As an Airbnb host, you will inevitably run into difficult guests from time to time. Difficult guests may treat your vacation rental poorly, leave bad reviews, or even engage in activities and behaviors that go against the rules of the Airbnb platform. Knowing how to deal with these individuals is crucial to protecting yourself and your neighbors. Here are some top tips on how to deal with bad Airbnb guests that will prove invaluable to you later.
Types of Bad Guests to Watch Out For
As stated above, there are different types of guests that you will need to worry about when running your short-term rental. Knowing which red flags to look out for is going to greatly help you avoid instant bookings or booking requests from people who you don’t want in your BnB. Let’s take a closer look at some of these parties.
- Guests Who Steal: Most are familiar with potential guests who steal things from hotels, and those organizations likely feel some kind of way about this behavior. As a host, you don’t want to see your Airbnb’s linens, bedding, towels, and other essentials disappear after you have a guest stay on your property, especially if you leave out goods for them to have.
- Guests Who Want Refunds or Try to Commit Fraud: There are plenty of guests who try to ask for a refund after they’ve stayed despite experiencing no issues and failing to communicate any they supposedly underwent. On the more severe end of the spectrum, you have guests who actively try to commit fraud or will somehow find a way to avoid payment, cheating you of your money but still spending time in your vacation rental.
- Guests Who Engage in Risky Behavior: Some guests might engage in activities at your Airbnb that are neither safe nor legal, such as drug use, paying for certain adult services, or other risky behaviors. That’s why it’s crucial to carefully review their background check to spot any potential red flags. A guest’s past behavior is not necessarily indicative of who they are now, but that doesn’t mean that potential issues may not still arise while they’re staying on your property.
- Guests Who Don’t Listen to Airbnb Rules: Some guests do not show respect regardless of where they are. A comprehensive guest screening process will likely reveal these guests immediately as other Airbnb community members probably don’t have many nice things to say about them as they review their own experiences.
Setting Clear Expectations from the Start
You can’t guarantee that guests are going to be good guests. Some people will likely slip through the cracks or choose to disregard what you have to say. That being said, what you can do is set clear expectations for your guests that will help them learn more about what type of experience you’re looking for and how you expect them to act while they’re in your home. Those who react negatively to expectations or seem as though they’re not going to comply will out themselves rather quickly. Setting expectations will often entail some of the more in-depth tips outlined below.
Establishing House Rules and Policies
House rules and policies are among some of the most important expectations to lay out for guests before their stay. It informs them as to how they need to behave and what they need to do to get their positive guest reviews (or give you the ability to retaliate or act accordingly should you find that guests have blatantly ignored the house rules and policies that you have in place). That being said, house rules and policies can be extensive, which is why it’s important to have a more comprehensive overview of the rules and policies that you should establish for guests.
Here are some of the most important ones.
- Guest Cleanliness: Guests shouldn’t be expected to do your job for you or to take on the role of the Airbnb cleaning service that you may have hired. That being said, it’s not unreasonable to establish cleanliness expectations and to ask your guests to pick up after themselves and make sure that their space is not a mess or filthy when they leave.
- Noise Ordinances: Local noise ordinances are crucial to follow as they guarantee everyone in the area can enjoy neighborhood peace and get adequate sleep. If someone makes obnoxious levels of noise after a certain time, it gives police the ability to do something about it. Make it clear when these noise ordinances take effect so guests understand when to settle down (if, for example, they’re hosting an event).
- Partying: Disruptive gatherings of any kind have been prohibited by Airbnb, and that’s a policy that they will enforce. Letting your guests know what type of gatherings aren’t allowed is essential to being able to do something about them. Some events are okay, and you get to determine what these are and how many people can attend. Tell them more about events and guests before they book. Sometimes, dealing with difficult Airbnb guests comes from our lack of communication.
- Pets: Not all Airbnbs allow pets, and for good reason. Hosts may be worried about having to deal with extra, unforeseen cleaning costs or about the potential allergies that some of their guests may experience in the future. With that in mind, it’s important to remember that you’re not allowed to turn away service animals. In some states, you may also not turn away emotional support animals. Keep this in mind when you’re establishing pet policies for your home.
- Smoking: Most Airbnbs, especially older ones where historical elements can be easily damaged, don’t allow smoking. This serves to protect the interior of the home and guarantees that no other guests will run into the unpleasant smell during future bookings. If you are going to allow smoking on the premises, you should take care to tell your guests that smoking is only allowed outside.
- Where Food Can Be Consumed: It’s natural to only want guests to eat in the dining room or even in the living room to avoid accidents that stain furniture and even attract guests. It’s a good idea to set a cleaning fee in case not all guests comply with cleaning up. Careful guests won’t have any issues even if they do break this rule (so long as they know the consequences).
Effective Communication Strategies
Effective communication is critical to developing a positive relationship with all future guests. It’s also an insightful way to learn more about whether or not guests are great. After all, guests who don’t know how to communicate refuse could be sending you early warning signs that you should refuse a booking request (if you choose to instant book, you’re probably dealing with guests who communicate and have had fewer negative reviews).
Always send them a message when they send a booking request or when they Instant Book to welcome them to the platform, ask them any screening questions you may have before they commit to renting out your property, and detail all the rules, policies, and expectations that you have for them from check-in to check-out. Don’t hesitate to ask them any questions they may have, which could range from asking whether they can have people over to trying to learn more about the surrounding area and all the things they can do.
The more transparent and communicative you are throughout the process, the lower the likelihood you’ll encounter any issues, especially if you work with guests who are just as open and communicative as you are.
Dealing with Noise Complaints and Disruptions
Everyone has heard the horror stories of being neighbors with an Airbnb owner who has guests that party all night and disregard all the rules. It’s not just a frustrating situation, it’s a problematic one. At best, you have to go to your property or speak with the police and try to deal with rowdy guests. At worst, the gathering has become potentially dangerous with far too many people on your property or even pouring into the street.
The best way to deal with noise complaints and disruptions is to first reach out to the people who have reported it to you and the guests themselves. The former helps you perform damage control, allowing you to reassure concerned or angry neighbors that you’ll be dealing with your guests’ behavior as soon as possible. The latter helps you open a line of communication with your guest in case there’s some kind of miscommunication or misunderstanding. They may also not know how loud they’re being, apologize, and then quickly quiet down so that the situation is remedied.
If you are dealing with a situation with a guest who is not answering and is continuing to be loud and disrespectful, you can contact Airbnb to try to remedy the situation in a way that is satisfactory to you. You should also leave an honest review after the guest leaves so that future hosts are warned about their behavior. As with anything when it comes to Airbnb, make sure to document everything so that you have evidence when you reach out.
In the case of guests who are not only being loud but engaging in illegal behavior, you can call the proper authorities and have them removed if they are committing crimes on your property.
Handling Damages and Property Misuse
Discovering that your home has been damaged by a guest you let graciously stay there can be quite disheartening, and getting support can be long. The first and most obvious thing to do if you have a guest who misused your property or one who has damaged various areas of your property is to send a request for payment for said damages. Guests who accidentally damage property and know they are responsible for dealing with the damages will immediately send you money to fix the damage. You can also charge guests a security deposit if you have an expensive property and are planning for such issues.
With the above in mind, some guests may not reimburse you. If this happens, you will need to escalate your case to Airbnb in the hopes of getting compensation. Keep in mind that this will not always happen. If you find yourself in a corner, you may need to take legal action.
Resolving Payment Issues and Disputes
Payment issues are rare because Airbnb’s system automatically processes payment when guests officially book their stay. However, if you do experience payment issues, you can reach out to Airbnb support for further help. This includes when you’re dealing with bad guests who are requesting a refund after they’ve stayed at your property for the duration of their trip. If they’re unsure about why they have to pay something, point them to the platform’s policies!
Taking Care of Your Mental Well-being as a Host
Finally, it’s important to take care of yourself when you encounter bad guests. Make sure not to get too worked up and to give yourself time to walk away from the situation and compose yourself. It’s easy to put yourself in a bad spot or say things you don’t mean to guests when frustrated or angry. You may also wish to take some much-needed time to yourself after you deal with a bad guest, which is more than understandable!
When You Know How to Deal With Bad Airbnb Guests, You Know How to Navigate the Platform
Bad Airbnb guests are the worst thing you’re going to experience on the Airbnb platform. With this guide, you’ll know all the essential tips for dealing with these individuals so that you can breathe easy and move on to the next guest who will treat your property right. If you ever have a problem you haven’t encountered before, you can come back here to brush up on what to do next so you can remedy the situation!
