Airbnb introduces new terms for all visitors after shocked guests told to 'strip beds and do laundry'

Guests booking Airbnb properties who were previously told to 'strip the beds' and 'do the laundry' are now protected by an upcoming change in policy.

Those using the platform, which offers a variety of properties worldwide to visitors to book for trips and holidays, updated guest checkout terms a number of years ago.

This included asking hosts to make only reasonable check-out requests, which should always be displayed to guests before they book.

As part of a roll out of updates, this included avoiding asking guests to carry out 'unreasonable' tasks such as stripping the beds, doing the laundry, or vacuuming when leaving the property.

Certain aspects of cleaning, including turning off appliances and throwing discarded food away properly were still expected of guests, as if they were leaving their own homes.

But now in a fresh update, Airbnb has strengthened their policies, stopping hosts from asking guests to do anything that would take 'significant effort or time' or would 'typically be performed by a cleaner'.

Airbnb guests will be impacted (Getty Stock)

This followed common complaints visitors had around staying at rental properties and their dreaded check-out chores, which varied depending on the property and individual host.

But according to its new community policy update, hosts are now completely unable to ask guests to do certain tasks, also including washing and putting away dishes, however items can be requested to be left in the sink.

Airbnb said in a statement: “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.

“So we've redesigned them to make them easier to discover and clearer to set, alongside a new policy that keeps requests reasonable, with no surprises.”

Now, under 'reasonable house rules and requests', the change in policy will apply to all reservations booked on or after 20 November this year.

Airbnb introduced the changes (Getty Stock)

The change is implemented 'to help set clear expectations and create positive experiences,' Airbnb said.

"Hosts may set house rules and requests for their listing, as long as they are reasonable and comply with the requirements," an update read.

All house rules and requests must now be disclosed in the listing at the time of booking, so that guests can decide whether the home is a good fit before they book.

The description continued: "Hosts are generally not allowed to ask guests to complete tasks that require significant effort or time, or would typically be performed by a cleaner, including stripping the bed, taking trash offsite, or washing and putting away dishes."

Guests cannot be asked to do tasks like stripping a bed (Getty Stock)

It continued that hosts are also not allowed to restrict access to a feature that is advertised on listings and that they cannot impose fines or penalties on guests directly.

House rules will now be shared on the listing page, with seven standard house rules covering check-in and check-out times, the number of approved guests, smoking, approval for pets, designated quiet hours, and commercial film and photography.

Hosts who do not follow the requirements could face Airbnb action, including being informed of the policies, asked to update their listing or issued with warnings.

Airbnb users responded to the update on social media, as one user posted on X: "FINALLY air bnb updated their terms saying hosts can’t require you to strip the beds, do dishes, take the trash out, etc."

Another user comically quipped: "Hosts really had people doing unpaid labor after charging a cleaning fee." A third then posted: "They shouldn’t charge a cleaning charge if the guest is doing the cleaning."