Airbnb host check out demands - AIBU to ignore

[Senseonhorizons]

Been staying in Airbnb for last 3 nights, out of many, many we have stayed in this is our worst experience. There are lots of positives about the place, however it is f'ing freezing. Non functional heating on one floor so bedrooms were 12 degrees and we were all so cold in the night and now are ill, may or may not be connected.

I did contact host re heating on arrival and was given a load of instructions that don't work.

I have now received list of tasks to do on check out, none mentioned in property listing. They include stripping off beds and taking all sheets and towels downstairs, emptying bins in kitchen and bathrooms and taking to bins half way down the lane.

I feel like f'off do it yourself. We paid enough for the place. I know people did it in covid with sheets etc, but there is absolutely no reason to now

AIBU to ignore their demands?

I wouldn’t empty bins but I do always strip beds and leave the sheet ready to be cleaned and washed.

Could you ask her if this is in lieu of the large cleaning fee, or do you have to clean it as well as pay for cleaning their property on top of the rental charge and despite the fact that the heating didn't work. Just checking, as it all seems a lot in the circumstances

Those are all pretty standard demands whatever your past experience. The heating is a separate matter.

You are BU using an airb&b.

When I had this I messaged back and said if the cleaning fee is fully refunded immediately I will do this, if not I will not and I will be leaving an honest review. They did not refund, I did not clean, they left me a 5star review.
These cheeky fuckers need to pay for cleaning if they charge for it.

I never ask my guests to strip beds. It seems somewhat demeaning.

Yes to the bins though as we only have a little slide out under sink bin. The bin is on the way to their car though so not much of a hardship and they can get pretty stinky quite soon.

As other have said the temperature and the checkout chores are not connected I'd be marking them down for the cold not the bins and bed strippage (which is still pretty standard)

Emptying bins is a cleaner job as is stripping beds. I leave the towels in the bath, clean the dishes, put rubbish in bins and that is what I see as enough.

I agree - we don't do Airbnb anymore - I don't trust their reviews.

YABU these are all normal requests

I stay in a place about once sometimes twice a year for a long weekend when I go to visit a friend who lives close by that asks the used beds to be stripped and the bins to be put in the outside bin.

the bins are on the driveway just outside though.

iv not really thought much about it to be honest!

it’s only ten or so minutes on top of the normal quick wipe of the kitchen bunkers and cleaning the morning cup I normally do when staying in a self catering place and the place is always spotless with a little welcome pack of treats. WITH WONDERFULLY WORKING HEATING 😉 so I don’t really mind.
the only thing that does annoy me about the place though is I have to be out by 10am but I suppose that’s personal preference.

if there were issues though (like you have had) I’d object on total CF reasons!

I will say though the heating is a separate issue that you should bring up a that’s not ok.

You shouldn't be stripping the beds and emptying the bins, I'd never do that in an Airbnb or holiday place. that's what you are paying for! Obv put rubbish in the bin and do washing up. And demand a partial refund for the lack of heating.

I’ve stayed in many rentals in many countries and have only once been asked to strip the beds. So I have only once stripped the beds.

I sweep up any major crumbs etc.from the floor, wipe anything spilled in the fridge or on tables, properly wipe the sinks and toilet, put all used towels in one place and tie up and remove bin bags/recycling, but nothing more than that. Takes about 15 mins.

I would say I won’t be doing all that. You can see from my feedback that I leave places very clean by any standards, the hefty cleaning fee will cover all those things you describe. You need to fix the heating, we were miserable with the cold.

I always empty bins. I clear up my own mess, wash and put away all crockery and I try to leave the property as I found it.

I draw the line at stripping beds.

You won't be ill from lack of heating.

In addition:

I have now received list of tasks to do on check out, none mentioned in property listing. They include stripping off beds and taking all sheets and towels downstairs, emptying bins in kitchen and bathrooms and taking to bins half way down the lane.

It's one thing putting out your own rubbish bags into wheelie bins, but quite another to expect you to drag the bins themselves for a significant distance.

People with mobility issues are going to struggle to comply with these requests. Stripping beds and dragging out wheelie bins is well into the territory of CF, especially given the exorbitant costs charged these days for holiday letting in the first place.

YADNBU.

Are you being charged a cleaning fee? If so would refuse point blank to do it. I am sorry i go away to get a break from the drudgery of day to day at home stuff including stripping to sheets etc. not doing it when away
I dont leave a mess behind , stuff in the bin, towels hanging up etc but not strip beds
Dont and leave a review stating why
Don't run a hospitality business if you are not going to do the full hospitality role

Quite shocked that anyone would leave rubbish in bins in a holiday rental they are vacating TBH. Emptying bins is surely a standard thing. Stripping beds I would do if asked. There was a period this was standard but I'm not doing it now unless specifically asked . I would have chased up on the none-working heating - but wouldn't be that bothered by cold bedrooms anyway .

I have stayed in many holiday rentals including Air BNBs. I always empty bins and ensure kitchen is tidy with washing up done and work surfaces wiped down. I have never stripped a bed and never been asked to. If the duvet is a bit grubby I don’t want to see that.

The heating sounds like the main issue here, no way would I tolerate this. Absolutely request a refund and make it clear on your review. I've stayed in an Airbnb before and received my money back for a broken shower, it just took some persistence with the host

We just returned from an old stone cottage by a river. The guest information book had 2 sheets about heating : one for summer and one for winter and the summer one basically said heating would be off but we could use the log burner and that would heat the whole cottage. There were also a couple of night storage heaters, one downstairs and one upstairs which you could get a bit of heat out for a bit if you put it on boost, but the ordinary room radiators weren’t on at all. The info made it very clear not to mess with the complicated heating controls otherwise it might need an engineer to come out so we didn’t dare.

it was freezing in those bedrooms upstairs and in the kitchen. I had a glass of water on the bedside table and the first night we were there when it was about 5 degrees I had a sip in the night and it was chilled like it had been in the fridge. DS said his bedroom had felt like he was camping it was so cold. Our clothes hanging from the rail felt slightly damp and when getting into bed the sheets even felt ever so slightly damp.

I do think that this time of year when rainy, cold and windy Spring days can make it feel like winter, that holiday home owners shouldn’t be stingy with heating and putting it on summer setting the minute Easter is over with. Then have a cheek to advise opening windows to ventilate to stop condensation if they aren’t going to heat the place properly.

the reason that there is evidence of damp on the walls throughout the cottage cannot JUST be down to people keeping windows shut.

re cleaning, I’ve never stripped beds, we just pull the duvet right back so it’s not all warm and fusty. We make sure all rubbish is in the main bin. All crockery clean and if not back in the cupboard then in the dishwasher, left on and nearly finished. Wouldn’t leave crumbs on worktops or hair in the shower cubicle. We never wipe toilets and basins unless skid marks, why the hell would you do that when they are only going to be done by the housekeeper anyway?

I too remember my mum going frantic over cleaning as a kid. Basically cleaned wherever we were staying for them. Daft.

I'd empty the bins, put the dishwasher on and wipe down the kitchen and leave towels in the bath.

I won't strip beds - I'd rather just not know how grim the mattress is after doing this once during covid where the mattress was bloodstained and sweaty. Unfortunately we were travelling to visit elderly family so there weren't other options but the memory makes me feel very reluctant ever to stay in an airbnb again.

Emptying bins - fine
Putting the dishwasher in - fine
Expected to wait for it to be finished and put away - often unreasonable especially if there is an early check out time
Stripping beds - I find this annoying and actually in some properties not always easy
Wiping down worktops/oven - fine
Brushing up any dirt/debris from the floor we've walked in - fine
Doing a proper clean of kitchens, bathrooms, etc and a proper vacuum - unreasonable

Always made worse when they also then charge a large cleaning fee on top!

As a result I prefer hotels these days as the list of expected last day jobs in holiday lets has got longer and longer, with later check in times and earlier and earlier check out times.

I've stayed in at least 100 airbnbs (work and personal travel) and guests are under no requirement to empty the trash or strip beds. If they try to reference your refusal in a negative review, ask Airbnb to remove it as you've adhered to their rules: https://www.airbnb.co.uk/help/article/2894#:~:text=Cleanliness%3A%20Guests%20should%20not%20leave,%2C%20vacuuming%2C%20etc.).

It's fairly standard to be asked to strip the sheets in a self catering property surely? Takes about 5 minutes so hardly a huge chore.

The only time we had complicated bin arrangements in the UK was when staying up North in Scotland where collections were infrequent and it would have caused a real issue if we hadn't put out the recycling on the specified day.

Anyway it's all still much better than staying in France where I've vowed to never stay self catering in a French owned property again. Both times I paid a hefty cleaning fee and both times I was castigated by the cleaner for not having cleaned and I had stripped the beds and cleaned kitchen surfaces and toilet.