Guest left my VRBO after check-in over exterior issues and wants full refund, what would you do?
I’m a new VRBO host (6 months) and could use some honest advice from other hosts/travelers on how you would handle this situation.
I had a 7-night booking for about $9k during college graduation weekend in a college town, so probably our busiest weekend. Unfortunately my cleaner/property manager dropped the ball badly before check-in. The guests arrived and found:
tools/power washer left outside
landscaping not fully cleaned up for the season
food left in the fridge/freezer
hot tub dirty and low on water
The guests called me upset shortly after arrival. I immediately responded and had someone at the property within about 1 hour to start correcting everything. I also offered:
immediate remediation
Full dinner reimbursement to the most expensive restaurant in town, so we could fix these issues while they're at dinner. I initially said I could offer a $1k refund and they asked for a 50% refund ($4.5k). I said I thought it would be best for us to show up, access the property and fix the issues before offering a refund that large.
When we showed up the guest was very upset and decided to leave the property before remediation was completed and opened a formal VRBO complaint requesting a full refund for the unused stay. We even gave them a $100 bottle of champagne, which they took, as they left.
A few additional details:
The listing photos accurately reflect the property/grounds (it’s more rustic/natural landscaping, not manicured). They said the biggest issue was the landscaping. However, It's on a lake and the woods are protected lands, they complained about leaves and not being able to safely walk through the woods that face the lake.
The house itself was usable and not unsafe in any way. They even said it looked nicer than the photos.
This happened last night and they did not spend the night, I am now writing this in the morning.
I fully acknowledge the turnover issues were unacceptable especially for an expensive stay and I’m not trying to avoid responsibility for that. I’m just trying to understand realistically:
Does this sound like a full refund situation?
Was offering 50% already too much?
How would VRBO likely handle this?
Would you try to settle further or hold firm at this point?
Looking for honest opinions from hosts or experienced travelers as I already have about $50k of bookings through VRBO this summer and I am afraid a bad review might jeopardize that.