Airbnb Hosts Furious About Rule Change Regarding Guests Doing Their Own Cleaning, Dishes

A battle is afoot between Airbnb hosts and the company over a policy change regarding self-cleanup requests, though Airbnb says it is just trying to shield guests from onerous pre-checkout tasks like stripping beds and doing laundry.

Have you ever stayed at an Airbnb and, upon leaving, and despite paying upwards of $200 extra in "cleaning fees," realize that you have a list of required tasks like taking out trash, running loads of laundry, or cleaning out the fridge, which, if you don't finish them, your Airbnb rating might be affected or you could be charged some sort of extra fee?

There is probably some gray area or some details to be negotiated here, but Airbnb made a policy change this week, announcing new rules for hosts when it comes to "house rules" and the instructions left for guests — which sometimes can lead to negative reviews that hurt both the host and the larger enterprise. The new rules are set to take effect on November 20, and are detailed here.

Standard house rules that Airbnb still will allow include things like smoking bans, quiet hours, requiring lockup at checkout with details about where to return keys, rules about pets, and rules about hosting events and the maximum number of guests allowed.

Unreasonable requests, under the new policy, include requiring guests to do their own dishes, strip beds or start loads of laundry, take out trash, or restricting use of amenities like air conditioning.

"When adding a request, remember that most guests want to avoid unexpected chores," Airbnb says. "Asking them to do things a cleaner should handle can negatively affect their stay and your reviews."

The rule about dishes appears to be the biggest sticking point on a Change.org petition that has so far garnered 6,401 signatures, as of this writing.

"A family staying for a week might use dozens of plates, glasses, pans and utensils," the petition says. "Requiring a cleaner to wash everything adds unnecessary time and expense. [Plus] Food waste and dirty dishes left for extended periods can also create unpleasant odours [sic] and hygiene problems."

The petition adds, "We recognise that some guests have faced excessive checkout instructions, sometimes despite paying substantial cleaning fees. We support Airbnb’s efforts to prevent unreasonable demands such as stripping beds, laundering linen, deep-cleaning kitchens or undertaking professional cleaning tasks."

And, the petition says, going forward, Airbnb should "Consult hosts meaningfully before introducing policies that materially affect the operation and economics of their properties."

On the page about the policy change, Airbnb says that hosts that continue to impose unreasonable house rules could have their listings demoted on the site, or may face corrections by the Listing Editor. If the rules go unchanged, guests may also receive alerts from the company or listings may be flagged with alerts like “includes cleaning requests."