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AIBU?

Airbnb - not sure who is BU.

40 replies

Flossynoodle123 · 04/06/2016 15:58

I've just returned from 2 nights away staying in someone's house booked through airbnb. I have only done 1 airbnb trip before and it was problem free. The home owner for the trip this week now wants me to pay for carpet cleaning and I don't know what is reasonable.
I'm a single mother with a 6 year old son. The advert on airbnb said that we would be sharing the 3 bed 1 bath terraced house with just the single female owner and that only 1 bedroom was let out. Baths were not allowed as she was on a water meter. The cost was £114 for 2 nights.
The house was fine. However, after the first night the lady owner said there was a man in the back bedroom who works nights but not to worry about waking him as he sleeps deeply. This was another airbnb person staying for a couple of weeks. I was a bit taken aback but said nothing. I wouldn't have booked had I known he would be there - safety issue and only 1 bathroom.
I also didn't say anything about the fact that the water pressure of the over bath shower was so low I actually couldn't get the shampoo out of my hair despite standing there for 5 minutes.
I also didn't mention the curious fact that there was plaster all over the (old) white bathroom tiles. Could be scraped off with a fingernail. Seems she'd had the ceiling skimmed but not cleaned up.
I put it down to experience and just decided not to leave a review on the site as I didn't want to be negative when she has only been doing airbnb for a couple of months.
I confess that my DS made a tiny chocolate mark on the new white bedding. So tiny I didn't mention it as I have pure white bedding and knew it would wash out easily.
After we left she emailed to ask me to pay for carpet cleaning and complained about the bedding stain.
Apparently there was a speck of chocolate on the carpet that smeared when she hoovered and the mark on the bedding wouldn't come out on a "refresh' wash.
I was mortified to have left anything that would mark the carpet and offered her £20. I also explained my issues re the random man and bathroom. I asked if Vanish carpet stain remover wouldn't get rid of the stain. I said that small marks on a carpet in a letting bedroom were inevitable and suggested she get a Vax carpet cleaner as this shouldn't really be a guest issue as minor matters like that should be factored in to the price paid.
I said I was a bit shocked that bedding shared by strangers was only getting a refresh wash and that you can't keep white bedding pristine without a proper wash.
She has said she takes on board my comments (but said no more) and gave me bank transfer details to send her the £20.
On reflection I think I'm the one who should be getting a discount!
What should I do????

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IceMaiden73 · 04/06/2016 16:10

I wouldn't pay it, but then I would never have agreed to

I think I would email now and say that on reflection you won't be paying it due to the other issues in the house

If she keeps messaging you escalate it to Air bnb customer support

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MarchEliza · 04/06/2016 16:11

I think you've offered the money now so should send it but I really don't think she's going to get on well doing air bnb if that's her attitude.

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H0LDTHED00R · 04/06/2016 16:12

No one, she complained and you offered to pay, you could have refused and she couldn't have done anything about it. If you're unhappy about paying then don't. But she's well within her rights to rent out her rooms to whoever she likes. And if you want a consistent standard book a proper hotel.

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OrangeSquashTallGlass · 04/06/2016 16:20

I agree with Ice.

Also, I think you probably should review so that other possible visitors have a clearer picture of what a stay would be like.

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inlectorecumbit · 04/06/2016 16:24

Agree to pay but counterclaim for a discount citing the issues that you mention. Say you expect at least £20 discount and call it quits. Grin

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Flossynoodle123 · 04/06/2016 16:27

Sure she can rent her rooms to whoever she likes holdthedoor. But not if she's saying that we would be the only visitors and this wasn't true. I wouldn't have booked to take either myself or my 6 yo to a place where a random male stranger was also in residence sharing the only bedroom. False advertising to say the least.

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Flossynoodle123 · 04/06/2016 16:28

Bathroom, not bedroom!

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AntiHop · 04/06/2016 16:36

She is b vvvvv unreasonable. You were led to believe that you had the place to yourself and there was a random man in the same house! Don't pay a penny. Leave a review just about the man. Don't mention the issue about the chocolate. Complain to air bnb. You owe it to future guests to leave a review about the sharing of the house without prior agrreement. I think you should be totally refunded.

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purplefox · 04/06/2016 16:53

Don't pay and leave a review.

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Birdsgottafly · 04/06/2016 17:07

You've made the offer, so you should really honour it.

However, you wasn't liable for the supposed cost.

I've stopped using ABB and gone back to B&Bs or late deals.

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LadyStarkOfWinterfell · 04/06/2016 17:09

Did she have a deposit from you? If no, ignore the silly cow. I rent through Airbnb and wear and tear is an obvious risk. Plus, she's clearly not prepared to be a host so you should leave an honest review. If you leave her 2/3 stars across the board Airbnb sees that as a bad review and will put her on notice.

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Marynary · 04/06/2016 17:30

I would pay now as you offered but I would certainly leave a bad review. She shouldn't have said that it would only be you and herself if she intended to rent a room to someone else. What is a "refresh wash". Is it just a rinse without soap. If so, that is not appropriate.
Not sure where you rented but outside London, £58 a night isn't particularly cheap so I would rent a room in a proper B&B in the future.

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Hissy · 04/06/2016 17:35

Don't pay, leave a review. 2 stars max.

If she is charging £57 for a room with shared bathroom and renting out every square inch of her home, she can't dictate who baths and who doesn't. Was that in her description?

You booked on the understanding it was one room. She changed the terms. You can change your mind about paying her £20. She's not going to sue you, and £20 for her to get a lesson in hosting is cheap...

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akkakk · 04/06/2016 17:39

£114 for 2 nights and you are not allowed a bath as she is on a water meter?! Shock

better off staying in a proper B&B - AirB&B is set up on the principle that you save money by effectively using space which is occasionally available - while many professional B&Bs are now on AirB&B there are also lots of places which are very amateur and shouldn't be on there - for that price I would certainly expect to be able to use a bath, or at least have a standalone shower...

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fussygalore118 · 04/06/2016 17:47

what's a refresh wash?

honestly I wouldn't have offered anything towards the cleaning. ..its not as though you have tipped red wine everywhere!

oh and I'd leave a very honest review.

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Flossynoodle123 · 04/06/2016 17:48

In answer to questions:
Yes it was in the description that baths weren't allowed. Wouldn't have been an issue if the shower worked!
No deposit asked for.
A refresh wash on my machine is 20 minutes at 20 degrees or 30 minutes at 30 degrees. I would wash shared plain white bedding on a full wash of at least 40 degrees.
The room was nowhere near London but in a nice town in the NW of England.

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Marynary · 04/06/2016 17:55

Flossynoodle123 £58 doesn't sound particularly cheap for a room with a shared bathroom in NW of England, even in half term. What would be the price of a room in a hotel such as Premier Inn or Travelodge? You wouldn't have to share a bathroom in those places.

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DecaffCoffeeAndRollupsPlease · 04/06/2016 17:56

I'm doing up my spare bedroom in a town that has tourists, hmm, airbnb... That's an idea. I'm not precious about bills and carpets...

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LadyStarkOfWinterfell · 04/06/2016 17:57

A refresh wash? Yuk. Guest bedding and towels get washed at 60 here. I need it to look at smell clean or I will get bad reviews! Airbnb isn't a licence to print money, it involves hard work. Review the bitch and let her pull her socks up or get out of the game.

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LadyStarkOfWinterfell · 04/06/2016 17:58

My spare room costs £40 per night including toast and coffee. People are happy because it's cheap. Why would you pay £58 for a spare room in someone's house when you could pay the same for a travelodge?

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penisbeakerlaminateflooringetc · 04/06/2016 18:00

Ewwww....washing bedding at anything lower than 60C is disgusting, especially if it's shared!! Leave an honest review.

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MustStopAndThinkBeforePosting · 04/06/2016 18:04

You've offered the cash now so need to pay up but do leave a negative review - as a fellow airbnb user I would want to know if I was letting myself in for sharing a bathroom with another guest and sleeping in sheets that have only been "refreshed" since the last guest slept in them.

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WhereYouLeftIt · 04/06/2016 18:16

"Apparently there was a speck of chocolate on the carpet that smeared when she hoovered and the mark on the bedding wouldn't come out on a "refresh' wash."
No I would not give her the £20. Chocolate can't smear that far, a quick spray with Vanish will suffice. Unless of course the carpet is so filthy this would create a noticeable clean patch? And as for the 'refresh' wash - isn't that the sort of cycle you use for e.g. bedlinen in a spare room that hasn't been used for a year and you think is bit dusty? I find it a bit skanky that she would use such a cycle for bedlinen that's being used by different people. Because let's face it, if a 'refresh' wash can't remove chocolate, there's a huge list of bodily fluids other stuff it can't remove.

I would leave a review. And I would mention that the water pressure was too poor to rinse your hair - that's pretty important when you can't use the bath instead. And that despite being told it would only be you and the host, this was not the case - given the shared bathroom, again, that's something else prospective renters should know could happen.

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frenchfancy · 04/06/2016 18:24

It is up to your conscience if you want to pay the £20 but you should definitely leave a review. Be 100% honest, do not allow your emotions to cloud the review.

I too think that £57 per night for a shared bathroom in the north of England is a bit steep.

I run holiday accommodation and am on airbnb. White bedding needs to be washed on a 60C full wash. It is no wonder the stains wouldn't come out. Ask yourself the question "would travel lodge be charging me for this?"

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Mirandawest · 04/06/2016 18:26

Did she take a security deposit? I think even if she did it needs to go through Airbnb. I would contact them, explain what happened and leave it in their hands.

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