What to do when a guest insists damage was not done by them?

[3northst]

Hi All, I have just this summer started renting out my home for around 8 weeks over summer and moving out to stay with friends/family in the mean time. The last lot of guests have left a bright sticky stain on the arm of one of the sofas. They insist it wasn't them and that they noticed it on arrival and assumed it had always been there. However, I do the housekeeping on the property myself and am 99.9% sure that the stain was not left by the previous guests. My sofas are new and I check them pretty thoroughly each week (hoovering them and turning the cushions over) so I just can't believe I would have missed it.

I advertise the property through Owners Direct so If I charge them the £40 cost incurred for having a dry cleaner come out to clean it I assume I will just get an angry review from the guests and then say goodbye to future bookings.... What have you more experienced folk done if you've found yourself in this situation? Just swallow the cost and chalk it up to wear and tear?

[newtimber]

If you're only 99.9% sure, then I'm afraid you have to chalk it up to wear and tear...

[Casscat]

Hi 3northst and welcome to LMH Small annoyances will become a way of life for you as you mellow into the process of letting your property. A stain on the sofa is not welcome but it will be the first of many. I'm with newtimber - chalk it up to wear and tear and experience - and invest in a raft of cleaning products to attack all manner of stains to upholstery, bedlinen and carpets! Plenty of tips on this site for any stain, whatever the unsavoury source I would not attempt to charge your guests in this incidence.

[3northst]

Thanks newtimber, I think you're right. Put it down as a learning cover and make some arm covers before next year! It is just irritating because when I say 99.9% I literally mean 99.9%, I only don't say 100% because I don't have actual photographic evidence and there is always that tiny possibility that my brain had switched off for a second. Out of interest, how do you tend to decide when it is worth it to charge someone for damage? Do you put a monetary value on it, say if it cost less than £50 to fix I'll ignore it? Or look at it case by case. I've tried not to be precious about things because I know accidents happen and this is the only occasion where I've considered deducting from a deposit, but with it being my own home it's been a little difficult to distance myself.

[3northst]

Thanks Casscat! Note to self; velvet sofas may be pretty but are not practical

[Casscat]

Thanks Casscat! Note to self; velvet sofas may be pretty but are not practical

Very true. Velvet is a nightmare in a rental. I'd sell them on and get something more forgiving 3northst.

[ianthy]

Hi

I also keep some throws at our property and tell guests if they wish to curl up on the sofa - kindly use the throws. Cheapies from Ikea and Primark.

When do you charge? well I don't charge for breakages of glasses/cups. Most other things are repaired with superglue. The only item we have ever charged for the TV got broken kids running around the sitting room.... we have 93 acres so why were they playing in the sitting room. Anyway I charge the guest the cost of a replacement. I agree, you need to handle these things very diplomatically, even if the guest is in the wrong and accepts the damage.

Guests in Dubai - the curtains apparently fell down! The repair cost was £17.00 but based on a booking of £5k I did not charge. It would seem petty and as STR owners we all should build in an element of wear and tear.

The items I wish I could charge for is broken pool loungers - these always break themselves...

[Bunny]

Hi 3northst
This has always been my problem too. In my mind, I know the damage did not exist prior to arrival, but then that .1% doubt begins to creep in and you doubt your own mind. I've been renting for 9 years and despite suffering quite a lot of damage over the years, I could count the times I have charged on one hand. I would not charge for accidental damage (and that accounts for most of it), unless the cost was quite considerable but then it would probably justify an insurance claim. Wilful damage and negligence is very difficult to prove, but I probably could justify charging for a lot more than I have done, but sometimes it really isn't worth the hassle and ill feeling. Unfortunately, in my experience, guests rarely confess to damage which IMO reflects their unwillingness to accept liability/costs. When I have charged, I've been absolutely sure and the guests have accepted the charge without exception. Therefore, I can only conclude that I've got it about right.

[Sue Dyer]

We got a new sofa from Ikea recently, the Ektorp with washable covers. We're in situ this week ourselves and I noticed a large black stain on one of the seat cushions. Somone had obviously left the top off a pen and it soaked in. A quick hurl in the washer with that cover has thankfully removed all traces and we didn't have to resort to the spare set

It is thanks to LMH I went with the Ektorp so thanks to all who recommended them several years ago.

[FelicityA]

Welcome to LMH 3northst. I agree with what everyone says - I have had those 1% doubts too, have bitten my tongue on many occasions, but in nearly 10 years of letting I have only asked/charged once and that was my recent stupid teenagers creating a fire in the bedroom!

There have been many occasions also where I have had nothing said but found things like a new set of tumblers in the cupboard or a (hideous) cut glass candlestick replacing a nice one (a bit annoying but hey ho...)! I do generally like to know if something is broken or chipped (chipping happens a lot) but I never expect any compensation for the small items. I was a little upset when somebody broke an antique very large platter I gave them for their Christmas turkey (they put it on the hot hob - oops, cold platter did not like that...). They just described it as a mishap, rather casually, and did not offer to replace it. I was not brave enough to ask for compensation and anyway they (rightly) could have thought I should have just had an Ikea one, easily replaced. I have now! But I like to give people nice things and my Waterford crystal jam pot has only just been thrown out (it was given a crack last week - nobody confessed, but there were children there) after 10 years so most people take care.

I don't charge a security deposit. From what people say here, I would guess I don't get any more damage than anyone else and I would hate the hassle of holding back the money and creating bad feeling. The parents of the stupid boys were very willing to pay for replacements which amounted to over £125. If somebody ruined a carpet, a security deposit would be unlikely to cover a large item like that anyway. Stains - well that is another story and it is parr for the course really. All part of the wear and tear factor.

[PW in Polemi]

Firstly, welcome to this most informative and helpful (and friendly ) forum for holiday accommodation owners.

Secondly - grit your teeth, moan like heck on here, and smile sweetly at your guests. If the damage is obviously deliberate/sheer bloodymindedness - TV bobbing not so happily in swimming pool, or kiddy crayon scrawled 5 foot up the wall, for example - then charge and expect a not so good review. If it's just one of those things (normal bodily fluids of whatever description on bedlinen, broken glass/plate/whatever), well, that happens in your own home, so grin and bear it.

If you have sun umbrellas outside, and plenty of advice notes inside/on the brollies themselves/in your pre-arrival advice that brollies must be closed when not accompanied, or in windy conditions, and they don't adhere to this advice and the brolly is broken as a direct result, then you can charge - but beware those snotty reviews! It's a balancing act - the monetary and hassle cost versus the loss of a reasonable review and perhaps a now-no-longer-returning guest.

We are all held hostage to reviews now. Some guests (fortunately a very small but vociferous minority) take full advantage of our desire for good reviews only. You will have to take each case on its own merits, and decide for yourself - with a little (lot) of help from LMHers.

One thing I would strongly advise, however, is ...
As you are letting out your own home - ensure you not just remove all personal items, but also remove ALL valuable items, whether sentimental or actual cash value, and replace with something durable or easily replaceable.

[kevsboredagain]

For that cost I would just deal with it myself.

From experience I have found that all the guests who have not owned up to doing some damage, when it actually happened, will deny it if confronted.

[Bunny]

From experience I have found that all the guests who have not owned up to doing some damage, when it actually happened, will deny it if confronted.

That's what I've always suspected, although I've often wondered if guests have been pleasantly surprised to not have been charged and have thought "kerching; didn't expect to get away with that!".

[3northst]

Thanks everyone! You have all been so helpful. I'll just grin and bear it. I wish I could just replace with cheaper sofas, but as I will only be renting for 2-3months a year I don't really want to sell on my nice expensive ones in order to have more disposable ones. Unfortunately don't have any storage so can't swap them over for the season either. I think though if I just have an abundance of throws for them and make some arm covers I should be okay. Luckily I own an interiors shop so replacing most of the broken bits isn't too much of an issue!

[COYS]

For that cost I would just deal with it myself.

From experience I have found that all the guests who have not owned up to doing some damage, when it actually happened, will deny it if confronted.

Absolutely accurate. Failing that they'll plead the 5th amendment! If you're able to remove or minimize the staining I'd take it on the chin - grudgingly.