Airbnb: Keep Self-Catering Self-Catering – Let Hosts Ask Guests to Wash Up!

Stop Airbnb from banning reasonable household responsibilities in self-catering accommodation.

Airbnb is introducing a new policy, effective from 20 November 2026, that generally prevents hosts from requiring guests to wash and put away their dishes before checking out.

We believe this policy is unreasonable, unfair to hosts and fundamentally misunderstands the nature of self-catering accommodation.

We are calling on Airbnb to reverse this restriction and recognise the difference between unreasonable cleaning demands and ordinary household responsibilities.

Self-catering is not a hotel service

Millions of people choose Airbnb because it offers something different from a hotel: the opportunity to stay in a home, enjoy a kitchen, prepare meals and live independently.

With that independence comes a reasonable degree of personal responsibility.

When guests cook a meal, is it really unreasonable to expect them to wash the dishes they have used?

When guests generate household waste, is it unreasonable to expect them to put it in the bins provided?

We believe the answer to both questions is a resounding no.

These are not professional cleaning duties. They are ordinary aspects of living responsibly in somebody else’s property.

Hosts already pay for professional cleaning

Most responsible Airbnb hosts arrange thorough cleaning between reservations. This includes cleaning bathrooms, changing bed linen, sanitising surfaces, vacuuming and preparing the property for the next guests.

That is entirely appropriate.

But there is a clear distinction between preparing a property for the next guest and clearing up the consequences of the previous guest’s everyday activities.

A family staying for a week might use dozens of plates, glasses, pans and utensils. Requiring a cleaner to wash everything adds unnecessary time and expense.

Food waste and dirty dishes left for extended periods can also create unpleasant odours and hygiene problems.

Ultimately, these additional costs will either be absorbed by hosts or passed on to guests through higher accommodation prices.

Nobody benefits from making self-catering accommodation unnecessarily expensive.

Airbnb should protect guests without undermining hosts

We recognise that some guests have faced excessive checkout instructions, sometimes despite paying substantial cleaning fees.

We support Airbnb’s efforts to prevent unreasonable demands such as stripping beds, laundering linen, deep-cleaning kitchens or undertaking professional cleaning tasks.

But washing the dishes you have used is not equivalent to cleaning an entire property.

Airbnb’s policy fails to make this important distinction.

Hosts should be able to establish reasonable, proportionate house rules that are clearly disclosed before a booking is made.

Guests who do not wish to undertake ordinary self-catering responsibilities should be free to choose accommodation offering a more comprehensive service.

What we are asking Airbnb to change

We call upon Airbnb to:

1. Reverse the restriction on washing up, allowing hosts to require guests to wash and put away dishes, cookware and utensils they have used.

2. Protect reasonable household waste arrangements, explicitly allowing hosts to require guests to place their rubbish in designated bins at the property.

3. Distinguish ordinary domestic responsibilities from professional cleaning, ensuring that reasonable self-catering expectations are not treated as excessive checkout chores.

4. Respect hosts’ autonomy, allowing reasonable house rules to be disclosed transparently before guests book.

5. Consult hosts meaningfully before introducing policies that materially affect the operation and economics of their properties.

A fair deal for hosts and guests

This petition is not about making guests clean properties.

It is about preserving a simple principle:

Guests should not be expected to clean somebody else’s home, but they should be expected to clean up after themselves.

That is a reasonable expectation in any self-catering property.

Airbnb’s success has been built on the willingness of hosts to open their homes to strangers. Those hosts deserve to be treated as partners whose practical experience and reasonable expectations matter.

We urge Airbnb to listen to its hosts, reconsider this policy and restore common sense to self-catering accommodation.

If you believe guests should wash the dishes they use and dispose of their rubbish responsibly, please sign and share this petition.

Let’s keep self-catering self-catering.