Community, I need major help with this one ASAP!

[Suzanne302]

Two guests checked in while I wasn't home. They weren't here when I came home but I came home to this:

-Two of my hall closet doors were wide open (coat closet and a closet in a hallway clearly marked "PRIVATE, No Guest Access."

-My camera caught them "looking" in a room clearly marked "PRIVATE, No Guest Access."

-They left a candle burning

-All lights and fans were on

-There are dog pee pads in my living room and by my door

-They placed food all over my kitchen counter

Do I kick them out and call ABB? Do I advise them on proper behavior? Communication with the young gentlemen has been very polite. I could chalk it up to ignorance/cluelessness, but the opening of the private doors really bothers me.

Help! Think I will get anywhere with ABB if I try to remove them??

[Kath9]

Oh@Suzanne302, this is EXACTLY why we're not happy about Airbnb making it even more difficult to see our listing details! I expect we will be seeing more and more of this. I have had a few of these, people expecting a whole house for $50/night + $10 cleaning fee. Utterly ridiculous. So, as per one of my responses to your other post on the listing changes, I suggest messaging your guests when they book or when you accept a booking to make sure they know exactly what they are booking. This is mine:

Hi XXX and thank you so much for booking - I look forward to welcoming you into my home! You are welcome to check in anytime from 3pm to 7pm but please let me know what time you expect to arrive so I can plan my day and make sure I am home to greet you.

To ensure you are fully satisfied with your stay, please spend a moment reading the listing details and house rules carefully - if you feel they might not be a good fit for you, I do have a flexible cancellation policy. Otherwise, I'll be in touch closer to the date with arrival details. Please let me know if you have any questions in the meantime.

Best wishes, Kath

The other thing you might consider is putting a lock on your private room. I have installed a lock on my bedroom door so I can lock it at night (in case I get any weirdo guys) and I can also lock it from the outside if I am out or away.

Also, I think you're being incredibly generous to refund them for a night given that they didn't read your listing properly. And good luck to them finding a hotel that takes dogs!

[Suzanne302]

@Kath9 

That is a great suggestion and I love the wording of your message!

I do have a lock on my personal bedroom door, thankfully, or I'm sure they would have ventured there as well. I usually only lock it when I haven't personally met the guests.

As for the hotel? Yeah, I'm not sure how they're going to find a hotel to take TWO dogs, that is going to be less than $150/night. As a matter of fact, they'll be lucky to find something here under $200/night factoring in pet fees.

[Suzanne302]

It's going to be a long night. They put their two dogs outside unattended while they play loud music in the room. One of the dogs got her head stuck in a side gate. I heard the whining so I went outside and freed her. The guy emerges from the room and I let him know what happened and told him he should bring the dogs in if they are not going to be outside with them.

I think the dogs are still outside. Alone. 

[Robin4]

@Suzanne302 

Yeah @Linda108  has got it right! Guests do seem to be getting more clueless Suzanne, and I can't fault the fact that you advertise a private room....not an entire space!

But guests being what they are, they put more emphasis on things they like, not things they don't!

They get into your description of the space and when they read it there are a few things there that would jump out at them.......

These things I have boxed could indicate to the guest that they have virtually the run of the place. You don't specifically say they are in a shared environment!

I would perhaps put a bit more emphasis on ...."I am happy to share my home with you, all I ask is that you respect my privacy while you are here".

I don't think Airbnb are helping with this in any way because they are making it harder to get our rules across to guests.

As far as them continuing to stay and the review to come......you have to make a judgement call on that! What is more important to you Suzanne, the fact that they are clueless, need to be out of your life and to be taught a lesson in being a guest, or that they haven't been bad enough (in your eyes)  to rock the ship too much. I can't advise you there.

Cheers......Rob

[Suzanne302]

@Robin4 

I don't think any of those things you highlighted would indicate they have the run of the place. The very fact that there is a section titled "Guest Access" would indicate to me that I would have limited access.

I guess I should put in bold at the top, "PLEASE NOTE I LIVE IN THIS HOME SO YOU ARE ONLY RENTING A ROOM, NOT THE ENTIRE HOUSE, AND I WILL BE PRESENT DURING YOUR STAY." That seems to be the only way to make it clear to those who are too stupid to know the difference between "Private Room" and "Entire House" as indicated on each listing.

These guests are BAD. They are loud, still leaving lights on, still breaking rules, and now they have left to go out and their dogs are still on my back porch whining. No matter what they are completely disrespectful and I can't wait until they leave in the morning. I tried to take the high road and be hospitable but they will be bad guests no matter where they go and this review will be easy to write.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Suzanne302 @Robin4 

I looked at your listing out of interest and the first point on the first page is 

"Private room in house" If they don't see that they won't be reading any 'house space' or 'house rules'.

Upfront, bold and clear. People just don't read.

[Suzanne302]

@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0  Good point!

[Anonymous]

@Suzanne302  Not to take away from the fact that these lousy guests are disrespectful of you and your property, but have you communicated how you expect guests to handle their pets outdoors? Your rules state clearly that dogs left indoors must be crated, but I don't see any rules pertaining to the outdoor areas of your property.

[Sarah977]

@Suzanne302  Oh my goodness. Well, that explains the looking everywhere and the shrieks of "I love this place!" (Not that there's nothing to love about your place). What a debacle.

FYI I've had dogs off and on all my life and I had never heard of "pee pads" before I started reading these forums. Bizarre concept, training a dog to relieve itself inside the house.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Suzanne302 

we are off-site hosts and to be honest I can't imagine letting complete strangers into my own home, even less to give them access while I am not present.

But if I would do that ( I should be literary hungry and in a debt) I wouldn't tolerate this behavior and they would be out the same day, no warnings, no discussion... it's a waste of time. If they didn't learn how to behave in a house then they belong in the cave.

[Kelly149]

@Suzanne302 it's unfortunate that a very clear listing isn't clear to guests, esp when ABB hides important things! You'll probably learn something from these dolts and I hope your review makes clear that they don't belong in shared homes (or really I wouldn't want them in my stand-alone place either!!).

**And, it's 11:07 Eastern... are they gone???

[Suzanne302]

@Kelly149They left about 5 minutes ago. Although I'm not sure how long they would have tried to hang out had I not been here at 10am making my presence known in the kitchen and living room. And the second I went out back to water some plants, the male guest ran into the marked "PRIVATE" area to retrieve his Jeep window that he had stored in there thinking I didn't know about it.

I've had the cameras for 60 or so guest stays, and not once has a guest ever triggered them until now. What a night! At least I can chalk it up to another learning experience!

[Suzanne302]

Oh wait, they're still sitting in my driveway! And they just got out and are walking around my front yard...

And just let themselves back in (didn't even knock!) to ask if they could pay me extra to let the dogs sit in my backyard for a few hours while they go off and do whatever. I directed them to the nearest doggy daycare.

[Susan151]

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@Suzanne302 wrote:

Oh wait, they're still sitting in my driveway! And they just got out and are walking around my front yard...

And just let themselves back in (didn't even knock!) to ask if they could pay me extra to let the dogs sit in my backyard for a few hours while they go off and do whatever. I directed them to the nearest doggy daycare.

---

This young couple just keeps giving you gifts. Just think about how many stories you can spin from just a 24 hour intersection with the Young and the Clueless! You will be the life of the party for at least a few weeks.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

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@Suzanne302 wrote:

Oh wait, they're still sitting in my driveway! And they just got out and are walking around my front yard...

And just let themselves back in (didn't even knock!) to ask if they could pay me extra to let the dogs sit in my backyard for a few hours while they go off and do whatever. I directed them to the nearest doggy daycare.

---

Ouch, they want to push your hospitality don't they! What might it be worth to them for you to host their dogs for the afternoon? ABB need add another 'additional fees' for that and the guest would need to amend their booking 🙂

Despite the fact they left, and you just said 'No' to them in the politest possible way do you think their hosting clock has switched off yet or do you think they still might be totting up  their host experience?