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We rent out London flat when we’re travelling abroad. Having spent years working in hospitality I take a lot of pride in cleanliness & leave a welcome basket and guest guide for the guest(s). We are rarely home when they check in, using a keysafe to do check in.
We recently had a single female guest stay. Initially booked for four nights. The night (1130pm!) before she checked in she asked of she could amend it to two days (We have a strict cancellation policy). I countered with reducing it to three days, citing that we could have taken anothrr booking but didn’t do so to accommodate her.
Anyway all’s went well, she messaged me the day she was due to check out, requesting to stay another night. Fine she left cash on the kitchen bench.
Now returning to the flat after she’s checked out, there’s dirty sanitary products left unwrapped (as a female I’d NEVER EVER do this!) and more concernly there’s obviously red wine spilt down the back of our bathroom (No idea how that happened) and some spots on the carpet. I’m convinced there was more than one guest.
We’re still within the 14 day review window. Do I approach the guest via messaging system and ask for detail about what happened or do i leave a negative review without investigation?
@konacoconutz re camera installation hmm not really.
My concern is if I ask about it, is that instigator to her giving me a bad review in a tit-for-tat? (She has no cause and also messaged me to say how happy she was).
Any tips for how to ask gently also welcome thank you
Well, as we have said before here, don’t let guests push you around because you are afraid of a bad review. But if you are positive you are getting a good review, you could just let it go.
What was the actual evidence you have of another person?? It also doesn’t sound like a good guest no matter how “happy” she was…
Sure she was happy… she got to do what she wanted in your place, probably had another person there and ran you around on the number of days.
I wouldn’t leave a good review of this guest. I would not want to host her.
Are you going to seek money for damages? If not i wouldn’t go through the brain damage of asking her what happened. Just write a negative review. If you are trying to get money out of her, may want to investigate further.
Can you get the spots out? I would ask for damages. I had a guest spill a large black cup of coffee on my floor and couldn’t get it out for love or money. The guests apologized and agreed to buy me a steam cleaner and an area rug. Because I considered the matter settled I did not leave a bad review.
We’ve hosted many times. Until now I didn’t know you could seek damages although we do take a deposit through Airbnb. The place isn’t trashed but certainly not pristine as other guests have left it. Menstrual products, just very dirty and inconsiderate rather than any damage caused.
Based on this, I don’t feel as though I have a case for seeking funds. A few spots of red wine on beige carpet is annoying but is it enough?
Hot shot carpet spot cleaner and oxyclean carpet cleaner do a great job getting out wine and other carpet stains. (You probably have your favs, sharing in case your fav leaves a red wine shadow)
Oh I forgot to mention, I asked her to bring the keysafe in when she collected the keys. She didnt. I wanted to ask her why - under the guise of ‘are the instructions unclear?’ - it seems so simple, just unclip it from the chain and bring it inside!
Ah sorry @anon67190644. I meant bathroom door, so a white painted door. The remnants of red wine spilt, I think you call them ‘legs’ as the wine has dropped down the door and left streaks on the paint.
How on earth! The bathroom isn’t that big. So she sat on the loo and tossed wine at the door while she was facing it? Who knows.
I had dirty sanitary products left in a bedroom waste paper bin recently, it was really horrid. Additionally used condom on the bathroom floor too.
I did not leave a specific review pointing this out, as I was embarrassed to even mention it, the longer I do Airbnb the more I realise that 1:10 guests are really quite dirty in their living standards.
But, unless the damage is permanent, I get my rubber gloves out and get scrubbing!
It is really disappointing when you leave an immaculate home for guests and they cannot think to themselves, " Wow, I must try to leave it nice and clean."
But that seems to be hospitality, this website has become such a help to me, I read the posts and never feel like my home is the only one that gets a tough time every now and then
I’ve often wondered " how did they DO that???" when a guest checks out, but unless you’re going the route of a claim, it is best to let this go. If your metrics allow it just don’t leave a review. OR (and I hope you go this route) say something to the effect that it was nice hosting them and glad they had a fun time in your flat…then dock them on all the stars. I’ve come quite accustomed to looking at the stars for guests ( eeek I have a 4 star this month) and tend to quickly gloss over the public comments. We’ve all left " Yep, they’ve slept here" comments on problematic guests so that star rating is really where you can let your voice be heard.
Thanks for the info. Is that better than leaving a realistic and honest comment of, they were polite however some damage was sustained to carpet and walls from spilt red wine with no communication from guest at any stage?
As a host, I’d love for other hosts to provide this information. This is obviously my first real issue (other than Mr & Mr Snoopy who took our (used) towels from the back of the wardrobe to use. - don’t get me started on those two!)
