MW 'This guy has no manners': My Airbnb guest requested I buy bacon and beer. The $30 bill remains unpaid. Do I insist?

By Quentin Fottrell

'I don't want him to retaliate with a bad review'

"He said he would Venmo me the money or leave it behind when he left." (Photo subject is a model.)

Dear Quentin,

I rent my house out on Airbnb $(ABNB)$ and HomeExchange.com and sometimes arrange private rentals with friends of friends. That enables me to get away in the winter months to sunnier climes, and it also allows me to take extended vacations. My last Airbnb guest asked me to get him some provisions. He asked for bread, milk, fruit, sausages, bacon and beer.

He said he would Venmo me the money or leave it behind when he left. So I purchased all the groceries he requested like a good host. The bill came to just over $30. I told him the final tally. I left a note with a jar of honey. The honey was left untouched in the refrigerator when he left. There was no note and no money. This guy has no manners.

I have waited before asking him for the money because I don't want him to retaliate with a bad review. Am I being taken for a fool? What should I do?

Frustrated Host

You can email The Moneyist with any financial and ethical questions at qfottrell@marketwatch.com. The Moneyist regrets he cannot reply to questions individually.

Related: 'It's an expensive piece of equipment': My neighbor asked to borrow my snowblower. Do I say yes?

Because you had a gentleman's agreement, ask him nicely to pay you the 30 bucks.

Dear Host,

Like the people in that episode of "Black Mirror," we are all living in fear of bad reviews.

They can come from a co-worker, someone leaving a Yelp review for a small business, a student on RateMyProfessor, an anonymous troll online, someone making an ill-judged Facebook comment or, to your point, a vengeful and crabby guest or host on Airbnb or HomeExchange. The beauty of those two platforms is that neither will allow a guest or host to read a review until reviews from both parties have been submitted; if only one review is submitted, it will be published after a set amount of time - 14 days for Airbnb and 40 days for HomeExchange. So if you have not gotten a review from this guest yet, you're probably in the clear.

Send him a short message, using his name to make it personal and friendly: "Hi Paul - I hope you had a nice time! The groceries and beer came to $30. You can send it via Venmo when you get a chance." If there is no response after a few days, send one follow-up. You have two choices after that: Mention it in a review - factually and without rancor - or contact the Airbnb Resolution Center. (Generally, it's helpful to provide guests with basics like bread and milk and even orange juice, but he should pay for the sausages, bacon and beer.)

Strictly speaking, because you had a gentleman's agreement, he should pay you the 30 bucks. But there is a trade-off between the amount of money at issue here and the time and grief trying to get reimbursed could cause you. Will you feel better if he pays you the $30? Will you feel worse if you ask and he gives you a game of cat and mouse? The Irishman in me says, move on with your life. We don't like confrontation, in daily life at least, and we are masters of the silent treatment, hidden meanings and passive aggression.

Different business models

Side note No. 1: If this transaction had taken place on HomeExchange, you would have had 40 days to leave a review and the site would have notified each of you if the other party had left a review to nudge you to do the same. If that had happened, you could then have asked him for the dough without triggering a negative review on the site. Ultimately, the reviews exist to help other guests and hosts to make an informed decision, and the entire system works better if people are honest and act without malice. It's justified to mention the $30 bill, but perhaps give him a chance to pay it first.

Side note No. 2: On both sites, if a guest or host leaves a bad review, the other party has 30 days to respond to the review. These are often the most fun parts of checking out a listing. In some cases, it's better than the "Jerry Springer Show" - or perhaps a result of it. I recall a room rental in Queens that had so many bad reviews (regarding cleanliness, communication etc.), and the host responded in a vituperative manner to each and every one of them. In order to be a guest or a host, you have to roll with the prospect of bad reviews, with or without bacon and beer.

The two sites have different models: HomeExchange deals with reciprocal exchanges, with hosts earning points that they can then use to stay elsewhere. Airbnb deals in money. Both have their pros and cons. Airbnb hosts must comply with local tax authorities, which often involves registering the property, collecting tourist taxes and declaring income. Many cities also have restrictions on short-term stays. Some insist that guests must stay at least 30 days, which can trigger tenants' rights in certain jurisdictions.

In the future, tell guests you'll leave bread and milk, but have them do their own shopping.

Related: I stayed in an Airbnb on my parents' street for Thanksgiving. My mom pleaded with me NOT to write a bad review. What do I do?

More columns from Quentin Fottrell:

My wealthy friend invited me to stay, but he doesn't need more 'stuff.' What do I get the man who has everything?

I met a friend for lunch. When the check arrived, she said, 'Thank you so much for paying!' Was I taken for a fool?

I started working as a dishwasher at 13. Social Security refuses to acknowledge this. Am I being cheated?

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-Quentin Fottrell

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March 20, 2026 10:26 ET (14:26 GMT)

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