, Had Dog, Left a Filthy Pigsty

[Monique745]

Okay - the guest left after a month.  We found the place a mess.  Did not do even basic cleaning.  Had not taken out the trash their entire stay.  When they ran out of room in the trash can, they just put their stuff on the laundry room counter.   Old, rotting food abounded.  The bathtub was black.    Just beyond filthy.   Then we find they left their dog bed and dog food.  We have a NO DOG policy.     This is way above and beyond.     Our checkout checklist has clean out the fridge, take out the trash, basically clean up reasonably.    And, of course, no pets.   

What’s the best course of action?   If I contact them, I know I risk a bad review.

[M199]

@Monique745 

Sorry that happened.  Did you meet the guests or do a drive by on garbage day?  Not sticky up for the guest.  I always  make sure to meet guests and point out garbage rules.  I am lucky enough to have a neighbour who keeps an eye out. He will let me know quickly if something is awry. 

My suggestion is to appropriately rate the guest and leave a cleanliness comment such as "cleanliness was lacking".  This won't disparage the guest, but will give future hosts a heads up. And likely Airbnb will not remove the comment if the guest complains.

[Monique745]

Thanks for responding.   We did meet the guests and go over things with them.    So you don’t think asking AirBNB to help us with the carpet cleaning is a reasonable plan?   It’s like $200.    I don’t understand why AirBNB doesn’t give you control over the deposit.

[Katrina79]

@Monique745 purchase a carpet cleaner instead of hiring a professional, you’ll probably need it again in the future. 1* cleanliness 1* followed rules 3* communication: would not host again. Once you’ve reviewed them, they will likely review you. After the review is out of the way, ask the guest for money to help cover the cost of carpet cleaning, but if they decline just move on. 

[Dale711]

Hi  @Monique745 

Welcome to the community! 😊

I am sorry to hear about your experience with the guest.

Have you taken some photos of the incident?

You should request an extra cleaning fee through the 'Resolutions Center.' The guest has 72 hours to respond to your request. If it's doesn't reach your agreement, you will ask for help from Airbnb to resolve the issues.

What is a resolution center?

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/767/what-is-the-resolution-center

Refer to the review. It's out of your hand!

You can always respond to the review in public, claim the guest has violated your house rules.

I hope you can resolve the issues.

Happy Hosting ✌️

[Monique745]

Yeah - I’ve generally had good luck with that but this is blatant disrespect so they are those kind of people.   That means it’s likely they will be irrational with AirBNB and they will leave a bad review.   I’m not sure I want that kind of hassell.

[Sarah977]

@Monique745  Many hosts who rent long term advise doing a once a week quick clean for just this reason. Not only can you keep things from getting really bad, it might make guests more respectful if they know you're going to be coming by once a week. And if they are over the top pigs, and you want them gone, you can cut their booking short.

I don't know why you'd want to contact them- people who behave like this aren't going to apologize, they aren't going to reimburse you for extra cleaning time. 

I would just wait until 15 minutes before the review period is over to leave a review, so you don't trigger them to leave one, unless they leave one before that. 

And please make sure the review is such that other hosts are warned about them.

[Monique745]

I’d like them to pay to clean my carpets but I’m not sure how to get that without also earning a bad review and an epically unpleasant negotiation.    It’s a good idea to do the quick clean.  I was also thinking to get a Ring doorbell.   

[Sarah977]

@Monique745  I can't imagine that people who are so disrespectful are going to agree to pay for carpet cleaning. Then you'll end up in some weeks long battle with Airbnb trying to get them to cover it. 

If it were me, I'd just chalk it up to a learning experience about how to handle long term guest stays going forward, and leave them the scathing review they deserve.

[Angelica-Y-Jorge0]

@Monique745 I agree it will not be worth the hassle for $200 and you may not get the full amount or any.

I might suggest investing in a Bissell carpet cleaner and doing it yourself. You will save money from paying the professionals because the machine will cost less and you will have it for future use.