Proving smoke odour at Airbnb: professional invoice required
Proving smoke odour at Airbnb: professional invoice required
Since April 2026 Airbnb requires a professional invoice for smoke odour. Your own description is no longer enough.
Odour cannot be photographed. So the claim rests on two things: a professional record of the removal, and proof the flat was odour-free before the stay.
Airbnb Host Damage Protection Terms, April 2026 versionIn 60 seconds
Airbnb has required a professional invoice for smoke odour claims since April 2026. Your own description, or a photo of the ashtray, is not enough.
Odour is not visible damage. The proof therefore consists of the professional remediation, not a picture of the condition.
Instruct the professional immediately, not after Airbnb decides. The reporting deadline keeps running in parallel.
The invoice should name the treatment, such as ozone treatment or textile cleaning, and identify the property clearly.
The second half of the proof is often forgotten: that the flat was odour-free before the stay. Hosts who capture the condition at every turnover can show it.
What Airbnb requires
Smoke odour claims must be evidenced by a professional invoice. Evidence must be true and not falsified. This is a platform rule, not law.
What the proof consists of
| Part | Evidence |
|---|---|
| The odour exists | professional invoice for the remediation |
| It is new | documented condition before the stay |
| It came from this stay | filed within the deadline, before the next guest |
The deadlines are covered in Airbnb damage deadlines; what else changed is in Airbnb evidence rules 2026.
Common mistakes
Since April 2026 a claim without a professional invoice is routinely rejected.
The deadline keeps running. Instruct immediately and submit the invoice afterwards.
Without a documented condition before the stay, it stays open whether the odour is new.
What to do next
Instruct a professional immediately and keep the invoice. Do it with BildProof, about two minutes a room →
File within the deadline even if the invoice is still outstanding.
Capture the odour-free condition at every guest turnover.
Frequently asked questions
What should the invoice show?
It should name the treatment carried out, such as ozone treatment or textile and upholstery cleaning, plus the date, the property address and the amount. The more clearly it ties to the flat and the period, the stronger it is.
What if the invoice is not ready yet?
File within the deadline anyway and submit the invoice afterwards. The deadline ends 14 days after checkout or when the next guest checks in, whichever comes first, and it does not wait for your contractor.
How do I show the flat did not smell before?
Odour itself cannot be captured, but the condition of the flat can. If you record the condition at every guest turnover, you can show there was no sign of smoking and that the cleaning had been done as normal.
This page gives general information as at the date shown. It does not replace legal advice on an individual case.