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The owner of a Harry Potter-themed rental home has shared her disbelief and sadness after it was trashed so badly it resembled “a crime scene”.
Sadie, the host of the property in Watford, Hertfordshire, had painstakingly transformed the rental property into a dream home for Harry Potter fans, complete with themed rooms, props and games.
After sharing updates about the property on TikTok, which was available to rent via Booking.com and Airbnb, she revealed that a guest had wrecked the property leaving her with £5,000 worth of damage.
Following the guest’s departure, Sadie returned to discover frozen chips scattered across the floor, a smashed TV covered in bleach, furniture upturned or missing, shattered glass and broken floating lanterns.
Bespoke Harry Potter items were also either damaged or misplaced.
A knife was also left by the window and traces of cannabis were found, while the bed sheets and mattress were smeared with a brown substance the owner eventually identified as being cocoa butter and coffee that she said resembled a “crime scene”.
Sharing video footage of the destruction online, she said: “The most heartbreaking thing – how can someone be so cruel to do this to a place which was thoughtfully made to make people smile? They have literally trashed the entire place.”
She added that the guest booked her property through Booking.com, who she claimed “refused to help with the damages”.
After checking out of the property, Sadie said the guest messaged her to say: “Sorry for the damage and this is my postcode”.
She added: “I can’t name and shame them because that’s going against GDPR and putting this person at risk”.
After clearing up the worst of the mess herself, Sadie enlisted the help of professional cleaners to assist with the clean-up effort.
The clip has attracted more than 15 million views with fellow TikTok users aghast at the mess left by the guest.
“Makes my blood boil – sorry to see this,” wrote one user, while another commented: “I’d be taking this guest to civil court. This is so disrespectful.”
In a statement to The Independent, a Booking.com spokesperson said: “We do not tolerate destructive behaviour and we are sorry to hear about any damage caused to the property.
“Regarding this case, we are conducting a thorough investigation and will cooperate with local authorities or law enforcement and if necessary, block the responsible customer from our platform.
“To safeguard against such incidents, we recommend that property owners obtain relevant insurance policies before listing online and set a damage deposit.”
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