Damage at an AirBnB

[ItalianLemon]

I don’t usually post on MN so hopefully I do this correctly, but I could do with some collective advice!

I stayed at an AirBnB property with a group of friends at the weekend - gorgeous house with an open plan living space and beautiful kitchen.

The owners were understandably clear before hand that it is their family home and they didn't want to let it out to rowdy groups. We were respectful of this and mindful of the space we were in. We weren't drunk, silly or reckless.

Unfortunately, as I was drying some water from the bottom of a bowl, it slipped from my hand and hit the edge of the induction hob. It wasn't from a height at all so I must have just got incredibly unlucky with how it fell, but nonetheless it chipped the edge of the glass hob 😢

I was a genuine accident and not caused by carelessness but I was mortified and spent the rest of the weekend fretting about it.

We obviously let them know what had happened, but have now had contact from the management agent with a request that we pay (within 24 hours) £1000 for a replacement induction. I'm gutted.

The friend who made the booking has gone back to them saying we wouldn’t expect to pay the full cost and asked about their insurance. They have now referred us back to AirBnB.

Does anyone know what the usual damage process is? Are the owners likely to have cover through AirBnB? Would there be an excess to pay?
I genuinely don’t know what’s normal or a reasonable expectation in this situation.

I completely appreciate how upsetting it must be for the owners to come back to damage, particularly when it’s their home rather than a buy-to-let, but things are a real struggle financially at the moment and I don’t know how I’ll even begin to find the cash to sort it if we’re expected to pay £1k.

I'd really appreciate any thoughts or advice, particularly from anyone who hosts AirBnB and knows how it works from that side.

You and your friends need to figure out what you feel is reasonable to pay if anything. I don’t know how hard Airbnb will chase you if you decline to pay. However, as a host you have to put a request in for the damage with the visitors before Airbnb insurance will pay out. So the owners’ hands are tied in this respect, as Airbnb insurance won’t pay until a request has been lodged with the person who made the booking. Airbnb also require documentary evidence of the cost, so often the only way to do that is to show the original receipts or a like for like replacement cost to begin with. In my experience Airbnb usually pay out when guests decline. Sometimes guests hold their hands up and make the payment themselves. The owners aren’t getting at you by asking, it’s just the process, it’s not personal.

This is really useful, thank you so much.

I'm not taking it personally as such, I think it's more that I just feel so guilty. Guilt about causing the damage in the first place, and guilt for the additional stress, time and money for both my friends and for the hosts too. No one needs this headache.

Their future insurance costs will go up a lot from having a claim, so that's perhaps another reason they'd not want to when AirBnB provide a resolution framework for it.
So annoying for you though!

@ItalianLemon no worries, glad it’s useful. As an ex-host I often felt really guilty about asking for damage to be made good. I think the Airbnb process does make it feel quite personal in a way, even though Airbnb are the middle man!

Part of my guilt came from reading threads on here in which people expressed shock and upset to have been asked, or believed they didn’t cause the damage etc. and got upset about the request. I didn’t want anyone to feel upset - I just wanted to fix my tap (or whatever)!

Also sometimes subsequent guests complain that things are chipped/scratched/ marked etc and that then affects reviews and bookings. So if hosts don’t make requests immediately and hang onto the payments towards repairs etc it can have repercussions on them down the line when it’s too late to claim.

I wish more users understood that the hosts can’t claim anything on Airbnb insurance without first going through this part of the process. I’m sure sometimes mistakes are made or requests are unreasonable, but there is human error in any system. The way Airbnb ask for costs to be evidenced is especially unhelpful with things like this where full replacement is really expensive - but also some things can’t just be fixed a little bit unfortunately. No system is perfect!

Anyway, I wouldn’t feel too bad about it - it’s just a transactional problem that will get solved. The quicker you go through the process the quicker you can put it behind you! Just tick the boxes you have to and move on. Good luck!

Claim on your travel insurance

Also a hob isnt £1000 nor is it brand new.

You can buy one for £200.

That was me.
Summary - it was a hideous process but I ended up only paying £100.

@SajtosPogacsa in Scotland its the law to have a holiday home licence and you can't advertise on Airbnb without showing them proof of it. Also to rent out a holiday home anywhere in the UK you need a few millions in public liability insurance. You can report to Edinburgh Council where your dd and dh stayed as it's a breach of licence.

Op anyone renting out a holiday home in the UK needs to have public liability insurance as law. Its not normal house insurance. The owners should claim from this insurance as by renting out accidents can happen. Have you spoken with the owners directly or just the management company?

I would speak with the owners directly and see what they think about things.

Just in case you didn’t manage to find it, I was also thinking of that thread and it’s here

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/holidays/4870422-airbnb-damage-we-caused

IK, R?

The owners were understandably clear before hand that it is their family home

Well, they're idiots then renting out their home to "you never know who you're going to get".

Tell them to fuck off. Airbnb has been the huge problem that people cannot even get a roof over their head any more because of greed.

Insurance doesn't change liability. Damage to a big ticket item is what insurance is for - but since you broke it, it should be what you have insurance for, surely?

However, I would question replacing it new.

An induction top does wear out, so a new replacement is not reasonable. And assuming it still works fine, a complete replacement for cosmetic damage is also unreasonable even if the cosmetic mark cannot be made good. A court would not award them the cost of a new top if they tried to sue you. I'd probably offer them 10% - 20% depending on how big a "chip" it was.

Exactly.

Typical AirBnB nonsense, full of people who want a zero-risk, zero-effort revenue stream and go nuts when they realize that some costs might be involved.

In the country where I live, you cannot rent your house out to someone unless you are licensed, a process which includes things like safety inspections and of course having bloody insurance. It means AirBnB is available but the supply is limited, which stops neighborhoods being hollowed out, and also ensures that the AirBnB that you do get is safe and properly insured. The UK needs to crack down on this sector.

Here's the link to the other thread, you might find something useful as I think the op on it challenged the cost and they agreed a reduction
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/holidays/4870422-airbnb-damage-we-caused?page=1

I think you’re right.

Keep up with this attitude and they may be more helpful. You're doing the right things - acknowledging it's shit for them etc.

Also occurred to me (and it’s largely irrelevant to the outcome) that if they’re Airbnb-ing their family home they might have fallen on hard times and hence be less forgiving.

We stay in rentals that have several thousands on security deposits. The better rental you stay in the higher the deposit or costs for damages really.

I think things like this cannot be repaired so have to be replaced and it’s fair for them to charge you (but I would ask for the model so you can check they aren’t over charging). I would hope they aren’t including installation in the cost although I suppose they could do if they wanted.

I don't know why people have suggested claiming on your own house insurance.
That wouldn't cover for this as this is someone else's property.
Your own insurance would only cover for your things away from the house (if you've opted for that cover on the policy)

They will also have 'host damage protection' which kicks in if the guest doesn't pay up.
I think in your situation I'd say you feel dreadful and you wish you did, but you simply do not have £1000 so it's not going to happen. You physically can not pay £1k. Suggest they go through the host damage protection. Maybe offer whatever you can afford. You can get induction hobs for much less than 1k.
I very much doubt they'd bother taking legal action.

You’re right.

OP, I'm the poster from the other thread.
Most of the interactions didn't not allow for any opinion or question from me, it was a yes/no button through the resolution centre (with short time limits).
I did have a couple of phone calls from the Claims Support Ambassador (barf), but while she said a lot of "we are here to support you" it didn't feel like that at all.

I think what I did 'wrong' was to try and understand why they were asking for so much; to query that there was only ONE stove top in the whole of Ontario.
I was nervous about simply declining to pay in case it started some legal process.
Only after weeks of stress did the CSA ask "how much are you willing to pay".

It was very upsetting, very confusing and there was a cloud over part of our holiday until the host agreed to at least wait until I was back in the UK to try and resolve things.