In Addition To A $200 Cleaning Fee, Airbnb Host Threatens To Fine Guests If They Don't Take Trash To Dumpster 'Across Town'
Then what is the fee even for?
Gorodenkoff / Shutterstock If you’ve ever stayed at an Airbnb, you know that it comes with a whole list of rules. After all, it’s not your house, so you have to do what the host says. Most listings come with reasonable requirements like cleaning up after yourself, no smoking, no pets, and more.
While it may not be your home, you're still paying to stay there. So, just as guests are expected to follow the host’s demands, those rules should also be fair. Unfortunately, one guest shared online that their experience was anything but that.
Despite already paying an outrageous cleaning fee, an Airbnb guest was instructed to walk across town to throw away their trash.
In a popular Reddit thread, the guest shared their confusing experience staying at an Airbnb property. “Our Airbnb, which included a $200 cleaning fee," they wrote, "will charge us if we don’t walk across town to empty our trash.”
Reddit
The map provided by the host shows two dumpsters located far from the property, along with multiple warnings for the guests. First, the host insists that guests must dispose of the garbage properly, and if not, they will be “forced” to charge a fee. Forced by whom, however? Themselves? The message also explains that to use the dumpster, you need to scan a card provided by the host, and if you lose that card, you’ll be charged extra as well.
People questioned the purpose of the expensive cleaning fee.
You may be wondering what the point of the $200 cleaning fee is, and that’s exactly what several Reddit users pointed out. Many shared similar experiences with ridiculous host expectations, and said that they've decided to boycott Airbnb altogether.
"I rented a cabin with some friends and a $300 cleaning fee was applied," one user wrote. "Fast forward, we get to the place and notice right away that every space has a laminated list plastered on the wall," which included a long list of to-dos and cleaning instructions. "What is the cleaning fee for? Never again," they added.
Airbnb claimed that the cleaning fee is intended to help the host pay for general housekeeping after guests leave. “Who doesn’t like arriving into a clean and tidy space?” Airbnb wrote. “A cleaning fee is a one-off charge set by the host for cleaning a home.” That seems fair enough. The fee is meant to cover the cost of making sure the next guest walks into a clean place. However, why are guests still expected to do the cleaning themselves? Shouldn’t it be either pay or clean, not both?
Airbnb's rules say that the host isn't actually allowed to charge additional fees after checkout.
In this case, Airbnb is on the guest's side. Their cleanliness ground rules state, "Cleaning fees set by hosts are only meant to cover the cost of standard cleaning between reservations (laundry, vacuuming, etc.). Hosts may not charge guest fees for failing to perform specific cleaning or checkout tasks, but they may leave ratings and reviews based on cleanliness."
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As clearly described by Airbnb, the cleaning fee is meant to provide additional funds to help the host clean up the property after the guest leaves. The host is not entitled to charge the guests extra simply because they didn't follow a self-imposed checklist of additional tasks.
Having good guest etiquette when you stay at a rental house like an Airbnb ensures that everyone has a positive experience. Light cleaning and minor housekeeping tasks are usually expected when using this type of service, and it's only polite to help care for someone's property. However, while a host is allowed to have certain rules and requests when someone is staying in their home, you already paid the host to handle the cleaning afterwards, and doing it all for them defeats the purpose.
Matt Machado is a writer studying journalism at the University of Central Florida. He covers relationships, psychology, celebrities, pop culture, and human interest topics.
