Airbnb bans checkout chores, and other businesses should take note

Airbnb is cracking down on hosts who make guests do chores before they leave. Think stripping the beds or taking out the trash. Inc. magazine reports that the move points to a bigger shift, and that other businesses that push work onto their customers should pay attention.

What changed

According to Inc., Airbnb is going after checkout chores, the tasks some hosts expect guests to finish on their way out. The article describes this as the end of what it calls the chore economy. That is the idea that a business can save money by quietly handing its own work to the people paying it.

Who it affects

The most direct group is Airbnb hosts who list chores in their checkout instructions. Guests are the other side of that. They pay for a stay and may end up doing cleanup work that the business would normally handle.

Inc. says the lesson reaches past short-term rentals. Any company that asks customers to do its operational heavy lifting could face the same pushback.

What is not known yet

The material available does not explain how Airbnb will enforce the crackdown. It does not say when it starts, what penalties hosts could face, or which chores count. It also does not name other companies that could be next. Those details would matter to hosts and guests alike.

What to do

If your business relies on customers doing tasks you should handle, expect more complaints. One option is to take the work back and build its cost into your price. Customers may accept a clear, higher price more easily than a surprise to-do list.