Air BnB damage claim - excessive?

HiddenIdentity_9782

I have recently stayed at an air BnB and unfortunately during the stay my partner had an accident with a period that arrived earlier than expected.

 

She did not make me aware immediately as she was absolutely mortified and embarrassed (we are a relatively new couple). However we only stayed one night so this should not have caused too much delay.

 

The host has immediately demanded costs for damages to replace the duvet, cover, bedsheets, and mattress protector.

 

I agree these were regretably stained with blood, but the host has not even attempted to clean them. Furthermore, the cost of these items is totalling £301. 

 

Air BnB Resolution centre has stepped in and reduced the claim to £180 (presumably based on receipts) but I still feel this is very unfair because they potentially could have been cleaned, an element of this surely can be considered wear and tear, and in any event - £180 for a sheet, duvet, and cover seems very expensive for a BnB! Certainly more expensive than I would ever pay for something at home let alone for a BnB! 

From my reading online, in other cases a precedent has been set elsewhere that this sort of staining is considered wear and tear and should be bourne by the host. I think these cases are in America though.

I understand we have soiled the bedding, and I offered to pay additional cleaning costs if they arose (stain remover etc.) but to just immediately go straight to replacement without even trying to clean surely is not fair? And is it normal to use such expensive bedding in a BnB?  (The BnB cost around £140 for the night in total). 

I don't want to get out of paying my fair share if we have genuinely caused undue cost to the host. However I feel like this is just too much. I can't really even afford that much! 

MyRealNameToo

Going from unstained to stained is not fair wear and tear for single nights stay... that sort of argument is used when you are the tenant in a flat for 3 years and some of the walls pick up minor scuffs etc. 

What size of bed is it? Clearly the bedding for a single bed is much cheaper than a super king.

Sheet and duvet cover may or may not have come out in the wash... most the time it does but have at least 1 sheet that has a permanent stain from similar incidents. Duvet and mattress protector is likely to be more problematic depending on the materials as you can't wash as intensively as it will damage the fillings. For our own its a non issues as its invisible, more or less, but its different when you have paying guests that may be lifting sheets to ensure the bed really is clean or not. Unfortunately these are also likely the more expensive compontents that were damaged. 

The problem with attempting cleaning is that if it fails then you owe them for both the cleaning attempt and the replacement. Plus it will take a couple of days so potentially issues of other bookings whilst the bedding is away.

The other consideration is the pre accident condition of the items... if they were almost new then the brand new replacement value isnt unreasonable but if they were already 5 years old then you dont need to buy them brand new ones under the consideration of indemnity, but contractual terms can increase this. 

Presumably this was in the UK? Obviously if overseas then other legal jurisdictions could change the outcome.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

MyRealNameToo said:

Plus it will take a couple of days so potentially issues of other bookings whilst the bedding is away.

I'd imagine anyone (with sense) would have spares but that aside £180 to replace the 4 things OP mentions probably isn't that much, assuming, as you say, they weren't already at the end of their lifespan. 

Guess it depends on the place you stayed OP but guests expect a nice bed and if you stayed somewhere half decent they probably aren't buying the bedding from Asda.  

HiddenIdentity_9782

Okay, that makes me feel better to hear. I think it was a king size bed. I guess forgive my ignorance - I didn't expect bedding to be that expensive. Even the bedding I use at home is not that expensive. £49 for just a bed sheet for example just feels like an awful lot. 

I wouldn't expect the host to miss any bookings should bedding need to be sent off for cleaning, as I would expect they hold spares. 

I genuinely wasn't sure what my obligation to replace is, as the Airbnb community board makes reference to these sorts of incidents and the general consensus is that a risk of soiling is an accepted risk of hosting. But I totally hear what you are all saying. 

I think I just would have expected some sort of cleaning attempt first.  The hosts initial claim for £301 which was knocked down almost immediately by air BnB already shows they're trying to chance their luck with overcharging. So I suppose I'm also just sceptical about if £180 is even fair. 

I don't remember the bedding being anything particularly special, but I also am not overly familiar with bedding. But £44 for a bedsheet surely seems a bit much? Especially if you on its for a BnB and is liable for requiring replacement? 

It also bothers me that there was no hot water so we weren't even able to shower. I don't know if this contributed to the problem the night before, but it certainly was disappointing. I did alert the host and they said there wasn't anything they could do. 

sheramber

Good quality sheets would stand up to regular washing better than Tesco’s finest. 

An Egyptian cotton sheet could cost £44 and more. 

Ergates

HiddenIdentity_9782 said:

I have recently stayed at an air BnB and unfortunately during the stay my partner had an accident with a period that arrived earlier than expected.

 

She did not make me aware immediately as she was absolutely mortified and embarrassed (we are a relatively new couple). However we only stayed one night so this should not have caused too much delay.

 

The host has immediately demanded costs for damages to replace the duvet, cover, bedsheets, and mattress protector.

 

I agree these were regretably stained with blood, but the host has not even attempted to clean them. Furthermore, the cost of these items is totalling £301. 

 

Air BnB Resolution centre has stepped in and reduced the claim to £180 (presumably based on receipts) but I still feel this is very unfair because they potentially could have been cleaned, an element of this surely can be considered wear and tear, and in any event - £180 for a sheet, duvet, and cover seems very expensive for a BnB! Certainly more expensive than I would ever pay for something at home let alone for a BnB! 

From my reading online, in other cases a precedent has been set elsewhere that this sort of staining is considered wear and tear and should be bourne by the host. I think these cases are in America though.

I understand we have soiled the bedding, and I offered to pay additional cleaning costs if they arose (stain remover etc.) but to just immediately go straight to replacement without even trying to clean surely is not fair? And is it normal to use such expensive bedding in a BnB?  (The BnB cost around £140 for the night in total). 

I don't want to get out of paying my fair share if we have genuinely caused undue cost to the host. However I feel like this is just too much. I can't really even afford that much! 

Whilst, in theory they *could* have attempted to clean the sheets, is it reasonable to expect a BnB host to deal with somebody else's blood  (or other body fluids), given it's a potential biohazard?

MyRealNameToo

Ergates said:

HiddenIdentity_9782 said:

I have recently stayed at an air BnB and unfortunately during the stay my partner had an accident with a period that arrived earlier than expected.

 

She did not make me aware immediately as she was absolutely mortified and embarrassed (we are a relatively new couple). However we only stayed one night so this should not have caused too much delay.

 

The host has immediately demanded costs for damages to replace the duvet, cover, bedsheets, and mattress protector.

 

I agree these were regretably stained with blood, but the host has not even attempted to clean them. Furthermore, the cost of these items is totalling £301. 

 

Air BnB Resolution centre has stepped in and reduced the claim to £180 (presumably based on receipts) but I still feel this is very unfair because they potentially could have been cleaned, an element of this surely can be considered wear and tear, and in any event - £180 for a sheet, duvet, and cover seems very expensive for a BnB! Certainly more expensive than I would ever pay for something at home let alone for a BnB! 

From my reading online, in other cases a precedent has been set elsewhere that this sort of staining is considered wear and tear and should be bourne by the host. I think these cases are in America though.

I understand we have soiled the bedding, and I offered to pay additional cleaning costs if they arose (stain remover etc.) but to just immediately go straight to replacement without even trying to clean surely is not fair? And is it normal to use such expensive bedding in a BnB?  (The BnB cost around £140 for the night in total). 

I don't want to get out of paying my fair share if we have genuinely caused undue cost to the host. However I feel like this is just too much. I can't really even afford that much! 

Whilst, in theory they *could* have attempted to clean the sheets, is it reasonable to expect a BnB host to deal with somebody else's blood  (or other body fluids), given it's a potential biohazard?

The reality is that they have to, even if bedding isnt stained in reality it's going to have certain bodily fluids soaked into it. Then again most AirBnBs we've used have had cleaners so it's not them personally handingling it. By your theory no hotel cleaner should ever be clearing the bed nor domestic cleaners. 

The fact it adds time, and cost if it's unsuccessful, is certainly a consideration. No doubt had the bill been £180 to replace the bedding plus £50 for the failed topper and mattress clean then there would have been another aspect to the complaint. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Ergates said:

 is it reasonable to expect a BnB host to deal with somebody else's blood  (or other body fluids), given it's a potential biohazard?

They've had to strip the bed, bunging it in the washing machine isn't hardly going to cause them to succumb to their final demise. Maybe they should have torched the place just to be sure!  

(It being blood which is famously hard to shift is the issue). 

pinkshoes

@HiddenIdentity_9782 on the plus side, as they are now making you pay for new sheets and duvet, the stained ones now belong to you! 

You can then wash them yourself and use them. Most blood stains do come out.

Or I wonder if they are planning on washing them and re-using them...?

MyRealNameToo

pinkshoes said:

HiddenIdentity_9782 on the plus side, as they are now making you pay for new sheets and duvet, the stained ones now belong to you! 

You can then wash them yourself and use them. Most blood stains do come out.

Or I wonder if they are planning on washing them and re-using them...?

Arguably true, though you would have to pay the postage to get them. If they have disposed of them then technically you could claim the lost salvage value but a set of blood stained bedding is unlikely to be worth much outside of it being related to an infamous crime. 

HiddenIdentity_9782

All this has taught me, is to never use an Air BNB again. I think going forward I will stick to hotels.