Airbnb guest hit with ridiculous $18,000 bill fights back after realizing the host’s sinister motive

An Illinois mother is fighting back after an Airbnb host sent her an $18,000 bill for damages she insists she did not cause.

Amy Peto said she stayed at an Airbnb while on a girls’ trip to the beach town of Douglas, Michigan, in June.

When she got home from vacation she was stunned to find a scathing review from the host and an invoice for more than $18,000 in alleged damage to the home.

Amy believes the host’s large bill was a cunning way to fund his bathroom renovations.

‘Amy made huge damage to the house that will result in very expensive repairs. Horrible guests,’ a copy of the reviewed obtained by WLS said.

A photo of the damage shows a large hole inside the bathtub and the bill is charging her for plumbing fixtures, tile, glass door, painting and more

A photo of the damage shows a large hole inside the bathtub – which the mom swears she and her friends did not cause.

‘I had absolutely no idea what he was referring to,’ Peto told the local news station. ‘That, to me, looks like a sledgehammer. And this is not damage that we did.’ 

‘He’s having me not just repair the bathtub, but pay for his plumbing fixtures, his tile, his glass door, painting, management fee, plumbing, trash and demo to the tune of $18,820.

‘As soon as I saw this, I knew exactly what he was doing. He’s trying to get some fool, who wasn’t going to be me, pay for his bathroom remodel, because his house was on the market for $1.5 million. You messed with the wrong girl.’ 

Peto said she thinks the host was trying to trick her into paying for home renovations because his house was on the market in Douglas (pictured) for $1.5 million

The average home value in Douglas is $639,662, according to Zillow. Census data shows the small town on the coast of Lake Michigan has a population of 1,405.

Peto said she tried to contact the host but never heard back so she took the matter to Airbnb. After they went back and forth for a few weeks, the company eventually closed the case and she was not charged for the damages.

‘I’m single. I have two young boys. There’s no way I would be able to drop $18,000 on a teacher’s salary,’ she said. 

‘This has really left a scar on me and I don’t think I will ever use or recommend Airbnb because he is still a Superhost.’

The company defines a Superhost as ‘a host who goes above and beyond to provide excellent hospitality.’

Peto said she tried to contact the host but never heard back and eventually Airbnb closed the case

AirBnb told the local news station: ‘The host provided evidence to support the claim, and our team did not find any evidence to suggest that this host was committing fraud.’

Peto said the accommodation website has also refused to remove the bad review the host left from her profile.