How have other hosts handled damage caused by a guest? Last night a guest opened a window that had an air conditioner in it and dropped it out 2 stories. She was also late and seemed to be looking for things to complain about. We have been hosting in our home for almost a year and have kept super host status.
Although the guest sounds like an idiot, why didn’t you have the unit secured with at least a chain? If no one below got hurt then it sounds to me like you got off easy.
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I agree with @TuMo : You were extremely lucky no one got hurt.
I wouldn’t consider it the guest’s fault.
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Dear Lord, some people! Why would anyone attempt to open a window with an AC unit in it?
Now thinking I need to put a little sign on that window reminding guests to not open window.
The best thing to do is communicate through ABB with the guest about the AC. Did they report it to you when it happened, either in person or via the ABB messaging system?
You are going to have to involve the Resolution Center…you will need photos of smashed AC, and a link to a comparable unit.
Basically, ABB Resolution Center asks guest to pay.
The one time I had to use the Resolution Center, the guest paid.
There are many here on this forum who were not so lucky and will share their experiences.
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"seemed to be looking for things to complain about"
Well, now she can complain about the room not having A/C!
Window air conditioners can and should be secured from falling out.
A support bracket or a shelf outside.
Block the the window from being able to be opened. Screws, block of wood, etc.
This was caused by an unsafe installation.
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Going upstairs now to check that the man who installed mine, followed my directions and screwed it in place.
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The guest came down in the morning to apologize for being late. She then apologized for the air conditioner. She had been texting about breakfast, coffee etc. She brought a guest who then spent the night. I will get in touch with the resolution center. Thanks
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So, she notified you about the AC in person?
You need to quickly send her an email via ABB stating something along the lines that you were happy she, and no one else was injured when she dropped the AC out of the window, as she informed you in person.
You need to get that in the ABB messaging system…because right now, ABB doesn’t know it really happened and that she admitted to it.
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I don’t think the guest is at fault. I’ve never owned a window unit air conditioner. I would have assumed that it’s fine to open the window as long as the air conditioner isn’t turned on. The only reason I wouldn’t open a window when the air conditioner was turned on is that it would waste electricity.
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Thank you for your advice!
I think if you actually SAW a window unit AC as you had your hands on the window about to open it, you would certainly have the common sense to not open the window…it’s quite obvious…hey, there is something here that may fall if I open this window.
@EllenN It is really obvious that a window with an A/C unit should not be opened. To start with, there isn’t much window left to open. You might get about 1/2" of open before the double hung window would run into the A/C unit.
That having been said, the A/C should have, at a minimum, a bracket securing it to the window frame. Though most window units include a bracket, we have built far more secure frames for our three units with foam to ensure that they are efficient as well.
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As an afterthought, this is a perfect case of AirBNB liability insurance vs. having your own. What if the Air conditioning unit had hit someone down below? This is the insurance nightmare that we all dread.
Until I read this discussion I assumed that window air conditioning units were secured in the windows and that they could be opened.
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I get it 
But you seem to have common sense…you would quickly figure it out!
@EllenN. I wish I could take a picture for you, but there are guests up there. It would be obvious then, how this works. The A/C sits on the window sill, but then should be bracketed to that sill and the bottom of the sash. We then secure the “wings” of the unit to the sides of the frame. The way we install them, you could not possibly change the opening of the lower window of the double hung. You would have to have a screwdriver and a few loose screws [pun intended] to “open” that part of the double hung. The upper part could still be opened, but as I said above, in this case, that would only give you about 1/2 inch of opening.
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@EllenN. It clearly wasn’t installed properly. They must have been relying on the pressure of the upper window to hold it in place? Or they only used one bracket and it failed? I just can’t imagine.
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Oh wow, did you also have a guest who dropped the A/C unit out the window?
Guess this is a common occurrence.
(All tongue-in-cheek, of course…you didn’t say it was your guest.)
In this case, I’m afraid unless you have pictures of screw holes, that demonstrate the unit was secured and was then forced out of the window, you are responsible. This is a lucky escape in that no one was injured. As a guest I’d be likely to mark your rental down in the review.
Her being late is a red herring and in no way covers the dangerous installation.
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