Airbnb guests no longer have to wash dishes or strip beds - and some hosts aren't happy about it

AIRBNB HAS INTRODUCED a new policy that prohibits hosts from asking guests to clean before they check out.

The decision comes in response to guests finding extra responsibilities “confusing, onerous and hard to manage”.

Until now, Airbnb hosts could ask that beds be stripped, or the dishwasher be run.

That is despite a cleaning fee often being added to the nightly rate.

Now, rather than setting their own, hosts can choose from seven “standard” house rules. They can also add extra requests, but Airbnb says these must be “reasonable”.

“For example, guests shouldn’t be asked to wash and put away dishes, but hosts can ask them to put used dishes in the sink,” a spokesperson for Airbnb said.

Hosts aren’t allowed to add rules after booking, or only communicate them by message, signs in the home, or in person. They must be displayed prominently on the listing page.

An Airbnb spokesperson said: “House rules help guests understand what hosts expect, but we’ve heard from our community that they can be confusing, onerous and hard to manage.”

They added that rules will now be “easier to discover and clearer to set”.

There have been mixed responses to the new policy. On Reddit, some hosts have welcomed the clarity, but others have shared concerns.

“I have had ant infestations caused by unclean guests, and I’m not ready to deal with that again. It took months to get rid of them, much to the displeasure of subsequent guests,” one post read.

Another didn’t like that the changes mean hosts can longer specify that no additional visitors are allowed.

“Restrictions on daytime visitors must be communicated as requests. That’s an important distinction when the property in question is someone’s primary residence,” they said.

Guests have welcomed the change, arguing they shouldn’t be charged a cleaning fee if they end up having to clean anyway.

“I never minded dishes, but laundry was asking a bit much,” one person said.

Another said: “Too late. So many of us have moved on back to hotels. Less hassle and cheaper.”

With reporting by Andrew Walsh