Kitchen damage, who should pay what?

[KKC]

@Spark

Were there no alternative Airbnb listings nearby?

@mfalgas

had a good price,

I think this is part of the issue. Many people here post about low prices attracting the wrong kind of guest. Although I hate the classism that informs that idea, I understand it happens. It also applies to hosts, hosts with low prices think that justifies some of the crap they do.

[muddy]

I guess there may be hosts who think that just because their place is cheap, they can be slack hosts with crummy places, but just as I don’t subscribe to the “low prices attract bad guests”, as there are many other factors involved in the type of guests one gets, there are bad hosts out there at a whole range of price points.

I’m sure we have all seen posts by guests who didn’t book a cheap place at all, yet arrived to find it unclean, with moldy shower stalls, poorly functioning Wifi, scratched up pots and pans, missing amenities, and hosts who didn’t respond to their messages in a timely manner.

[Charmed59]

@mfalgas

I mentioned the size of the mark because I think there might be other alternatives to fully replacing the whole kitchen counter, trying to disguise it, gluing a permanent kitchen object on top, but of course as he thinks I should be the only one paying for the damage, he went for the most expensive option, which is replacing the whole kitchen counter.

You shouldn’t have to pay because it was his faulty appliances.

However, for future reference, if it was your fault (which a faulty appliance is not) all of your “alternatives” are not alternatives. I’m trying to imagine a counter top with a napkin holder permanently attached to the middle of the counter. That is not a thing.

[PitonView]

@muddy

a cheap place

One problem with what we hear is that we get “I paid $500 US a night for this place, and it was bad”. $500US doesn’t sound cheap, but if the house is a seven-bedroom place with a huge pool and a game room, $500US a night is most likely “cheap”.

But, yes, I agree that poor hosts are at all price points.

[jaquo]

@muddy

unclean, with moldy shower stalls, poorly functioning Wifi, scratched up pots and pans, missing amenities, and hosts who didn’t respond to their messages in a timely manner.

Yes, me. And more. This was a few years ago and it was $150 per night in Miami.

[muddy]

@PitonView

$500US doesn’t sound cheap, but if the house is a seven-bedroom place with a huge pool and a game room, $500US a night is most likely “cheap”.

Yes, of course value perception is entirely relative. In a perfect world, no accommodation would be either expensive nor inexpensive. It would be priced such that it was in line with what is offered, how much it works out to per guest, the host’s expenses, and the location.

[amywyo]

First as a host I would think how I would feel if a guest did this to my listing. I wouldn’t have stayed if everything promised to me in the listing wasn’t provided. I do think you were careless with the electric Kettle & have some responsibility because he did warn you… If it was a stovetop Kettle & it boiled dry there would be damage caused from that as well…

[Debthecat]

You dont give a guest a damaged / broken/ dangerous electrical item and tell them to be careful! The host knew it wasn’t good…,all on his head!

[muddy]

@amywyo

if it was a stovetop Kettle & it boiled dry there would be damage caused from that as well…

But it wasn’t stovetop kettle. If a guest boiled a kettle dry any resulting damage would be on the guest, but this was a faulty electrical appliance that the host never should have given the guest to use.

[HostAirbnbVRBO]

Whatever happened here?

I was re-reading this and got a laugh from your suggestion on hiding the 2 cm burn mark on the kitchen countertop:

@mfalgas

gluing a permanent kitchen object on top,

I think you’ve been around this Host too long. What could you possibly glue there?

– a salt shaker?
– one of those figurines your grandmother used to have?
– a coin?

I hope you didn’t suggest that.