VRBO/ HomeAway, Inc. and Mike Palmer Beg Bugs at Mike Palmer's Sandy Bottom house at 1351 Tahiti Drive, Sanibel Island, Florida 33957 rented via VRBO. Several issues, but the main one is BEG BUGS, which required medical attention. Austin TX

We (Six total family members) rented Mike Palmer’s (p 305-793-6914 email mike@mpalmer.us) Sandy Bottom house located at 1351 Tahiti Drive, Sanibel Island, Florida 33957, from Tuesday, June 16th, through Sunday, June 21.   During our stay we encountered a number of issues with the property.

 On the first night 6/16, we drove our vehicle to the beach and parked in the designated Trade Winds parking lot with the parking pass hanging in the rear view mirror as indicated on the pass.   Upon returning to our vehicle, a note was placed on our windshield stating that our vehicle information had been recorded, and we would be towed if we parked there again.  I contacted owner Mike Palmer, who was responsive to our issue.  He called the board members of the association to relay what happened. 

 Some other issues with the property included…

 ii. dirty utensils (Mr. Palmer said that was unacceptable, and he would work with the cleaning person)

iii. flies in the curtains of the master bedroom.

iv. cable did not work in the master bedroom and the family room.   It did work in the second master bedroom and kids’ bedroom.  Mr. Palmer stated in an email that he would follow up with Comcast, but we did not have cable on those t.v.s during our staff.   I mentioned this in an email and again when I spoke to Mr. Palmer on the phone.  

v. shower curtain in the master bathroom was moldy.  Mr. Palmer ordered a new shower curtain via Amazon that I put up on Friday, June 19th after it arrived.

vi. Mold was also in the master bathroom.

vii. the children’s bikes were rusted and did not work.  My ten-year-old could not turn the bike because it was rusted, and when I tried to adjust the seat it would not move because of the rust. Mr. Palmer said in the email that there was lubricant in the garage, to which I emailed him that I had already used the lubricant.   I once again addressed this with Mike when he called me on Sunday, June 21.  Mr. Palmer described the bikes as being in “tip top shape” and “ready for touring”.   I told Mr. Palmer about this verbiage, to which he said, “I’ll work on that.”   My kids were disappointed that they could not use the bikes.  

 viii. When Mr. Palmer emailed us our confirmation on May 27th, he sent an attachment stating that we could purchase a membership at the Sanibel Recreation Center, but when we arrived, the center told us that the vast majority of items on the sheet were not available because of Covid 19.  In fact, they were closed when Mr. Palmer emailed us.  

 ix. The two bigger lawn chairs that we took to the beach were broken. Probably rusted from the saltwater.    Mr. Palmer offered to reimburse us if we purchased replacement chairs, but I told him that there were other chairs in the garage that we could use.  

 X. When my wife hung her bathing suit on one of the chairs, the rust stained the suit (see pictures). 

 Xi.  In the kitchen, I noticed a puddle coming from the garbage can.  Upon further inspection, I realized that the bottom of the garbage can was cracked, causing the leak.  The top of the garbage can was also cracked.  I informed Mr. Palmer of this during our conversation on 6/21, to which he said, “It’s an old garbage can.  I’ll replace it.”   

 Xii. On Friday, June 19th, Traci Bookler noticed bugs on the ceiling in the second master bedroom.  There were about 10 bugs that I killed.  We only took a picture after the fact, but we suspect that the bugs might be termites.    I informed Mr. Palmer about this during a conversation on the phone.  

 I emphasized with Mr. Palmer being a property owner as I have managed property for family members.  

During our stay Person 1, Person 2, Person 3 and Person 4 developed severe itching, but we first attributed it to being bit by bugs outside.  On Monday, June 22, and Tuesday, June 23, the itching continued and the welts did not go away, so  Person 1 and Person 2 sought medical attention and were diagnosed with bed bugs.  They were injected with a steroid shot and prescribed three different medications.   Person 3 was also diagnosed by a doctor with bed bugs and prescribed medicine.   Our dog also had to go to a vet to get medicine. 

 We are asking for a full refund for our stay as well as any medical expenses incurred as a result of the bed bugs from staying at Mike Palmer’s Sandy Bottom. VRBO has been unresponsive to our complaint, including receiving an email asking us for pictures and documentation when we had previously sent that information to them.  A representative at VRBO told us that others who had stayed at the same location also had bed bugs.  Why didn’t VRBO remove the listing from their site?

All of the above has been completed to the best of our knowledge.  

Best regards,