To be puzzled and upset over holiday rental complaint

[violets17]

I rented a villa last month and a week after I had left I received an email from the villa owner's husband saying that I was the messiest renter they had had in 2 years and not to bother trying to rebook (which I hadn't). I emailed back asking for more details and he emailed back saying "it was a mess" with no further detail.

I've really racked my brains and asked my eldest son who was with me to help me remember everything. This is what I did/didn't do:

Positives
I took out all our rubbish and put it in the correct public bins
Emptied the fridge of our leftover food
Put most things back where they were (see negative list)
Didn't use BBQ therefore no mess
Roughly wiped down sides in kitchen
Checked all over for obvious spills/toothpaste etc

Possible Negatives
I didn't put all the towels in the bath because there wasn't instructions to do that so wasn't sure
Left dishwasher running with a few morning things
Replaced coffee I had used with half a jar I had bought, replaced sugar I had used with some sugar packets
Left a lilo (still working) by the pool for next guests
Left a half used bottle of laundry liquid in the laundry room
Left a brand new (unused) insulated cool bag on top of cool box

Negatives
Did not put clothes horse back in correct place
Did not put hairdryer back in drawer
Placed sofa throws on correct sofas but didn't fold them
Didn't wipe outside table (a bit tacky)
Didn't wipe glass coffee table (a bit tacky)
Didn't actually clean anything just looked for obvious toothpaste/spills/toilet stains and dealt with that - ie didn't sweep/mop/get out the cif

I then got a "guest rating" which only gives star ratings out of 5. They gave me the following

Overall experience - 1 star
Cleanliness - 1 star
Communication - 2 stars
Following house rules - 2 stars

I'm flummoxed - house rules were no smoking inside (I didn't), no house parties (of course not), no excessive noise (um - I don't even drink and had no music on).

Communication was ordinary until he emailed me to complain and I asked for details which he didn't give and neither of us communicated further.

This is about the 10th holiday villa I have rented and it has always been positive with owners asking me back and refunding my deposit immediately - luckily there was no deposit with this one.

I know I have given this too much thought but I honestly feel like I don't know what he was talking about. Why did he wait a whole week after I left to email me?

Sorry for long post - didn't want to drip drip

Personally I’m not bothered by that. All I’m concerned with is leaving the property in a condition that reflects well on me and that my self respect dictates. I don't really care what a host thinks of me - it's a business transaction - everyone should be clear about what they expect upfront -- if a host mentioned that they expected a deep clean and that they did not employ a cleaner, I would not book their accommodation.

Hattieandherboy - I think you have hit on why this affected me so much.

It's very anti-feminist of me to say but I think that what is thought of you by the owner is a reflection on the woman. I would imagine those of you with OHs during your various rental issues shrugged off a nasty or unfair review. I mean the OH shrugged it off and it was the woman left feeling bad.

The owner's husband in his 2nd email to me said after I asked for clarification "it was just a mess but hey if that's how you live".

I didn't interact with him any further but it really rankled because nothing was a reflection of how I live or don't live it was simply how I left a rental.

I told my DS1 (aged 28) who was with me and saw everything in the villa about the complaint and he laughed and said the owner must be a tightwad - that is all the thought that he gave it.

Can you see what reviews they have given other people who have stayed there?

I wonder if they hadn’t been in the property for a while before you rented, so thought the general grottoness was you, or else the next people made a mess and blamed it on you. Regardless, the fact they gave you a low rating for communication and following house rules shows that they are not giving you a genuine review because all your concerns are about whether you left the property clean enough - you know full well that the other stars are not justified so I think that demonstrates their overall review proves they cannot be trusted to be fair and honest.

I don't really care what a host thinks of me

Great.

Passonthemessage - host based rentals are clearly not for you. I spend around 10 mins explaining how the heating/hot water/WiFi/washing machine work, where the nearest supermarkets and public transport links are and if they’ve not been to my city before, I show them on a map where the nearest tourist hot spots are in relation to the rental. I give them my personal contact details so they know they have an emergency point of contact. 9 times out of ten, self check-ins contact me late/in the middle of the night asking how to use something.

It cuts both ways you know.

Definitely seems a bit extreme to give you a one star rating! But we just privately rented a caravan in uk and I really wanted my deposit back so i did leave everything in ship shape and wiped down sides etc. I did however leave m a coffee cup in microwave as I’d forgotten id attempted to reheat it and I forgot the put the coffee table in the right place (I pushed aside to fit a travel cot in) and I spent the drive home stressing about it lol

He hasn’t done it on purpose has he in order so he doesn’t need to refund your deposit?

OP, I can imagine how you feel and Im sorry you've been left feeling like this at the end of a holiday.

I would imagine those of you with OHs during your various rental issues shrugged off a nasty or unfair review

I travel alone, with a female friend, or 18 of my immediate family that doesn't include my husband. Would I shrug off an unfair review? No. absolutely no way because I know it would be nonsense and I'd challenge it anyway I could.

I think they want to avoid not only cleaning costs but also cleaning. They are expecting their guests to do it. A basic clear up when you leave is enough. Did they return your deposit (apologies if you have already said)?

I'm amazed by all these posters who deep clean their holiday rentals.

We've recently had a week in Cornwall and whilst the location and facilities were great, the farmhouse however was a bit dusty and unloved and the bbq hadn't been cleaned ( to be fair I would expect that the previous occupants would do that but as they hadn't then the cleaners/owners should have) put us off having a BBQ as we would have had to clean it twice. Owners lived on site but couldn't have been less helpful and only appeared to tell people to close the cover on the pool and hot tub.

As a result we didn't do any cleaning other than empty the bins, clear rooms of any rubbish and make sure loos were not disgusting. No adverse reactions from the owners in response to my 4 star review.
It just sounds like you were unlucky OP i'd just chalk it up to experience.

It's very anti-feminist of me to say but I think that what is thought of you by the owner is a reflection on the woman.

I suspect that might also be part of the hosts issue too. If they see a woman as the lead booker they expect that because a woman is there she should keep the property immaculate throughout and deep clean on departure. If a couple of men stayed there they’d probably be fine with six times the mess.

why book a property with a company which explicitly brands itself as having hosts if you don’t want a host? I offer a facility for self check-in - perhaps you should check that’s available if you don’t like interaction.

We were put off hosts after an overbearing B&B owner. She showed us to our room and then required us to sit in the lounge and explain to her our plans for excursions during our stay. She was rather sniffy about us visiting a zoo, I think she felt that as we didn’t have children we should be doing more cultural things. We’ve avoided hosts since then.

There wasn't a deposit and they haven't left any reviews at all for other renters. They are fully booked all the time, have had the place for 2 years and have 12, all 5 star, reviews.

Yanbu. It would piss me off too.

Going to go against the grain here but I think to not have cleaned anything as you said and not wiped down any surfaces leaving them dirty is not great. Spraying and rinsing basins takes a few minutes as does sponging down surfaces - don't you do this as you go along anyway ? Even when on holiday I'll spray and wipe down counters and surfaces as I go along - it takes seconds and prevents a build up of real dirt .

This happened to a friend of mine and she left a response defending herself underneath the review (on air bnb). Could you do this? I know she has rented a number of places since with no negative repercussions. Xxx

This is exactly why I'll never use airbnb again (and actively hate it).

I rented a place with DH which was a disgrace, it was like an ikea showroom after a closing down sale. Think the cheapest of everything, with a few items of rubbish furniture randomly placed throughout.

The cheap floor was coming up at the edges, the walls were badly marked, and bookshelves had been constructed from bare bricks (yes, bricks stacked high with MDF between them). The wifi was a neighbours internet connection.

We made the best of it, and at leaving the only crime we could be accused of committing was not taking out one bin bag.

The review accused of having a house party, ripping up her floor, and destroying her property.

I was astounded.

I tend to prefer hotels anyway, and after that experience won't bother with airbnb again.

Hi OP I have a sneaky feeling that because he told you they did all their own cleaning it was meant to be a prompt for you to clean before you left. Cheeky though.
Don’t give it another thought. :)

£700 and you have to clean at the end? Cheeky fuckers. I'd never leave somewhere in a state but ready for a cleaner to come in. Complain about them!

In fact, after the husband's shitty email to you please do complain, OP. That really isn't on.

I am a holiday let owner in the UK. You did more than I would typically expect - I would class you as a good guest. We would only complain if a guest left it an absolute pigsty - which occasionally happens. I would not expect guests to do a full clean - just leave generally tidy (i.e. don't like being left with dirty dishes, fridge full of food, rubbish everywhere)

Ideally I would not put on a dishwasher on just before leaving (I would hand wash any remaining few items- as the cycle can take a while and the changeover times can be quite tight) but certainly not worthy of a complaint.

I've stayed in a lot of places over the years. Only twice had issues, both in France. One place was owned by very peculiar people. After we left , leaving everything tidy, they docked our deposit for leaving the microwave filthy. We hadn't used the microwave at all. The second time was after one of my children had a nose bleed and there was some blood on the pillow. They claimed the cleaner had had to spend hours and hours cleaning the place (absolute rubbish) and docked £100. That was Owners Direct. I have never had another complaint or issue . Some owners just want to take advantage or are in a bad mood for some reason.

Villas and holiday accommodation are usually professionally cleaned before the next visitor arrives. All that guests are asked is not to trash the place and it sounds like you didn't so why worry?

I think that if the owners of holiday lets want their guests to clean the property before leaving, then they should let the guests know.

Exactly, so I can skip that accommodation and find one that does not require me to clean on my vacation. Owners should either build a cleaning fee into the rent they charge or add an additional cleaning fee.

I take pictures on arrival and departure. In some cases where I have seen some type of damage on arrival, I have emailed the pictures to the management company or owners with a message saying that we did not do this.

I will leave things tidy and in decent order, but I don't expect to have to clean a holiday rental any more than I would expect to clean a hotel room on leaving.

He's a twat. I want my holiday let to be thoroughly cleaned before I arrive, by someone with time to do it properly, not by the previous guest, who is also busy packing and looking after their kids. I always do a wipe down, get rid of rubbish etc, but it's their job to clean. Might explain why your bathroom smelled, OP. Yuck.