Spoiled Vineyard Experience
Submitted: September 26, 2011
Stayed: September 2011
We rented this home for a week in September for a family vacation with our 2 year old and our Boston Terrier. The house itself is nice, but there is no yard at all and absolutely no privacy... more like a cottage community than a neighborhood. This was still okay and we had a great week. While staying in the house, our 2 year old broke an old TV entertainment unit. The door came right off when she backed into it (all 20 lbs of her, not a big kid). We felt horrible and went into town and told the owner as we knew where he worked. When we told him about the door, he immediately knew which side it was and said his son had run into it several times so it had been "compromised" (his words). This was not a new or fancy piece of furniture. Two weeks after returning we got an email stating that he would be keeping our entire deposit to replace the item as well as 2 smaller things (a fridge can caddy that we never even used and a picture frame that we were unaware that broke). We agreed that we would take financial responsibility for broken items, but thought $500 seemed excessive. When given a breakdown of the costs, he was charging us the cost of the TV Stand “brand new”, plus the cost of taking his car on the ferry (and gas & time) to go get a new one. We debated that we did not agree with his assessment and we should be charged for a “like Item” not brand new considering that this was not a new item and he himself said it was already damaged. His responses were cold, uncaring, and infuriating. I wouldn’t trust this person if I were you. Go elsewhere to a more experienced landlord… the house is definitely not worth the extra $500. Pretty much spoiled our memories of an otherwise wonderful vacation. We rent on the islands or the Cape every year and have never had a bad experience. Just take warning before considering this property.
Owner's Response: While I empathize with our renters, and I understand her frustration and disappointment, the fact is that the damages she and her family did to our home and furnishings far exceeded the deposit she left and we honestly felt we where cutting them a break not asking them to make us whole. While her review is well written, it contains multiple misrepresentations as to what I said, the extent of the damage and the costs it will take to fix what they did. Without going back and forth about the list of damages done I do want to address the "big ticket" item. The entertainment center that they destroyed was bought new less than a year before they rented our home and was in pristine condition. When we returned home the door was torn in half and splintered. While I did quote her costs for replacement, I DID NOT, include time and gas. This was only one of several items damaged beyond repair. She is correct in her assertion that this was our first year renting our family home, but as you can see from our other reviews we were professional and attentive in how we treat our guests. No amount of experience can make up for someone who does not treat your home and personal belongings which you entrust to them with respect and care. I guess that is what deposits are for.
Helpful votes: 2/8
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