I probably should have thought about this potential problem, but seeing as I am new to hosting, I didn’t.
I rent a full house in an upscale neighborhood in NJ, and I allow guests to park their cars in my driveway, and some invite friends over while they are staying.
The problem is, some people have cars that leak oil. And when they leak oil and are parked in my driveway, I have a pretty permanent reminder of the inconsiderate nature of some guests. Now, you wouldnt think this would be a problem, but I guess some people don’t really think about what they are doing, and assume that if they are OK with it, you’d be OK with it. Well, I’m not OK with it.
I guess I should put in the house manual that it is OK to park your car in my driveway, but NOT if it leaks fluids. You wouldn’t really think you have to put this in the manual, but I guess you do.
Let’s assume I HAD put it in the manual, though, and a guest violated the policy and damaged my driveway. What do you do after that?
I agree that it’s not ok when a car is leaking oil. I would absoulutely write this in the House Rules. I am not sure if Airbnb would axcept this kind of damage, and they are absolutely not paying for damages done by friends of your guests… Many hosts do not allow the guests having friends over, because this can cause problems. Even if this is ok. for you, you should consider to not allow any parking in the driveway from others then the guests you are hosting.
What kind of driveway is it? Concrete? Asphalt?
If it’s asphalt, and they damage the look, you could have them cover a sealing.
If you have an HOA, you never know if they might take issue with the stains. So, you have the ability to collect reasonable costs to restore the look of your property.
Most folks are not aware when their car is leaking oil. I think a rule that says ‘you can’t use my driveway if your car is leaking oil’ is going to be unsatisfactory.
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It’s definitely not OK when a car is leaking oil, but it is hard to say how many people realize their car has this problem or does not. If you DO have it, you usually figure it out because you are constantly putting oil into your car, or if you have any reasonable power of observation, you might notice a growing dark spot in the area you typically park. So there are reasons to think a person would know. Of course, there are also reasons a person wouldn’t know (just started leaking, they park in a different spot in a lot each day, it is a poorly maintained rental car, etc.)
I do think that if people are going to use the driveway, they should at least think about this issue. If it is their car, they will usually have ample time to investigate prior to arrival, and heck, it’s something you’d want to know for your own purposes anyway, right? Or maybe some people just like to visit rivers in Egypt.
As for my driveway, it is asphalt and I don’t have an HOA. My homeowners insurance is surely not going to cover it. If anything, they’d find a reason to drop coverage. No need to whack that hornets nest.
I suspect that a hard rule like," no driveway use if your car leaks oil, transmission fluid, etc" is going to be a toughie to enforce, and also to prove, now that I already have driveway stains, haha. Complicating the issue is that street parking where I live is illegal from 2am-6am, and is strictly enforced, so if a guest has a car, they dont really have another option but the driveway.
Ugh. It’s always something!
Since your driveway is a collection of support for all manner of leaks from your guest car, you might not be sure from which guest car the oil is leaking and from where it originates. As you said that the stain has been deeply fixed in your driveway, I think you should consult with some professional driveway contractors who know how to deal with these strains. There are some contractors who will not only advise you but will also offer you with a routine maintenance to help your driveway to remove the oil.
