Worried about impending guest

[Nick1866]

Hi guys,

Bit of a strange one here, that I'd love to get your thoughts on. I have a guest and her two children booked into stay with me in the coming days who is returning to the city where I am based.

The buildup to her stay has already been a bit chaotic - in terms of messages being sent.  In her introduction to me, she was quite overfamiliar, and asked if I remember her, as she recalls meeting me once at an event here. I don't remember her, but that wouldn't be uncommon. I'm a journalist and am fortunate to meet a lot of people during the course of my work.

However, I have checked with a few friends, and the mood music isn't great,  I'm sad to say. A lot of people (not hosts) have explained that they have had bad experiences with her. I'm told her children are a bit wild, and they'd rip my place apart! Also, the only other previous host review she had accused her of having "quite excessive demands".

She's been angling after staying more than one night, but unfortunately, I can only offer her what I have - I've other people coming to visit me that week. I've already suggested to her that if she is staying in the city for a week, as I understand she is, it might be best for her to find somewhere more permanent for her and her children to stay.

To put it bluntly, I am scared of the trouble I might be drawing upon myself. It might all be fine, and I might be stressing for nothing. But on the other hand, she might perhaps refuse to leave. I have automatic booking on my account - perhaps this is a good lesson not to have this.

She's due on Sunday. I don't want to cancel obviously, as not only will it impact my score, but it will cause difficulty for the guest. However, I feel I have quite few options on the table here.

Has anyone had any experience of this or any advice?

Look forward to hearing you,

[Lorna170]

@Nick1866   If you are uncomfortable with the approach from the guest, communicate with her again and encourage her to seek other accommodations as you have “obligations “ that make her stay not good   Don’t cancel, but ask her to cancel as soon as she has found another place, and be firm that you are not able to anything more for her.

personally, I would accept the ding from Air and cancel her.  But it is up to you.  

[Nick1866]

Thanks Lorna, appreciate it.

[Elaine701]

You need not suffer insufferable guests. Scare her away somehow. There's another booking for those dates, probably by a better guest. It's Airbnb's greatest strength. Just be patient. 

[Nick1866]

thanks @Elaine701 - any suggestions as to how I do this? 

[Laura2592]

@Nick1866 I would say:  "Hi guest, this is a bit awkward but I am not able to host you due to some maintenance issues that came up unexpectedly. I am happy to send you some recommendations of other listings in the area for your stay. It may work out for the best as you can find a place that will be available longer than mine would. I would appreciate it if you would cancel, but if not, I am happy to do so on my end. Of course I am offering a full refund. Thank you for understanding."

The "maintenance issue" is her lol. I would not explain further. If she doesn't cancel (she may as she thinks she knows you) I would cancel her. If you have it on good authority that she will be an issue AND your gut says so as well, take the hit. 

You could fabricate anything-- an extermination that needs to happen, plumbing repair scheduled, police issue with a neighbor, etc to scare her away but I don't think its needed. Its your space. You get to decide who occupies it, no matter what ABB says. 

[M199]

@Nick1866 

You have 124 reviews, great job!. 

I had a similar experience recently.  I had a guest book for 4.  I was hesitant because the gist of the booking message was (literally) "i gotta get my kids out of the city for the day".  I day 200kms.  Not totally comfortable, but maybe I can do this.  A month later, guest asked if he/she could bring 2 nieces.  We have 4 beds, guest wants to bring 6 to a 450 ft sq cottage.  So sorry, but we can not accommodate 6 people and suggested that the guest cancel and find other accommodation.  Response "Well, I'll let you know".  My response, called Airbnb and had them cancel due to concern over guest behaviour, attitude, fear for my safety.

Point is, you need to decide your comfort level in accepting or cancelling guests.  Remember, it's a business.  You Rule, Guests Don't!

[Nick1866]

Ah, thanks.

Did the same as you - expressed my concerns about the behaviour of the guest. Airbnb advised I could cancel the reservation on this basis without penalty. Apparently hosts have three of these strikes year.

So I've used one up doing this - I hope I don't have to go near two and three!

Nick

[Linda108]

@Nick1866  It is always good to follow your gut feelings about a guest, however, I would not suggest you fabricate any excuses to cancel just as a general rule.  You have carried on a successful business so you can weather the occassional bump in the road.  When you read her review that was the time to cancel to minimize the negative impact on the guest.  As you might be aware, host reviews often contain hidden messages about a guest's behavior, but "excessive demands" is quite straight forward.