EXPERT
requests that two extra guests and two dogs come along”
“Your initial euphoria turns to disbelief when the guest later
Guests sometimes ring on arrival asking for the key code, despite having been sent it in advance by email, WhatsApp and text
occupancy is not breached and pets are allowed (maybe for a small additional charge). However, we find that guests who make a request for specific beds to be made up in specific bedrooms often do so multiple times because they can’t make up their own minds about who is arriving, when, and who sleeps where. The most important thing
Your holiday home listing clearly states ‘no pets’, yet people
will still ask if they can bring their dog
Like most agencies we
require all security deposits to be either paid by card or bank transfer and in advance of the holiday. This puts us and the owner in the driving seat in the event of a problem downrange. Some guests even offer to
hand over several hundred euros in cash on arrival. If this was accepted by a local owner then the owner must be prepared to check over the property before these guests depart and confront them face to face in the event of any issues or disputes. This is not something that many people are comfortable with.
RETURNING DEPOSITS If a guest pays for their security deposit by card then they must be reminded that although we may authorise the release of this deposit back to them in a
timely manner, it could take 10 business days before Stripe and their own bank complete the transaction. On occasions we have had to screenshot evidence of these details to guests who think we are holding on to their funds for too long. If a guest pays by bank
transfer, they should also be reminded that any bank fees/ charges incurred by us will be deducted from the amount returned to them after their stay. Otherwise, it can cost us, for example, €20 just to receive and return a €400 deposit.
CHANGING BOOKINGS Sometimes the guest wants to add more people, beds, pets after they have confirmed their booking. This may be perfectly acceptable for your property provided that the maximum
is to remember to keep the owner/property manager up to date with all the changes or simply make up all the beds regardless.
ACCESSING THE PROPERTY This remains one of life’s mysteries to us! We send guests a url web link for an online guidebook tailored to each holiday home. This comprehensive guide contains details of how to get there, how to get in, what to do (and not do) in the house, what to do on the last day of their stay, what’s in the area, all contact details for local and emergency services and so on. The guidebook is available in many languages and is mobile friendly so that it can be easily shared among all members of the guest party who have a mobile phone. The link is issued to guests
as soon as they have paid in full, again several weeks before their holiday starts, and yet again a few days before they set off on their travels. We send
these links by email, SMS and Whatsapp. Despite our best efforts,
some guests actually get to the property and then ring us asking for the key code. They claim that they have never received the link from us and that their mobile is currently out of battery so can we just tell them the code. It turns out that both of these statements are untrue – how did they know where to turn up for their holiday if they hadn’t received the link to the guidebook and the mobile number that we issued the links to is actually the one that they are ringing us from! Obviously simple and clear
instructions are needed for guests in this modern world of online bookings, card payments, bank transfers and email/SMS/Whatsapp, and these instructions should be repeated as many times as required to ensure that your message has been received. Getting the guest to
acknowledge receipt of your messages is always best, and an advantage of Whatsapp messages is that you can quickly see what has been received and then read by the recipient.■
Pete O’Grady runs Prestige Property Services, offering assistance for owners of second and holiday homes in France Tel: 0033 (0)2 97 22 99 12
prestigepropertynetwork.com
FRENCH PROPERTY NEWS: September/August 2023 65
© SHUTTERSTOCK
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