I'm an AirBnB host, AMA

[SlightlySleepy]

If you ever thought of using it but are unsure, or thought about becoming a host. Or, in fact, anything else, ask away.

“You can let out as much as your home as you want”’is the key but I think. Hope this saves you some money!

Freaking0ut I understand that as it is BnB you have to provide breakfast as well as bed!

Thanks but I'm not sure it's classed as our home. We stay here during term time as the dcs attend a local school but have another home.

You do need separate insurance as you need public liability, even though it is a room in your house. The host guarentee would not cover you, have you read the horror stories?

There are companies who provide add on insurance for your situation. The main problem is that your insurance could be voided if you needed to claim because you rent out a room. Eg guest burns house down.

I love and hate Air BnB in equal measure. I rent out an annexe. They have just overridden my cancellation policy and I have lost £600! The guest cancelled because he had a sore knee which he had when he booked! Customer Services were useless, they seem to just side with the guest. Air BnB seem to expect hosts to provide travel insurance. Except whereas insurance wouldn't pay out for a pre existing condition I am expected to.

One family spent 2 weeks with us and seemed to think that our company was part of the deal and would spend hours hanging around the house and their kids would endlessly come to me asking for snacks and entertainment.

How did you deal with this?

I dealt with it terribly. They were one of our first guests and it all took me a bit by surprise. The guest kids would see me feeding my children and would ask for the same, I would say "you need to ask your mum for food". They would come back a minute later and say "my mum said it's ok to eat it". I didn't want to debate with a child and say that I meant that their mum should provide the food, not that they needed to ask permission to eat my food. So I just gave it to them instead. It really just descended from there. The mother did lots of odd things and I somehow let her. For example, she would send the kids down in the morning and go back to bed, so I was providing free childcare every morning for a few hours. Looking back, I don't know what I was thinking. She was a total CF and I just sort of went along with it. Since then, I've been much clearer with the guests and have practised responses to CF people in my head! Who knows how I'll actually respond though if someone like that arrives again. Maybe I'll just default to being passive again and kick myself afterwards.

I understand that as it is BnB you have to provide breakfast as well as bed!

Weirdly not. In the same way that the AirB doesn't have to be an air bed, like it was originally, the second B seems to be optional breakfast. I am one of the few in my area that provides breakfast. It is quite clear in the profiles who provides it and who doesn't. I provide a continental breakfast. I'm scared I might need a food licence or something if I start cooking for people.

Movinghouseatlast I have read from the AirBnB forums that when you actually need AirBnB, they are not on your side. I suppose as a money-making organisation, they don't actually want to pay out ever. So I wouldn't be surprised if the host guarantee was in name only.

In the same way, AirBnB always advise me to rent out my rooms for much cheaper than I actually do. AirBnB don't care how much you make from it, they just want you fully booked so they can take their commission every day.

If a guest can override a cancellation policy because they say their knee hurts, then all the cancellation policies are pointless. I have always refunded in full because they have my address, and they could do far more damage to my house/car/me than I would be gaining by not giving the money back.

I have read some horror stories and it does bother me, but I don't plan on doing this forever and I just hope I manage to get through without being another horror story.

So please please get the proper insurance you need! Your home insurance probably won't cover you for any claim against you.

Can I ask , is it feasible to be a single woman and just rent out a room to females only ?
Also does shared bathroom put people off ?

is it feasible to be a single woman and just rent out a room to females only ? Also does shared bathroom put people off?

You can specify in your listing that you only want females. Put it somewhere obvious, like in the title. You would also have to turn off instant bookings. I think the way AirBnB works is it puts the instant book listings higher in the search results, so your listing would be viewed less often, meaning you would get fewer requests. But at least, when people request to book, you can decline any with males in the group.

You can also specify if you will only take guests that other hosts have recommended, if they have shown ID to AirBnB, if they have a profile photo etc. So there are added security measures that you can take.

I don't think people look on AirBnB if they want a luxury hotel experience, they usually just want something cheep in the right area. Nobody has ever seemed to care about the bathroom being shared in my house.

Movinghouse. Can you explain about insurance? Is the add on special policy and the Airbnb guarantee enough?

The add on policy is enough I think. Best bet is to Google or phone a broker.

Many home insurance policies don't cover Air BnB.

Public liability is the most important thing. If you don't have it and a guest sued you for personal injury you wouldn't be covered.

I have specialist insurance as mine is an annexe attached to my house, but I looked at the add on policies. You also need to check with your current insurance provider that they are happy for you to have an add on

Yes that’s what I have and home insurance happy. Thanks. Got a bit panicky not enough!

Sorry what do you mean by add on policy? I'm getting a bit worried now

You can purchase an add on policy to your home insurance that covers you for letting on Air BnB. So public liability for paying guests, cover for If a guest damages your property in some way. Public liability is vital.

If you are worried, phone a broker or do a Google search for Air InN or STR insurance. Or phone your own insurance company.

Ah ok. I think we actually have landlord insurance as we planned at some point to rent it out but I woll double check.

Op do you have any advice on this situation.

DH and his friend very recently stayed in Airbnb. 2 bed apartment, on arrival one toilet didn't flush, it matter too much because there was another loo.

In main bathroom, under the sink there was a baby bath which appeared to be catching water, a drip. Again didn't matter, it didn't impact on stay.

In addition a piece of the cornice in living room crashed down in middle of night. DH says it was held on by sticky tape, again didn't impact on stay.

DH reported these to the host upon leaving, whilst confirming he was following leaving instructions.

Cutting a long story short, host is claiming monies for repair of toilet and sink ( faulty washer??). DH has requested all communication goes through Airbnb, as host was contacting direct.

DH and host have both referred to Resolution service.

DH is the most fastidious person, previous hosts have commented on his cleanliness etc.

Sorry to hear you've had such a rubbish experience. Did you have to pay a deposit?

Document the detail of how it was already broken, and what was already in place to solve it, such as the baby bath catching the water, things held up by sticky tape. That shows that he already knew about it before you arrived and had tried (badly) to fix it. If there's any other broken things in the house mention them too, to support your case that the place is run down.

Only communicate through AirBnB. If the host sends you a text, you should still reply on AirBnB: 'I received your text saying i owe you £x, but i disagree for the following reasons...'

If you happened to take any photos of any of it, or maybe some if it is I the background of photos you've already taken. Or even just photos that show it's run down in general. That would help demonstrate that your husband didn't cause the problems. Also look on the hosts own photos, you might be lucky and evidence might be in the background that will support what you're saying. Some hosts advertise on several sites, so if that property is listed elsewhere, see if you can find anything in those photos. Finally, look at previous reviews on this and other sites, have they mentioned that things were broken?

You said your husband reported it upon leaving, do you have any evidence of this?

Airbnb tend to favour guests in disputes, but you still need to put the work in to show it's not you. Let me know how you get on.

Thanks OP.

Unfortunately DH didn't take photos, because he really didn't think it would be an issue - a lesson learnt!

Luckily he has communicated via Airbnb and copied the emails from the host.

He will look at the photos of the accommodation.

It's clear to see that DH's previous feedback is exemplary (try living with him!! )

Will let you know how we get on

Just to add - DH reported/notified the damage via Airbnb on leaving, so it is documented.

I how it goes well. The owner would struggle to prove that your husband made his tap leak! When you get to leave feedback, make sure you warn other guests what he's like. The 'overall' stars is what counts towards a host's rating, not the sub sections, so make sure that main one is 1 star

I am thinking of Air B and B with our spare room. Do you think it’s ok to leave mini cereal packets and bowls in the room along with milk , juice in a mini fridge and a kettle with tea , coffee, sugar and some biscuits.
There is an ensuite.
I would rather not allow kitchen access. Is that acceptable do you think?

Yeah it's a nice idea to have breakfast in the guests room. I think the more self contained the better. That's one of the reasons why whole houses go for so much more than private rooms in a house. It's awkward being in someone else's house. If they see that they can do almost everything in their room, i think they'd prefer it.

That’s great thank you, I live within a five minute walk of a popular attraction/venue. So am hoping to attract guests who just need somewhere local to sleep for one night rather than to come for a holiday.

I imagine that most people who use AirBnB just want somewhere to crash. They're not generally looking for luxury accommodation. We have mismatched towels and our bedding isn't all beautiful and white. Not many people have cared.

I am fairly new to the airbnb culture and hosted only two guests so far. As I’m home alone with the baby I state I want only females.

1- is that an odd request to make ?
2- do you enter the rooms that you rent out to clean them or not until guest leaves ?

My friend scared the crap out of me and told me that it’s too dangerous for me to do this when I have a baby. She said you can can any sort of stranger on Airbnb who has a criminal record and is up to no good. I usually go for verified profiles but it’s true I’m not sure that could vouch for my safety.

3- from your experience is this dangerous to do with a baby around if it’s short term?
4- did you ever have a guest prolong their stay and ask if they could pay you in cash? What would you do ?

5- Finally, do you make other parts of your house available to them (living room? Kitchen?)

Hi OP, an update.

AirBnB customer services have responded to DH's comprehensive complaint. They have said they won't be pursuing any payment from us and will address this with the host.

DH also, too hastily gave feedback immediately, prior to the host starting this carry on. DH requested to change this feedback and they have referred him to another team. Will update with response.
Thanks for your help