Catherine’s Host Update: reviews, party ban policy, and more

[Catherine-Powell]

Hi everyone,

I’m happy to be sharing a new Host update with you, which has important news about a topic I know is top of mind for many of you—reviews—along with news from our Host Advisory Board, about sustainability and introducing a new board member. (Welcome to the board, Pam!)

We’ve been listening closely to your feedback on our review system—specifically to how they relate to our party ban policy. For reviews written from today on, reviews from guests who violate our party ban will be eligible for removal. You shouldn’t have to trade off between reporting a party and getting dinged with a negative review. We want to close that gap. 

This is just the first step. We’ll continue to listen to you and work to shape our policies to better support you and our whole community. 

I’ll be in touch again soon with more updates. In the meantime, stay well, and happy hosting!

All my best,

Catherine

[Dani10]

Agreed - this process has always bothered me. I have avoided asking guests to pay for damaged items for fear of a retaliatory review.

[Helen744]

I agree.

[Chris2055]

I had a guest violate max occupancy of 4 guests, with 9 guests, who smoked which is a no-no in our place. Broke a TV, and then tried to come back in while I was cleaning without face masks, so I closed & locked the door since they already checked out ( late with no permission for late checkout).  The guest writes a review  , " Owner doesn't like black people ". AirBnb allowed that review to stand .  I would have removed any guest for doing half of what this guest did. I asked AirBnb to remove that comment, AirBnb refused .

[Brady---Shae0]

@Catherine-Powell  I do not use your platform anymore because you REFUSED to remove a revenge review we got, after a group of people threw a party and completely trashed my home. 

After 7 years on your platform with nothing but 5 star reviews, you treated me like with such disregard it was shocking.

I sent over photo documentation of all of the damage, plus the revenge review. I was offered a measly $100 for damage totaling over $800, and a refusal to remove the 2 star review. I spent countless hours on the phone and over chat with your "support" (if you can call it that) to just be consistently hung up on, or the chat ended after the case was deemed "closed."

I was never made whole, and we have since moved to VRBO.

Airbnb is a truly horrible company now. 

[JD29]

@Catherine-Powell Love it! Thank you for any improvements made.  Let's all keep the good work. JD

[Catherine-Powell]

Hi @JD29,

Thank you for your kind words! Every update and change we make is just one part of an ever evolving product improvement for our Host community. We're always grateful to hear your feedback as we continue to grow together.

Best,
Catherine

[JD29]

You are very welcome! Pascale and I are really proud to be part of this community. All the associates we talked to on the phone or via the app have been wonderful. The response time has been great too. Thank you again for all Airbnb team work.

Best,

JD

[Check-InOut0]

Very good! Best Regards from Barcelona. 

[Gilly17]

Fantastic news! Even though,  before this, I have found airbnb to be very supportive, when I have found myself in this sort of  situation.

[Genie0]

Thank you for listening to the hosts that encounter problems with guests that do not read the House Rules thoroughly and yet book. They do not realize that it is contract and that all must be adhered too. 

I, too, have had a problem with third-party bookings, specifically contractors, where contracting companies book for employees and allow employees to provide host feedback. This is unacceptable and must be remedied immediately. I think AirBnB should ask if it is third-party booking, whether contractors or people simply booking for others. This needs to be minimized.

[Helen744]

**[Comment removed in line with the Airbnb Nondiscrimination Policy]

[Sarah977]

@Helen744  Sorry to hear you are having these issues. Do you really need to accept these 3rd party bookings from these agencies? Why not just stick to tegular bookings? (Okay, I realize that Covid rules have made vacation bookings a no-go for the present, but I'm talking in general terms)

As far as "diabolical things with used toilet paper such as filling the waste paper bins", there is nothing diabolical about that. There are many places in the world where toilet paper can't be flushed and must be put in the wastebasket. So if you have guests from other cultures who are used to doing things a different way,  you need to explain to them when they check in that the paper can and should be flushed in your country.

And they may forget for the first little while, because it's not a conscious process- I dare say if you went to a place where the t.p. needed to go in the basket, you would forget and flush it for awhile, because it's the normal habit for you to do without thinking about it.

[Helen744]

Hi Sarah, not sure by what you mean about accepting "these types of bookings ." most guests are new to me . I just mentioned some instances I personally have had to deal with. Since I am not in the toilet with my guests but often cleaning a week later then these issues are not actually able to be dealt with in the way you suggest.Since Covid lockdown when we had no guests at all in Australia our rate has now picked up but we cannot afford to reject guests for projected thought. We manage as it falls to our lot to be as kind and charitable as we can and sometimes a little coercive without being offensive. At others we simply leave people alone.Previously we had many people of many diversities but international tourists are now negligible and we cater mostly to work groups and families.,during winter which is coming here we prefer a work group long term and provide weekly cleaning . That is the general nature of our business here.If we rejected any groups we would be out of business

[Sarah977]

@Helen744 

By "these types of bookings" I meant the 3rd party bookings made by a company for its workers. It's a common problem for hosts with those sorts of bookings that the house rules and other information isn't conveyed to the guests they are booking for.

But it seems you need to take those in order to get rentals, as regular tourism isn't happening these days.

[Helen744]

I have insisted that work groups in fact all groups provide adequate id as per our governments covid rules but really Ithink some of these bookings do not fall within the airbnb communities purlieu as the booker does not stay as a guest and therefore manages to side step any responsibility.I would prefer to not take them but I get blindsided and I am not sure about the approach that these groups take. They need to be brought into the general airbnb community in a much more transparent fashion. The great fear and concern here is that these workers are being charged for their accomodation from their wages and without us knowing exactly who is responsible. I think I do lose these bookings because I insist on knowing who exactly is in my house and I meet them if they have not booked before and make sure that they have my number in case something should occur at the house. The booker is playing "russian roulette 'with hosts. They have  reviews from the guests which they use to book and hosts do not flag that this apparent person is not the person who stayed at the house.