Remotely Controlling Number of Guests – Three Steps
Remotely controlling the number of guests staying is not the easiest of tasks. We’ve all heard of cases of guests who book for a handful and then show up with a whole bunch of other guests. If you run an annexe to your house as an Airbnb, there are obvious ways of ensuring that this doesn’t happen. However, if you are a vacation rental management company remotely administering properties, that’s not the case. Even for more established serviced apartment companies that operate unstaffed apart-hotels, it’s not always straightforward how unauthorised access is controlled.
1. Find Out Who Will Be Staying
Ask your guests ahead of time to provide the names of those who will be staying. Make sure to keep a full guest register (in some countries this is even required by legislation). Moreover, tell the guests that they will not be able to get access for anyone other than the names that have already been submitted at the time of booking unless they agree otherwise later on with yourself. If you don’t want the hassle of record-keeping, take a look at Zeevou Book‘s 5-Step Booking Confirmation Process, which takes care of this for you.
2. Collect Digital Signatures
Once you have the guest register, you want to elicit a further commitment from the guest. Furthermore, get them to sign and say that they will not exceed the list of guests provided. You can, at the same time, ask them to agree to all your other terms and conditions. While it is difficult to do this upon arrival, you can collect digital signatures from the lead guest at the time of booking via a digital signature service. Signable is an affordable option and is legally binding.
3. Supervise Your Property
If you follow the two steps outlined above, you will have made it clear to the vast majority of guests that you’re not going to accept any nonsense. However, you will find that there are still those who are going to try their luck and pretend that they’re compliant on all your paperwork. Occasionally, they may even commit fraud to do so. Moreover, to ensure that your property is safe, you may wish to install a Ring doorbell. This will allow you to have a live video link with your property at any time, and monitor who’s entering and leaving it.
However, monitoring your CCTV requires an active presence. This is where Noiseaware can come in helpful (use the coupon code “zeevou10” for 10% off). Their noise detection product will alert you if the noise in your property exceeds a certain level. Just make sure to have a team of people ready who can stand up to the guests if you get an alert, as it may well be a full-blown party!
Can You Fully Remotely Control the Number of Guests Staying?
Will this help you completely eliminate all issues with guests staying at your property? No. Will it help you in remotely controlling the number of guests staying at your property? Yes. So, following the above steps can help you in reducing the chances of extra guests who have not paid staying, or a rowdy party being thrown and your place getting trashed.
