How to photograph a holiday rental or hotel room when you arrive, so you are not blamed for damage that was already there

• On arrival, before you unpack, cook or use the bathroom. Once your things are spread around, it is harder to tell what was there before you.
• If you find something that is not as the listing described, such as a broken lock, a burn on the sofa or a mouldy shower, tell the host or the front desk the same hour and keep the message.
• At checkout, take a second quick set after you have tidied up and before you hand back the keys.

1. The front door and the number or name of the unit, so the set is tied to the right place.

2. Each room once from the doorway, so it is seen whole. Switch the lights on first.

3. Close-ups of anything damaged or dirty: marks on walls and ceilings, stains on the bed linen, sofa or carpet, chips on tiles, basins or worktops, scratched furniture, cracked glass, burn marks, missing or broken items.

4. A second photo a little further back for each close-up, so it is clear where in the room it is.

5. The bathroom and kitchen: taps, drains, seals, hobs and the oven, the fridge, and any mould or limescale.

6. Items the host may list as inventory or charge for: the TV and remote, keys and key cards, bed linen and towels, furniture and appliances.

7. Anything that does not work: the air conditioner, the heating, the hot water, the Wi-Fi router. Photograph the screen, the display or the error.

A slow walk-through video is a useful extra: it shows the layout and that nothing was left out. Keep it short and steady, and say the date and the address at the start. Keep the photos too, because they are sharper and easier to attach to a message or a form.

• For a holiday rental, tell the host through the booking platform's own message system if there is one, so the message is on the booking record, and say what you found and when you found it. The platform's resolution process is the one that will see it.
• For a hotel, tell the front desk and ask for the room to be changed or the damage to be noted on your record. Ask for the name of the person you spoke to.
• Keep the message thread and the photos together. Reply in writing even if the host answers by phone.

Do not wait until checkout: photos produced only at the end, with no message beforehand, are easier to doubt.

The iPhone Camera saves the date, time and, if Location Services is on for the Camera, the coordinates in each photo's hidden data. That data is often removed when photos go through a chat app, a booking platform or an email client, and the person reading the dispute may never see it.

Check that the phone's date, time and time zone are set automatically, especially after a flight. Never edit a photo in a way that changes how the damage looks, and keep the originals on your phone, not only copies sent through a chat app. A date printed on the picture itself stays visible wherever the file ends up.

Walk through the same order, from the same spots: each room from the doorway, the bed, the bathroom, the kitchen, the keys on the table. If you broke something by accident, say so, take a photo and offer to pay. It is easier to settle than to be found out.

Keep the photos and the messages for as long as the platform's or hotel's claim window runs, which differs by company and country. Check your booking terms.