Guest moved and damaged furniture

[Kathryn-and-Paul0]

I am over having infants to stay.

My guest, his wife and infant stayed one night.

His communication was patchy, They seemed a nice couple and pretty laid back.

After they left I was pretty annoyed at the state of our listing.

He had moved the bedside drawers into a wardrobe and taken the wall stoppers out of our luggage racks, (I found them on the table)

I think he was child proofing the chalet but now I cant get the stoppers to stay in and it was a shock to see the state of the place.

I accept sticky finger marks but no effort was made to clean up food spills or liquids in refrigerator, kitchen bench or table. The whole chalet was left a grubby mess.It took 2 of us 2 hours to clean and tidy everything and get the chalet back to its usual  standard of cleanliness.

I do not mind the fact that the guest was making the room safer for his child but he could have simply folded up the racks and put them in a cupbord. (I hadn't realised the stoppers could be a choking hazard)

As I say they seemed a nice couple but had no regard for my property. They are the kind of guests that don't get the ethos of Airbnb and should I feel, stay in a hotel.

Im not sure what to write in their review as I say they seemed pleasant  but they left the property in a poor state.

I was quite dismayed as they had only 3 reviews and they were glowing. I actually feel those reviews can't be accurate.

I would like to write an honest review without going over the top.

[Linda108]

@Kathryn-and-Paul0  Your rules do state no children under 2 already.  Seems the issue is the toddler, right?  As to the review, I would start with whether or not I would host them again.  If not, then do not recommend them to other hosts.  If you would, then perhaps a private message to them would clarify your expectations.  I do see that you do not have a cleaning fee which might make you attractive to some guests, but it also can make you feel a little used by the type of guest that thinks they are in a hotel.  The review that warns other hosts includes, "better suited to a hotel".

[Kathryn-and-Paul0]

Hi Linda, Yes I changed my under 2 policy. The issue is not the toddler but the lack of respect for my property and the laziness in not cleaning up the mess they make. I mean who spills food and drink on several surfaces and doesn’t bother to at least wipe them up with cloth the dish cloth or paper towels that are provided.

As I say I just wanted a bit of guidance with writing the review.

In all the other guests that I’ve have hosted cleanliness has not been a big issue.

Thankyou for your thoughts.

[Dustin25]

I think Linda is right "better suited to a hotel" is a good review for them. I think you did a great job about explaining what thtey did and how that efected you and what it has cost you in time and recorses.

[Barry-and-Lera0]

@Kathryn-and-Paul0: We do not allow children under 12 years old mostly based on our yard and pool (not the safest place for kids). The times we have had children (when friends stay or freinds of friends with kids) the studio has always been worse off than the typical stay. Kids under 6 years old make huge messes. We would charge a kid fee before a pet fee. According to @Linda108 you do not charge a cleaning fee? I would change that. Even if its a minimal charge its still your time to clean and the cost of cleaning supplies. Even if you were only to charge $25-$30 that is still very reasonable.

[Amy38]

@Kathryn-and-Paul0

I feel your pain.  My take is that millennials are going to drive us crazy with all their obsessions. 

I would add a cleaning fee, but if no one around you has one, you can’t.  I would have a minimum 2 day stay, so at least the surprises are less painful.   Add a few more pictures of your surroundings to your listing to entice people and raise your price a few dollars. Add a couple of teas, beer and snacks to the kitchen and take pictures of them too. Perceived value is worth a lot.

I leave a small selection of wine, beer soda, fruit long shelf life snacks and yoguhurt.  Practically no one uses anything beyond the odd cracker or energy bar.  For the one in 10 who drinks a bottle of wine, it has cost me less than a dollar per 10 guests and they love it.

[Inna22]

@Kathryn-and-Paul0

Have you considered approaching the guest for a reimbursement for the damaged rack? If they pay for it, I feel like it would make it right (and teach them a lesson they would understand)

[Fred13]

   I have a slightly different take: I would look at this booking as a positive, because for a small cost (extra cleaning and hooks on wall) it taught you two valuable lessons. 1) Not allow small children; in a nice home they will in all likelihood prove to be a terror on it, every time.  2) Charge a cleaning fee.  Two important  lessons, pratically 'free'. In the best of light, you should send them a 'Thank You' note. 🙂

  The parents came across granted as a bit sloppy, but acceptable somewhat, except for their little 'precious one'. The previous 3 hosts had no problem with these guests whatsoever, in fact the opposite' maybe that is how they really felt. Conversely, other hosts will come to the same conclusion as you in the future, who knows. Regardless, we are talking about someone's child, very delicate grounds, easy to take any criticism very personal, it is human nature.

   This is part of the learning as a host, via actual hosting experience; what other hosts think should be used only as a mental reference to draw from, since every situation (aka combination of place, host & guest) is indeed unique.

   As a general rule, perhaps best to be on the side of caution when adopting the vein of shaming or scolding guests; perhaps it is by far more advantageous to put one's energy into selecting more suitable guests in the future, via one's description (and from actual experience and thought), before they even arrive.

P.S. I would give them 4's all around and a 'flat' (aka un-enthusiastic) review.

[Ellen33]

In my opinion it has nothing to do with the child. They are just not respectfull about cleaning up. We hosted several families with children without to much hassle. Only twice i was really happy that they left. 

And if they wanted to make your house/ their room childproof they should at least make the effort to put things back.

[Kathryn-and-Paul0]

Thankyou for all your suggestions, they have been helpful. Even just sharing my annoyance was helpful:)

[Sarah977 · Accepted solution]

@Kathryn-and-Paul0  However you decide to review them, I wouldn't go into specifics, but I would definitely send them private feedback as to how dismayed you were at the lack of clean-up and the damage to the rack (this was obviously not intentional damage, he simply was trying to eliminate a choking hazard, but guests shouldn't try to alter furniture or anything without the host's approval), pointing out that is was especially irking since you don't charge a cleaning fee. That your booking prices do not account for a cleaning that takes twice as long a normal. You said they seemed nice and laid back, so maybe they will take this to heart and not leave a mess for the next host. One can only hope.

[Pamela193]

My issue is that people come up to my cottage and have parties.  They are always moving furniture like the couch or putting the indoor chairs outside.  I am tired of my guests doing whatever they want.  How do I control this behaviour? Can I put security cameras on my property?

[Fred13]

If you are going to be in the people business, you must have accompanying controls in place. Best to not easily allow something to happen, and then scramble to find the 'solution' or seek compensation from the 'General Money Fund' (see Host Guarantee).

Nothing like being actually there OR having monitors showing you what is going on at all times.