Here’s How To Kick Out Your Airbnb Guests, The Right Way!

Some Airbnb guests are just downright difficult, but do hosts have to put up with it? If a guest is violating your rules or making you uncomfortable, what’s the next step to take? Can you kick out Airbnb guests?

You can kick Airbnb guests out if the reason does not interfere with Airbnb’s nondiscrimination policy. Evicting guests is serious and not encouraged, so consider attempting to privately mediate with your guest, contact Airbnb’s support team, or alert local authorities instead.

If you’re hosting a guest that’s causing you grief, you’ve come to the right place. Keep reading to learn more about kicking Airbnb guests out, things to consider before doing so, and alternative paths to take.

Here’s a quick 10 minute video we made on everything you’ll want to know about kicking out your Airbnb guest:

Do I Have the Right To Kick Out Airbnb Guests?

Your Airbnb is your home. While the company does not actively promote evicting guests anywhere on their site, a representative has stated that “Airbnb cannot force a host to further accommodate a guest if they do not want to or are not able to for whatever reason.” That being said, you can never terminate a stay for reasons that violate the Airbnb nondiscrimination policy.

Any time you cancel a stay, it is your responsibility to let your guest know as soon as possible. You may be subject to a fee and receive an automated review on your listing stating you have canceled a stay, so prepare yourself for that.

Reasons To Kick Out an Airbnb Guest

It can be difficult to kick an Airbnb guest out of your home. Only certain, severe actions are grounds for removal. Plus, you should work with Airbnb support staff to do this.

While guests can partake in some upsetting or annoying behaviors, most of those actions aren’t likely to be eviction-worthy. However, certain situations are downright unacceptable.

Violated House Rules

House Rules are sets of expectations for how you expect your guest to behave in your home. If your renter violates your rules, Airbnb allows you to cancel their reservation. If you require your guest to sign a rental agreement, your House Rules are legally binding, which means you’ll have much more protection from such guests.

Dangerous or Harmful Behavior

Safety is a top concern for Airbnb. If your guest is participating in illicit or hurtful activities, immediately contact emergency services. Airbnb is committed to working with local authorities to keep guests and hosts safe. Law enforcement workers or Airbnb themselves may have further guidance on how to proceed.

Had a Party

Airbnb recently released a global ban on parties after they have become such a nuisance in recent years, and they are strict about it. Check out our article on party prevention devices for more info on early detection.

In fact, they have even revoked the cancellation fee if a host believes a guest is going to throw a party. It’s also the host’s responsibility to take action if they become aware of a party occurring.

Because Airbnb may take legal action if they learn a guest threw a party, it’s reasonable to assume Airbnb would have your back if you wish to terminate a stay for this reason.

Overstaying Their Booking

Surprisingly, there are legal and illegal ways a guest can overstay their Airbnb reservation. If a guest has stayed in your place for about a month, they can establish tenant rights. The exact duration of stay depends on local laws, so it is best to check in with a landlord-tenant attorney regarding long-term stays.

If a guest establishes tenant rights, you will have a harder time evicting them. You may even have to take your case to court to sort through the eviction process in some cases. Again, having your guest sign a rental agreement can prevent them from establishing a tenancy.

However, short-term guests don’t have such power. These guests do not have the same protections as tenants, so it is easier to evict them.

Things To Consider Before Kicking Out a Guest

Evicting a guest is not something that should be taken lightly. Not only are you impacting your guest’s housing situation, but it may also affect your future on Airbnb. Consider these things before kicking your guest out.

Are They Violating Your House Rules?

Some rules may seem obvious to you, but your guests might not be on the same page. For example, it may seem like common sense to you that your guest should not have alcohol or drugs in the house, but they might not know that.

Unfortunately, if you do not write all of your rules down, you may not be able to kick your guest out for violating them. After all, they may have genuinely not known this behavior was prohibited.

Airbnb highly values trust, so try to give your guest the benefit of the doubt when it is applicable. It’s important to remember that you’re in the hospitality business so that you may have guests from across the globe. Different countries have different customs, so some people may simply not know any better.

This May Affect Future Bookings

If you kick a guest out, there’s a good chance they’ll be upset about it, even if it was justified. In this case, they might take their anger towards you out by leaving a negative review. If the guest doesn’t understand why you terminated their stay or feel like they were wrongfully evicted, their words may be particularly harsh.

If you need to kick them out, do what you must, but it may affect future bookings. After all, no one wants to be left without a place to stay.

Also, remember that Airbnb will automatically post a review claiming you have canceled a reservation. You cannot remove this.

In situations like this, you have three options:

• Wait 14 Days to leave your review. Reviews don’t become public until either both parties leave a review, or 14 days have passed – whichever is first. By waiting until the last second to leave your review, you will have the opportunity to get more bookings before potential damage to your reputation can be done, which then has the opportunity to fade away with reviews from more recent guests.
• Request Airbnb remove the review. Once reviews are live, they are set in stone and it’s almost impossible to get them removed. However, if you can prove that it was retaliation then you might have a chance. And you might have an even bigger chance if you can also prove that they broke your house rules.
• Set up your house rules. A sneaky trick you can use which has had some success by many hosts is to put in your house rules that if they violate your rules they forfeit their ability to leave a public review. Bring that up to Airbnb’s attention, as your house rules are technically a contract.

What To Do Instead of Kicking Your Guest Out

Keep in mind that evicting your guest should be a last-resort option. Before doing this, try to mediate the situation in other ways.

• Attempt to resolve the situation privately. The best way to sort out any issue between Airbnb guests and hosts is to privately solve the situation. Contact your guest if you have concerns with their behavior in your home, and you can hopefully come to a mutual understanding without taking further steps.
• Contact Airbnb customer service. If you cannot come to an understanding with your guest, the next step is to contact the Airbnb support team. You can get in touch with Airbnb’s customer service team any time away via phone call, online messaging, or the Airbnb Twitter account. We prefer online messaging so you have written communication.
• Contact local authorities. If you believe your guest is engaging in harmful or dangerous activities, immediately contact emergency services. When it comes to the well-being of individuals, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
• Do not try to evict by yourself. Although you may be tempted to evict your guest in person, you risk losing the protections of Airbnb’s insurance and host guarantee. Let the authorities handle it.

What Happens Next?

What comes next all depends on the reason why you had to kick your guest out. Some behaviors are completely non-negotiable by Airbnb. One of these actions is throwing a party. Airbnb has a zero-tolerance policy for unauthorized gatherings, so the guest may have their profile removed from the platform completely.

In the case of property damage, Airbnb protects hosts with coverage up to $1,000,000 USD ($1,278,415 CAD). Additionally, they also provide Host Protection Insurance, which covers liability claims up to the same amount.

After your guest leaves, you can also leave them a negative review. This will adversely affect their ability to rent other Airbnbs in the future. Doing this can help fellow hosts avoid experiences such as yours. Additionally, Airbnb will follow up with your review and potentially remove their profile entirely.

Final Thoughts

While Airbnb can’t force you to host someone in your home – so long as this doesn’t impede their discrimination policy – kicking a guest out certainly is not encouraged. Instead of evicting a guest, first try to mediate the situation privately, contact Airbnb’s support team, or get in touch with local authorities.

Keep in mind that Airbnb will automatically post a review on your listing stating that you have canceled a reservation. In the future, consider rewriting your House Rules and requiring guests to sign a rental agreement.