Toilet guest complaint

[Michael9042]

Hi there, I’m new to hosting in the past 4 months.  Up until now all my guests have been very easy going and respectful of the house.  

my last guest had contacted me during the stay saying the toilets weren’t working.  I sent my maintenance guy over to the house and he said the toilet was blocked due to really really excessive amounts of toilet paper in it.  He took the mess out and plunged their mess and unblocked it.  So the toilet was functional after that.  

same thing on checkout they’ve left very excessive amounts of toilet paper I. One of the toilets and he had to unblock it.  

I just got a message from air BnB saying that the guest is requesting compensation for the toilets not working during their stay and also that their mother had an accident due to the listing.  The guest never contacted me regarding this supposed accident.  Air BnB didn’t elaborate on what the accident was at all.  

looking for advice on how I should proceed.  I’m pretty upset, it appears this was an issue on the guests end.  I really don’t think it deserves a refund of any sorts.  But I’m new to this and looking for experienced folks input.  had pretty much flawless reviews from all previous guests.  

[Paula]

Hello @Michael9042,

This is indeed a challenging situation.

I am reaching out to some of our experienced Hosts to gather their insights and suggestions on how to handle this: @Zheng49, @Dawn241, @James3814 , @Lorina14 and @Muslim4.

Best regards,

[Dawn241]

We had a similar issue. Someone was visiting local family and running their relatives laundry- I guess they didn’t have a washer and dryer. The last day of the stay the shower and toilet backed up, they didn’t tell me, my 71 year old mother went to clean and started the washer it backed up into the tub and toilet. I contacted the guest who said- not our fault- a problem with your plumbing. Then gave me all 1 star reviews and said shower didn’t work on the last day. Did I mention they were also over the overnight guest count too? 

suggestions- limit the amount of TP you provide. 

there are cute, funny, but too the point signs about being gentle on the plumbing, limiting use of TP, etc. 

tell guests to let you know right away about any issues with the house- ex. Plumbing, AC, appliances, etc. 

[Marie8425]

@Michael9042 

Hopefully you did guest ccommmmmunniccaionnsss on the platform  but even if you didn't

Dear  Airbnb

Guuest reporieeedd   a  tooiillllet  iissssssuuue   at    xxx.

At  my expense profesionalizar xx   came  to  the property  to service toilet.   The toilet issue was corrected quickly but determined by xx too be  guest abusive treatment,  so  no a  refund is not approved.

Thee Guest  did  not report to  me or Airbnb any  type of    accident  on  the property, so I  am unable  to approve any  type of payment for something not  aware  of

[Zheng49]

We have a sign besides our toilet that says not to put any paper in the toilet, and to leave it in the trashcan besides.

We added that sign after we kept running into the issue that you just experienced. Nowadays we often get guests that supervise each other kind-of since they share the same toilet. Often I will have one guest telling me that another guest put paper in the toilet (at which point I will proceed to test the flush). 

In this case I would still give out the refund, just because it could have been handled better.  I wouldn't blame the guest because toilets are made better in other countries, and CAN actually handle the excessive amount of paper. Ours unfortunately can't, so the sign is to let guests know of the limitation. 

I also test the toilet flush functionality often as needed, and plunge often to avoid such similar issues from happening again. 

[Marie8425]

@Zheng49 @Michael9042 

It does depend on your setup but if you have the expected  normal use and your maintenance person (who gets paid regardless whose fault) stating excessive then I would not refund because that is damages.  Doesn't happen often,   but I had a shared bathroom in Hawaii only once years ago clogged turned out for excessive toilet paper.  They weren't in the position to report it when it happened, too  many mai tais on the beach that night they were kind enough to clean up the mess they  made in the bathroom buttt with halff a role of toilet paper and he didn't try flushing until he was done so yes excessive lol.

You didn't charge the Guest for the plumber, I would not refund and yes document that a neutral professional opinion is their damage.

[Lorina14]

@Michael9042 @Paula 

Hi! So sorry to hear of the toilet issue. I agree with @Zheng49 to put a sign saying please be mindful of putting only toilet paper in the toilet as the piping is sensitive (some people flush toilet wipes, paper towels, tampons, even pads sometimes or kids toys sometimes and a whole bunch of other stuff down), or please be mindful of using excessive tp as this could challenge the piping (or something like that). I keep a toilet brush and a plunger next to the toilet just in case so guests could plunge themselves if an issue came up. 

I would not do a full refund as you did send a plumber and they did clog it again after being warned and you never had an issue with any other guests with the toilet. You can offer them a discount for the inconvenience (even though they were at fault) as I believe Airbnb has the liberty to offer up to 30% off for inconveniences depending on the severity of the issue. But it is usually only for the days of the inconvenience or a one time thing if you are checking in and have a major issue. 

Let us know how things go.

[James3814]

First, gather all documentation related to the issue, including messages from the guest and any communication with your maintenance guy. Contact Airbnb to get detailed information about the guest's claims, especially regarding the supposed accident. Clearly outline in your response to Airbnb that the toilet issues were due to excessive toilet paper, as confirmed by your maintenance person. Mention that the guest did not report any accident during their stay, making it challenging for you to verify or address their claim. Emphasize that you promptly sent maintenance to resolve the toilet issue once notified. Maintain a professional tone throughout, focusing on resolving the issue based on facts and policies to protect your interests as a host.