Advise please on enquires, what can you ask legally?

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tom32s
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Advise please on enquires, what can you ask legally?

Post by tom32s »

Hi, so basically with the sites we advertise on (HomeAway, Holiday Letting and our own) when we get enquires the only information we receive is number in group and the name of the person booking.
Our cottage we rent out is on the same land as our own house. So far we've been very fortunate with the groups we've received apart from one who were young and just wanted to drink and didn't follow rules (applying to the hot tub, after we took the hot tub off)
My question is what question are you legally allowed to ask, ie would I be able to ask the age of members in the group? Are we allowed to restrict renting the cottage out to a specific age groups or would this be seen as discrimination ?
Sorry if I sound completely stupid just heard you have to be careful what you ask.
Any advise would be appreciated
Tom32s
Hells Bells
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Post by Hells Bells »

You can't discriminate on the grounds of age, sex, or race. You can refuse bookings to single sex parties only if the restriction applies to both sexes. I think you would be within the law if you advised that under 18s must be accompanied by an adult, but not certain if you could stipulate that that adult was over a certain age
tom32s
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Post by tom32s »

Thanks Helen, am I in my right to ask the age of everyone in the group or the purpose of the booking ? pleasure booking.
Hells Bells
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Post by Hells Bells »

I ask only that they state who is under 18, as it affects my tourist tax, but my property is in France not the UK.
I would be asking for the names of all of the party if possible. HL system will make it difficult to do that though/
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Mouse
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Post by Mouse »

Is it more a noise/nuisance sort of thing you want to avoid? If so then you are the same as me.
I state on my advert that the villa isn't suitable for loud gatherings, parties or playing loud music, I go on to explain we have neighbours.

Usually it is all about finding out what sort of holiday they are after and then telling them if your place isn't a suitable destination.
I have had very reasonable single sex groups and young people, but raucous mid 30 something couples.

I bolster this up with my T&Cs, and would evict anyone who disturbs neighbours.

I would suggest that if you do similar in your advertisements and also make clear you are on site, hopefully that should reduce the likelihood of you attracting a loud or young group.

Mousie
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

If you're in the UK then AFAIK it's still a legal requirement to have the details of the lead guest, including address. This requirement was up for review so may not still apply, nevertheless it's totally reasonable to have a contact address for the person to whom you're renting.

You can ask for the ages of children and you can choose not to accept children without being the wrong side of the law (not sure whether a "child" is U16 or U18 for the purposes).

Beyond that, as has been suggested state that your property is not suitable for parties etc; it could also be worth checking out the legalities but IIRC there are laws in place regarding noise levels after a certain time - possibly 11:00pm - along the lines of noise should not be heard outside of the property. Worth checking up on that one and highlighting it perhaps.
tom32s
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Post by tom32s »

Thanks Haley

Mouse - basically yes to the noise and nuisance.
Basically our house has 8 acres of gardens and woodland and the cottage is on this land next to our main house, but not attached.
We allow Guests full range of our gardens so to this is why we don't want a group of youngsters purely here for a weekend of drink where they can act irresponsible. Obviously not all are this way and this is just a scenario but so far we've been pretty lucky or fortunate only occurring one group and problem. But just wondered what you can ask with out occurring any problems to know more information about the type of guests visiting.
bessie
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Post by bessie »

I have always asked for all guests names and address.excuse I need it for insurance which most accept.I also ask for a land line number.
Our cottage is small so most guests bringing a child are usually quite willing on the form to put some indication of age.like do I supply cot etc.
Since I started with our holiday let it has always confused me how we hand over keys to perfect strangers with very little checks as to who they really are.
I have just had a young chap wanting to rent my seaside flat on a tenancy who seems to be under the impression I will just take one months rent and hand him the keys without proof who he is.or references
Tenancy law is different to holiday let's but why can you ask questions on one and not the other.
I am not talking references on holiday makers but surely full names,address and asking in general age group if unsure.
If phone voices are anything to go on I ofton get asked could I ask my dad to phone back from farm reps who don't know me ,
Strange what we can and can't ask.
Marks
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Post by Marks »

I would not take a booking without knowing:

Name, address and phone number of the person who booked
Names & ages of the people staying

I request this through a Wufoo form and this is part of my T&Cs. I need payment plus form to send directions, key collection etc. No form = no information. This applies to guests booked through HL as well.
Some guests just need a sympathetic pat. On the head. With a hammer.
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Post by FelicityA »

If you are in the UK and your guests are from abroad and outside the EU, I believe it is legal requirement to have the names of everyone in the party? I get all the names anyway it would be doubly awful if the house burnt down with all in it and the firemen/police asked me who was staying and I didn't know.

For my apartment, I explain that it is virtually a seniors only community (true) so I can't have anyone who is going to party, make loud noise or come in late and bang the main door and upset the neighbours. Consequently, the vast majority of bookings are from older people. I suppose I have put off a lot of the younger people although I have had some lovely 20 somethings. For my cottage, I stipulate no under fives as I have had too many things going wrong with them (actually with careless parents, not the poor children who are blameless) - the cottage is just not suitable for unguarded toddlers. I haven't had to turn teenagers away as it is not in an area which would attract them but I would consider having them if they seemed grownup and responsible.
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Casscat
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Post by Casscat »

I normally ask the ages of any children, but many people provide me with the ages of all members of the party without me asking so I suspect most people wouldn't mind being asked outright.
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Nemo
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Post by Nemo »

I ask for the ages of anyone under the age of 21, but as the box is there, it often gets filled out for by people of other age groups too! I also have a tick box stating that the lead guest is 18 or over. Of course someone may turn round and tell me I shouldn't be asking, but I guess it depends on what you do with that information once you've got it!

As others have said, it would be better to draw the right guest in, in the first place, by describing what sort of holiday they can expect to have and making your expectations clear upfront.
tom32s
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Post by tom32s »

Marks wrote:I would not take a booking without knowing:

Name, address and phone number of the person who booked
Names & ages of the people staying

I request this through a Wufoo form and this is part of my T&Cs. .
Hi Mark Would you mind sending me an example of your Wufoo form?

Some very interesting points especially the fire and knowing your guests.
I guess by the sounds of things its quite fine to ask and from the feed back most guest expect or don't mind.

Just had an enquiry today for a group of 6 of 3 couples. I guess the one time we had a negative experience it was with a group of 3 couples in there late 20's just wanting to get drunk so was wondering if it was appropriate to ask there reasons for the stay.


Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences an knowledge its been so helpful and interesting !!!!

Paul
FelicityA
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Post by FelicityA »

Regarding your three couples scenario. I don't think you can ask the reason for their stay. It is presumably to holiday together and they might think it a bit odd for you to question their reason for booking.

It is slightly worrying given your previous experience but I have two couple scenarios frequently and they are absolutely fine in the main. Having said that, I did have some pretty awful 30 somethings from London who seemed to think they were staying in a hotel - bins overflowing, towels thrown on the floor etc. Definitely not left clean and tidy and quite a few bottles in the recycling. So I understand your worries but I would just be crossing my fingers, rather than questioning. I suppose you have no clues as to their ages? In my experience the over 50's are the best and thankfully, they are my principle customers.
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Casscat
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Post by Casscat »

tom32s wrote: ...was wondering if it was appropriate to ask there reasons for the stay.
No, it is not appropriate to ask them the reason for their stay. Sometimes you just have to take people on trust. Sometimes that process will let you down, but the vast majority of times it won't. If I was holidaying with friends and was asked the 'reason for my stay' I would find it a most peculiar question and would probably jog on to another listing.
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