Do I have to include my cleaning fee in my holiday let price?

If every guest has to pay it, yes. Since 6 April 2025 the DMCC Act has required the headline price to include all mandatory charges, and legal summaries of the rules name mandatory cleaning charges as an example. You can fold the cost into your nightly rate or show a full total for the guest's dates.

Does a Facebook post with a nightly price count?

Yes. An invitation to purchase is any communication that gives the main features of what you are selling and its price so a customer can decide to book. A social post, a WhatsApp reply or an email quote with a price in it all count.

What is the fine for drip pricing in the UK?

The CMA can fine a business up to £300,000 or 10% of its global annual turnover, whichever is higher, without going to court. The first fine under the new powers, in April 2026, was £4.2 million for a £3 booking fee left out of the headline price.

Is a pet fee a mandatory charge?

Usually not. A guest without a dog does not pay it, so it is a genuine optional extra. Show it clearly on the listing so guests travelling with pets see it before they book.

Do I need to include the Edinburgh visitor levy in my price?

Taxes are mandatory charges, so the levy belongs in the total. Edinburgh's levy is 5% of the accommodation cost for up to five consecutive nights, on stays from 24 July 2026 booked on or after 1 October 2025. Where you cannot calculate it in advance, you must explain how it is worked out as prominently as the price.

Are refundable security deposits covered by the rules?

The legal summaries reviewed for this guide do not single them out. Because a deposit is returned, it is not part of the price in the usual sense, but you should state the amount and the refund terms clearly before booking and take advice if you are unsure.

Holiday Let Cleaning Fees and Drip Pricing Rules UK

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Overview

If you add a cleaning fee to your holiday let at the end of a booking, the way you show your price may no longer be legal. Since 6 April 2025, UK consumer law has required businesses to put every unavoidable charge into the price a customer first sees, and the regulator has started issuing fines. This guide explains what the rules say, how they apply to cleaning fees, linen charges, pet fees, deposits and visitor levies, and what to change on your listings this winter.

This is general information, not legal advice. If your pricing is complicated or you run a large portfolio, take advice from a solicitor who works in consumer law.

What changed in April 2025

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (the DMCC Act) brought in new rules on price transparency from 6 April 2025. The core requirement is simple: any "invitation to purchase" must show the total price, including all mandatory fees, taxes and charges the customer has to pay to buy the product.

An invitation to purchase is any communication that gives the product's main features and its price so that a customer can decide whether to book. For a holiday let that covers far more than your listing page. It includes your own website, a Facebook or Instagram post with a price in it, a WhatsApp reply to an enquiry, an email quote, and a listing on a booking platform. Each one has to comply.

How the rules apply to common holiday let charges

The test for each charge is whether a guest can genuinely choose not to pay it and still stay. If they cannot, it belongs in the headline price.

Charge	Usually mandatory?	What to do
Cleaning fee charged on every stay	Yes	Include it in the total for the dates shown
Linen and towel charge, if guests cannot bring their own	Yes	Include it
Linen hire where bringing your own is a real option	Usually optional	Show it as an extra, clearly
Booking or admin fee	Yes	Include it
Visitor levy or tourist tax	Yes, it is a tax	Include it, or explain how it is calculated
Pet fee	Optional for guests without pets	Show it as an extra, clearly
Hot tub, log basket or late checkout add-ons	Optional if genuinely chosen	Show as extras
Energy surcharge on every booking	Yes	Include it
Refundable damage deposit	Not addressed in the summaries we reviewed	State it clearly and early, and take advice

The CMA's final guidance tightened the meaning of mandatory. A linen charge with an "opt out" that almost nobody can use in practice is unlikely to be treated as optional.

The cleaning fee in practice

A per-stay cleaning fee makes the nightly rate look lower than the real cost, especially on short stays. A £60 clean on a two-night weekend adds £30 a night; on a seven-night stay it adds under £9. That is exactly why showing it separately at the end looks like drip pricing.

There are three practical ways to comply:

Fold the cleaning cost into your nightly rate. This is the simplest fix and the one most guests understand. Raise short-stay rates slightly more than long-stay rates if you want to keep the economics the same.

Show the full total for the guest's dates. If your booking system calculates a total for specific dates, make that total the headline, with the breakdown underneath.

Set a minimum-stay price. If you only take bookings of three nights or more, quote the three-night total including cleaning, rather than a per-night figure without it.

What you should not do is advertise a nightly rate in a post or listing and reveal the cleaning fee only once the guest has chosen dates.

Holiday Let Cleaning Fees and the Total Price Rules: A UK Host Guide

Overview

What changed in April 2025

Tell hosts what you are looking for

Why hosts should take it seriously now

How the rules apply to common holiday let charges

The cleaning fee in practice

Visitor levies and tourist taxes

Check every place your price appears

Pricing tactics that still work under the rules

A five-minute audit for this winter

Frequently asked questions

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