I had a guest booked in for 3 nights. He has stayed every week for 2 months as he has a work contract nearby.
He lives 2 hours away & at the beginning of the week we had a bad weather warning (heavy snowfall) in the south of England (very rare!)
My guest stayed 2 nights, came in from work on the 3rd night & said he was going to drive home that night in case the snow was bad & he had trouble getting home the following day.
My question is… Should I refund him for the night he didn’t stay? I know it was his decision to leave but I feel bad that he’s paid for a night and not stated.
What are your thoughts?
YES! A repeating guest is gold value. I would want to maintain the relationship into the future as I would not want to lose him! Lots of good will.
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Yes I agree. Refund him. Also safety is important and what if he had been stuck there and caused other problems. What if the power or heat went out? It’s a good thing he went home.
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Yes, I would definitely refund ONE NIGHT for a repeat guest. Especially if you like him and he’s a good guest.
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Me too if it is a repeat. Or at least offer to.
definitely refund.
See the premier inns are getting lashed for not giving any refunds. I had 4 extra bodies in the house for 4 days, we survived without killing each other. I just fed them all the time, we were all house bound and I baked about a million scones for us and our neighbours, I never want to see a scone ever again.
It could have turned sour if we lost wifi or electricity but thankfully we could escape each other for time outs when needed
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I would definitely refund if he’s a repeat and a good guest as well, particularly if he’s a mid-weeker.
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My questions:
- Did he actually ask for a refund?
- Is he himself paying? Or does his employer pay? It might not make a difference to him if you refund.
- If I understand well, he totally missed checkout on the day he left, so in that sense he shouldn’t be entitled to a refund.
If he asked I would refund anyway: There’s no sense in arguing with a valuable guest.
If he didn’t ask, you could offer refund or offer something else to make up for the night lost.
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I’d be more inclined to give him a gift card or something like that equal to the value of one night. A refund might go to his company or to him to pay bills at home. I’d give him something that is personal for him to enjoy.
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Yes for the same reason others give. I give my returning guests a low low rate for booking early especially on weekdays.
I would definitely offer him a free night’s stay on his next rental…since he stays multiple times each month. If there is no next time…well, there it is. 
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I agree with GutHends line of thought, his company may be paying, so he doesn’t give a fig about a refund.
Also, from the guests point of view, he may be wondering wether or not to ask for a refund. He may well have gone on to a ‘guests forum’ to post a thread, and all the replies may have said 'no, you obviously value that rental, so don’t upset them by asking for a refund!'
If it’s BP paying the fee (for example), who would we rather keeps the money!
I wish I’d read your reply earlier! I told him he could just pay for 2 nights next week instead of 3. He is with us for 9 more nights & then his contract ends in this area.
I then thought that his employer is more than likely paying for his accommodation.
Anyway its done now & he is after all THE easiest guest I’ve had stay. We only rent out one small room in our home & we hardly see him. He doesn’t have breakfast or even tea & coffee & I’ve had extra income at what is a very quiet time of year.
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In my experience of people staying for work 95% of them are self employed so a refund does go direct to the individual concerned. I’d be interested to know if if he people get a high number of businesses bookings where they don’t think the individual is paying for themselves