Managing Your Vacation Rental

Providing your guests’ safety as well as comfort

Written by Elizabeth Weedon
5/5 - (3 votes)

Pandemic or not, emergencies can arise at a rental home anytime. With minimal effort, vacation rental hosts can make a critical difference in helping save a guest’s life.

A Landline Could Be a Lifeline

There are a number of compelling reasons to provide a landline in your rental home. For starters, although cell service on the Cape and Islands has improved considerably, it’s still not 100% reliable, particularly in certain “dead spots.” And cell phones are always running out of batteries!

Although a landline adds to your Comcast bill, the bundled cost isn’t very high. You can choose a local area measured service, which is less expensive than a regular line and blocks long distance calls while allowing local and emergency ones. Some homeowners even mention in their leases that local and emergency phone service is provided, but the tenant must agree to either use their cell phones for calls outside of the area or agree to pay any additional charges.

When 911 is dialed from land line, the caller is directly connected to the call center, and their exact location is automatically provided. This is important if the caller is unable to speak or to provide the exact location of the home because they are a child or visitor. Naturally, even an adult is bound to be under a lot of stress when making a 911 call.

Reminding them of their location

Whether you provide a land line for your guests or not, it’s very important to post the exact address and/or location of your rental property. So, post your location and any special directions to the house in an obvious place where they can’t be missed in an emergency. You should have your own phone number there for emergencies as well.

First Aid Kits

It’s a good idea to provide your guests with a basic first aid kit of some kind. But store it in a place not easily accessible to young children.

Here are some items to include:
• BandAids of different sizes
• A roll of gauze
• Sterile pads
• Antibiotic ointment
• Adhesive tape
• Aspirin
• Ibuprofen and/or acetaminophen
• Tecnu (for poison ivy)
• Antacids

With all the effort you put into making your home beautiful, clean, and comfortable, don’t forget to also provide the lifelines needed to assure your guests’ safety.

About the author

Elizabeth Weedon

Elizabeth Weedon - Although I’ve worked for WeNeedaVacation.com since 2008, I’ve been a loyal homeowner on the site since early 1998, just a few months after the website was launched by the Talmadges. I grew up summering on the Vineyard and managed my family's rental home there since the mid-1980’s. I’m passionately devoted to the Vineyard – and to WeNeedaVacation, which I credit with enabling me to hold onto the special property that has been in our family for nearly a century. An enthusiastic member of the WNAV Homeowner Support Team, I endeavor to keep my finger on the pulse of the Cape and Islands vacation rental industry so that I can provide homeowners advice about how to ensure their booking success with us. With owner Joan Talmadge, I am also responsible for editing and writing much of the text on our website, our monthly newsletters, and Homeowner Blog posts.

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