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Post by the40plusprincess on Feb 16, 2016 19:25:27 GMT
Hi All
My long term guests ( most difficult I have EVER had... but that is another long story. ...Just hoping my general irritation with them is not making me over react) have for a third day not set my home alarm when going out for the day. This is one of my house rules as we live in South Africa and security is always a consideration. It is not so much concern for our possessions as a worry about our ( and their) personal safety. I have shown them how to arm the system remotely You simply push a button on a remote. And they have written instructions in my home manual. I have reminded them to set the alarm, as has my son ( he has been on a varsity vac so this has not been as much of any issue before. But he now attends class all day). Our home is vulnerable ( plus insurance won't pay if we are burgled) if the system is not armed. Any advice on how to deal with this? Language is a barrier.
Any advice?
Thanks
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Post by Maria Lurdes (Milu) on Feb 16, 2016 22:34:50 GMT
You have to be absolutely firm with them. There is no room for you to be delicate. You have to tell them that the security system must be manned every single time they leave the house. This is a huge issue for you as well as them, but I dare say that you have much more to lose then they do. If English doesn't work, you have to write out a very direct note and have it translated and then present it to them, look them in the eye and indicate "DO YOU UNDERSTAND THIS IS NOT NEGOTIABLE". If they continue to leave the house unsecured, you have to evict them. The money that your earning is not enough to cover a potential security breach. Good luck!
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Post by High Priestess on Feb 17, 2016 4:51:27 GMT
I agree with Maria Lurdes (Milu) --- -- there are no "tricks" to this, or really to any issue that the host has to impress upon the guest is of vital importance. You just have to do your best to put the fear of God into them!! Maybe also set up a fine ($$$ helps people get serious!) if they fail to set the alarm. |
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Post by the40plusprincess on Feb 17, 2016 17:44:08 GMT
Thanks for validating my concerns. I like the idea of a fine and may add that to my home manual.
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Post by renata on Mar 14, 2016 21:29:09 GMT
Would AirBnb be lukewarm for owner support if the guests hoot and holler to customer service to stall an eviction? (I hope not, however there are so many issues hosts have faced and little support from administration, or lack of it, has left me cynical.
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Post by helgaparis on Mar 15, 2016 12:49:42 GMT
Ernest told a story once, where it took him days to evict a guest and he is a lawyer and no nonsense. The issue was mess left in the bathroom shared with another guest, noise and loud fighting going on. The guests were Chinese or speaking another impenetrable language. Chinese I think. On contacts they altered drnial and promises and reverted to Don't understand you. Ernest wanted an airbnb call to them in Chinese but that was hard to get. They were tehoused in the end but he was very angry by then. As was the other guest.
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Post by High Priestess on Mar 15, 2016 14:28:36 GMT
I recall that story. I think the reason for Ernest's (Josh's ) delay in removing the guest w/o Airbnb help, was that Josh did not want to be responsible for any repercussions of an eviction that was not done with full Airbnb support. Josh had already been sued for a prior incident where he called police to evict a guest (admittedly, that incident had a whole different set of circumstances: it was a LOCAL woman, who had already stayed in his place for over a month thru a sequence of patched together short term rentals, and a woman who had been previously evicted from an apartment!). It's not likely one would have a similar problem with non English speaking foreigners, yet, "Once burned, twice shy. "
As well, Josh had often insisted on Airbnb following its own rules and protocol, and sometimes it seemed he would rather suffer the consequences of problems with his guests than let up on his pressure to Airbnb to follow its own stated policies.
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Post by helgaparis on Mar 15, 2016 15:17:18 GMT
The background explains it then. It seemed a bit strange to wait for the call at a point where I would have paid the hotel room, after having insisted a bit more on the rules. But after such an experience before, it's very understandable. Also it seemed very easy that airbnb contact the guest, it's part of their obligations, and it was long. Hopefully that is not the norm.
- They were reactive when I needed them.
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