Guests Smoking...Boot Them?

oh, just because I’m also eager to hear what happens and see this problem settled and put behind @azreala. Things are quiet on my end these days.

This is a bit sad. This means you do it often. :frowning: I wouldn’t know what to do and would lose! Official letterhead? How does one go about getting one of those? How long does one do this type of thing before they become a pro? (I have a whopping four months under my belt)
Sounds like you have this, Azreala. I’m cheering you on!

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Az has had a run of bad luck but I officially declare it over…no more bad guests!

I have been at this six and a half years and have only had resolution denied by the guest once. Only had a cancellation refund denied once. Not bad. Even though I complain here :smile: quite frequently, 98% of my guests are just fine.

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@konacoconutz, you are a wealth of knowledge. Thanks!

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Yes, I have!

This is the second resolution center situation i have found myself in, in the last 2 week! Before this last July was the last kne- guests spilled red wine on white wool rug, which they denied, and I caved and let it go bc I wanted to replace the rug anyway. Do as I say not as I do!!

I learned the hard way last week that air has (maybe new-ish) very strict requirements of invoices, etc in order to get side with the host and pay the claim. For example the property manage who did assisted in a lock out (guests were not locked out which is why I chathes) only gave me an invoice withhos company name- air denied it bc it wasn’t official letterhead, meaning address, phone number, email, etc. Paypal receipts dont counteither. Also, everything needs to be in pdf/jpeg. Pictures of receipts are best, if possible, if not send a link to the broke item and hope for the best.

UPDATE: I submitted claims for $500 and Air approved $350 of the claims. Saying that they were not going to pay for the new towels and shower curtain (receipt was included) bc they believe I should be able to wash them and the smoke smell will come out. On the same receipt was a bunch of cleaning supplies, air fresheners, etc, that they also denied.

Moral of the story is if you have to open an resolution center case make sure you ‘pad’ the total a little bit, bc from my experience ( 2 cases in the last 2 weeks) they seem to always ‘compromise’ between the host and guest, in the spirit of fairness. I thought there was no way they would be able to deny any of this claim since the guest admitted to it, I had already called about the smoking, etc, but I still was not awarded the full amount

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Is that a good/OK result for you?? are you happy with this? at least it will pay your fine :slight_smile: :frowning:

While it’s good you got something I’d be a lot more disinclined to host any smokers from now on. And if I got a report of anyone smoking I’d boot them right out and let Air deal with it. And make sure hosts know what they did in the review.

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@Kirsty_Jane Yes, I am happy with the amount of $$ they awarded us, however, slightly annoyed with the process. How is okay to tell a host sorry we don’t think you need replace something, even though a guest destroyed it? That part bothers me. We washed the linens multiple times and they still reeked, since we had a guest checking in later in the day, I went and bought new items. Would air prefer I used smelly linens? I slightly understand them denying the cleaning supplies/air fresheners as that could be part of the cleaning fee that my housekeeper charged.

@KKC Yes, exactly. That will be the first thing I ask in my welcome ‘email’ to anyone that has booked. ‘Do you smoke? Did you read my rules around smoking? Please confirm you have read the house rules.’

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Did I miss how they paid the fine? I thought that was $350. I would be pissed. I had a smoke claim once and it is hard to prove. I also couldn’t get the smell out of the comforter and had to wash it again and again. The odor settles and lingers on fabrics.

I’m sure you were beyond clear in your listing about smokers…as someone here said, it’s certain cultures that chain smoke and aren’t used to traveling to destinations where smoking is banned.

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Fine was $250 plus ‘additonal’ cleaning of $100 was what Air paid out.

Yes, smoking seems to be hard to prove the clean up cost of, unless you hire a professional to come out.

I think I’m just going to ask point blank when the guest books. And re-emphasis any signs of smoking is a $250 fine.

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I often have the guest sign a no-smoking agreement upon arrival. When I first started hosting I required every guest sign. That became a little troublesome though & now only those under 30 & those that look, sound or smell like smokers, do I make sign. And yes, I’m profiling :grimacing: Most smokers have a certain look about them afterall…

By signing they agree to a $300 cleaning fee if there is any sign of smoking. I’ve collected it once. I kicked them out and AirBnB helped me get the cleaning fee. They also had to pay for the night.

Being in Colorado, the agreement also covers weed.

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Under 30 eh? Is that party social smoking aspect side of things? Most people I know that smoke are over 40 - it’s expensive!!

No, it’s because the majority of millennials (and the younger Generation Z), or as I like to call them, the “me first generation”, have little regard for others or the consequences of their actions. Of all the guests I’ve ever had a smoking issue with, it’s those in their 20’s. They do what they want, where they want regardless of how it may effect others.

More mature smokers seem to get it and respect the rules. If they smoke they generally do it away from the house and clean up after themselves.

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What an annoying policy! How can you get a letterhead for something like replacing sheets and linens?

If the damage is something you can fix yourself, are you supposed to still get a quote on an official letter head? For example, if a guest makes a hole in the drywall, I can fix that myself, and it would be a waste of everyone’s time to have a professional come give a quote. (Well, except that I have a carpenter friend who could make me an invoice on her letterhead as a favor, but what if I didn’t?)

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I’m a millennial myself and have a lot of complaints about my own generation (see my recent post about guests lacking common sense–it is my fellow millennials!), but I think you’re being a bit harsh in your characterization. I think we could have complaints about any generation’s habits as guest without saying, “This is what’s wrong with kids/middle-aged people/elders today!”

I agree. I’m 58 and I have about 70% guests age 18-30. 98% of them are great. My worst guests, as measured by giving me 3 stars and cancelling the third day of a 3 day stay were in their (I’m guessing) late 40’s. I’ve also had several retired couples who are great. I just don’t think people can resist stereotyping.

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Yup, or ABB won’t pay. It’s a crappy policy. If you buy something from a store, they want a receipt, and not just a hand written receipt, but something similar to that of Target where its printed

Good point about reviews! I don’t think I’ve had a guest under age 30 leave less than a five-star review. They are usually so happy to have a real bed and a clean space to themselves.

I forgot to mention earlier, but the smokers azreala had to deal with were a whole family, so even if the parents weren’t smoking, they were condoning the adult children’s behavior, so again, I don’t think it is fair to blame one generation. This whole family acted inappropriately!

That is so strict! Some businesses do hand-written quotes and receipts. I just got a bid this morning on air conditioning from a reputable company that has been around a 100 years, and the bid was hand-written! If it were a repair quote, Air wouldn’t accept that!

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