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A shady Airbnb host charged former guests of his Parisian vacation rental $3,500 for a coffee stain. But even more shocking than that outrageous payment request was Airbnb’s response to it.
Despite the host having no evidence of damages to his vacation rental, Airbnb approved his claim.
Now the stunned couple is asking Consumer Rescue for help making the false damage charge go away. These guests are certain they caused no damage to the vacation rental while visiting the City of Light. They believe the Airbnb host’s complaint is in retaliation for their complaint that the property had no hot water for several days.
Why did Airbnb allow this host to bill his guest thousands of dollars for a coffee stain?
That’s what I aimed to find out.
A dream vacation to Paris, but no hot water in the rental
New Yorkers Andrea Vacca and Stephen Zaffarano began planning their dream trip to France earlier this year. They intended to spend eight nights in Paris.
Scrolling through the Airbnb listings, they chose a two-bedroom apartment for their visit. The brightly lit apartment in the much-sought-after 8th Arrondissement would be a perfect home base to explore the city. The fact that the owner was a superhost with many 5-star reviews sealed the deal.
Vacca says that when they arrived, they found the Airbnb rental nearly perfect – except for a consistent lack of hot water. This posed a real challenge for the active couple for three of the eight days of their stay.
“We had excursions and activities planned each day, and the fact that we couldn’t shower was a significant problem,” Vacca explained. “We did our best, so we didn’t miss our plans. But it was an unpleasant situation that we didn’t expect.”
Vacca shared the many troubleshooting text conversations between herself and the Airbnb host. In those messages, he is attentive and appears to be doing everything possible to correct the problem quickly. Unfortunately, despite his efforts, it took three days for the water heater to consistently provide hot water.
Will the host offer compensation for this inconvenience?
Vacca thought the extended inconvenience should have led the host to offer compensation, but he didn’t. So after checkout, when he messaged Vacca to ask how their stay was, she mentioned her idea.
“I hope that despite the issue with the hot water…you still had a wonderful stay in Paris,” the Airbnb host texted. “Wishing you a safe journey back.”
In response, Vacca expressed her honest opinion of the experience.
Paris was lovely and we enjoyed many aspects of our stay (including your excellent responsiveness). But having no hot water for 3 days and nights made our stay very difficult. We’ve never experienced this issue in any other Airbnb and would not expect it to happen in a home at this price point.
We would appreciate you issuing a credit for the inconvenience it caused all of us. What amount do you think is reasonable to offer?
Vacca to the Airbnb host
The host’s answer was nothing, but he didn’t tell Vacca. In fact, he didn’t tell her anything at all. She never directly heard from him ever again.
His only response was to quickly submit a request through Airbnb for her to pay him $3,500… for leaving a coffee cup on the bathroom sink.
Related: Is this the worst Airbnb stay ever? You decide
What kind of damage evidence is this?
A few days after her last message to her previously super-friendly Airbnb super host, Vacca received the shocking request for $3,500. The message said that Vacca (or someone in her party) had set a coffee cup down on the bathroom sink in the vacation rental causing a stain.
That coffee stain was impossible to remove and the marble top needed to be replaced, according to the Airbnb host.
When I read through the paper trail, I instantly joined Team Vacca. I wondered how this outrageous claim had gone so far.
Putting a coffee cup on a bathroom sink is something that many of us do every single day. In fact, when I read through Vacca’s complaint I was, at that moment, in a vacation rental in Wisconsin Dells.
Guess what was on the marble sink in my bathroom? A coffee cup.
When Vacca sent me the Airbnb host’s photos of the coffee stain “damage,” the case only became more outrageous.
That coffee cup in the photo proved that the Airbnb host had not even made the slightest attempt to wipe away the coffee stains before submitting a ridiculous request for $3,500 compensation. The coffee cup was still on the counter, and the “stain” wasn’t even visible to the naked eye.
How to remove stains from marble
If a host wants to bill a guest $3,500 for a coffee stain, they need to
- Make some effort to fix the problem (for example wipe it away with towel) -or-
- Get a repair bill from a professional
Before contacting Airbnb about this vacation rental fiasco, I did some research about caring for marble.
According to Martha Stewart, well-cared-for marble should be sealed annually. That treatment will prevent most stains from becoming permanent. The best way to remove a coffee stain from a marble countertop is with a simple mixture of baking soda and water.
It was clear from this host’s picture that he hadn’t tried anything before making his cash grab.
Asking Airbnb about this suspected fake damage charge
The bad news for Airbnb customers is that a great deal of its customer service is handled by artificial intelligence and customer service agents without the ability to make big decisions – like challenging a host’s $3,500 damage claim.
Unfortunately, this type of customer (dis)service is common in 2025 and certainly not only with Airbnb.
Related: Help! Our vacation rental host charged us $1,000 for a new mattress after 1 night
The good news is that Consumer Rescue can reach real executives at Airbnb who can correct bizarre customer service mistakes made by AI or lower level agents.
I sent a request over to the executive team at Airbnb on behalf of Vacca.
I have two Airbnb guests here with an expensive problem. Andrea Vacca and Steve Zaffarano stayed in this Airbnb in Paris for 8 days. For three days during their stay, there was little to no water, and the host told her he had the water heater on a timer to only heat water at night. He asked her to turn the water heater on the “always on” position and wait a few hours. That didn’t work, so he sent someone to fix the water heater. For two days, this family had to go out on planned activities without a shower because of the lack of hot water (this is all documented in texts between the host and guest).
On the last day, when they checked out, Andrea sent the host a polite message telling him that they had a nice time, but she thought he should provide some kind of compensation for their inconvenience.
He never responded, but the next day, he sent a request to Airbnb for this couple to pay him a 3500 Euro damage fee. He says they put a coffee cup on a marble counter in the bathroom, and it permanently stained the counter. The pictures he sent are underwhelming to say the least. I’ve never heard of someone permanently damaging a marble countertop just by temporarily putting a coffee cup on it.
The pictures show that he didn’t even try to clean away the faint stains before he sent his giant payment request to Airbnb (the coffee cup is still sitting there). The evidence also didn’t come with a repair bill or estimate. But half of the fee was approved by Airbnb without any further evidence.
Would your team be able to have a look at this case and see if the host is able to provide any evidence that he paid someone to “repair” this marble? Also, if he intends to charge guests who put a coffee cup on his marble counters, he should include that in some kind of house rules. This charge seems highly unusual. I’ll put his photos under my signature. Thank you!! 😊
Michelle Couch-Friedman, consumer advocate
The good news: Airbnb will erase this request for a $3,500 coffee stain repair
In the end, when real humans at Airbnb looked at Vacca’s case, they agreed that the photos didn’t justify the sky-high compensation the host was asking for. In fact, the executive team ended this host’s pursuit of any damage charges against this couple.
Related: Help! My vacation rental host falsely accused me of leaving a crack pipe behind
And even better: Airbnb agreed with Vacca that the host owed her compensation for the lack of hot water for three days of their stay.
Good morning, Michelle!
We just copied you on our response to **** [at Airbnb] who let us know the claim for damages was being dismissed. On top of that Airbnb also refunded us 30% of the 3 impacted nights without hot water, for a total of $393!
We’re so very grateful for your help with this issue. Thank you!
Andrea Vacca
You’re very welcome, Andrea. This is exactly why Consumer Rescue exists!
How to protect yourself against vacation rental damage scams
Unfortunately, the complaints I receive each week paint a picture that some vacation rental owners are hoping to pad their bottom line by charging fake damage fees.
Here’s how to make sure an Airbnb host can’t successfully hit you with fake damage charges.
1. Take inventory when you check in
When you check into a vacation rental or hotel, it is crucial that you take inventory. Make sure that you inspect the place for damage. Your mobile phone has nearly infinite storage, so take enough photos and videos to accurately depict the property.
If you find any obvious damage, make sure you contact the vacation rental host or management company immediately.
2. Keep all conversations with your Airbnb host on the platform
Airbnb makes it easy to communicate with your vacation rental host through your account. If you download the Airbnb app to your phone, you’ll be able to send messages directly to your host even when you’re not near your computer.
Keeping your messages with your host on the platform, creates a perfect paper trail of your communications if there are problems later. Airbnb representatives can easily access your conversations with your host so there is no confusion about what was said and done before, during and after your stay.
If the host calls you to discuss a problem you’re having at the rental, always make sure to follow up that conversation with a message through Airbnb.
3. Take a video of that the vacation rental looks like at check out
This is probably the most critical part of your documentation. You need to show that you left the property in the same condition as when you arrived.
Well-lit videos and photos are your best defense against getting hit with false damage charges from an ethically challenged vacation rental host.
4. Appeal your case with Airbnb
If a host is intent on charging you for damage you didn’t cause and Airbnb initially sides against you, the next step is to file an appeal. You have 60 days from the time you receive the initial request for damages to file your appeal.
5. Why a credit card dispute will not solve a false damage charge
A lot of people in Facebook groups and even in mainstream media suggest that many types of consumer complaints can be easily fixed with a credit card dispute. This is bad advice and here is why: the end of a credit card dispute, only ensures that your bank is no longer involved in the dispute. The company that charged your credit card can use other ways to retrieve the charged-back amount.
Related: Why winning a credit card dispute could end with you in jail (my article for Fodor’s)
Airbnb is a company that is known to fight credit card disputes, providing documentation that supports the charges. Not only will you lose your case, but you’ll also be placed on the Airbnb blacklist. It is crucial that consumers understand the limits of the credit card dispute process. These aren’t in-depth investigations. If a merchant fights the chargeback, consumers typically lose – and even if they manage to win, it might just be the beginning of a bigger battle.
6. Ask Consumer Rescue for free mediation help
There is a better option if you have been slapped with a charge for damage you didn’t cause and have been unsuccessful with your appeal. Send your request for help to our consumer advocacy team. We will thoroughly investigate your case, and if the facts are on your side, we’ll be happy to come to your rescue, too.
Our mediation assistance is always fast, friendly, and free of charge! (Michelle Couch-Friedman, founder of Consumer Rescue)
