Improvements to guest reviews, house rules, cancellations & more in the latest Host Update

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Improvements to guest reviews, house rules, cancellations & more in the latest Host Update

*Post shared October, 20th

 

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In the latest Host Update, Catherine Powell shares how Airbnb is addressing your top concerns from the past few months and provides detailed answers to several direct questions from hosts. Thanks to host feedback voiced in workshops and here in the Community Center, there are several features being put into action. 

 

*To add or change subtitles to the video, hover over the video and click on the little 'Settings' wheel in the bottom right corner. Then select your language. 

 

Airbnb is improving the guest review process to make it feel more fair. This includes rewriting the majority of review questions that guests answer after a stay. For example, instead of asking guests if the description of a listing was inaccurate, we’re now asking if it was accurate instead. These changes will help guests leave reviews that feel more impartial and truly reflect the quality of your hospitality. 

 

Unauthorized parties are another top host concern, and we’re launching several new features to help protect you against them. For example, by the end of this month you’ll be able to immediately cancel a reservation without contacting support if you have valid reason to believe it will lead to a party. As long as your reason is upheld by our review team, you won’t receive financial penalties or have your Superhost status affected. 

 

When our team reviews a cancellation, they’ll search for evidence of a potential party from message threads or previous guest reviews. As always, these cancellations must adhere to Airbnb’s nondiscrimination policy and we’ll carefully monitor them for unfair treatment that violates that policy.

Many hosts have also asked that house rules be more prominent on listing pages so guests can both read and understand them before booking. By next month, your house rules will be visible in four different places when a guest books a stay:

  1. Key house rules—like not allowing smoking or pets—will be visible at the top of your listing page so that they’re more prominent as guests search
  2. All the house rules you’ve listed, including important safety disclosures, will be visible in the details of your listing page
  3. House rules will be displayed again on the booking confirmation page to help better ensure that guests understand and agree to them before completing a reservation
  4. They’ll also be included in the booking confirmation email to remind guests of your expectations before they arrive

All house rules must be in line with Airbnb’s policies and terms—including our terms of service and nondiscrimination policy.

 

To read a full overview of all the updates being put into place, visit this Resource Center article. As always, thank you for sharing the topics that matter to you and providing feedback that helps elevate the hosting community. Please let us know what you’d like us to cover in future Host Updates with Catherine.

282 Replies 282
Lisa1980
Level 3
Stowe, VT

@Catherine-PowellOn an unrelated topic, it would be super helpful if hosts could designate different cancellation policies for different times of the year. I reverted to STRICT after one July someone booked Christmas week, six months ahead and then canceled  on Dec. 17. . I don't necessarily always need STRICT but right now have no choice if I don't want that to happen again, right?  Thank you, Lisa

@Lisa1980 I do hope Airbnb listen to you here. @Scott is this possible to add into rule-sets? We will be reverting to our strict policy post the pandemic but don't really need this except for a few months of the summer and Christmas so could offer a more flexible solution for the rest of the year.

Laura2034
Level 2
Birch Bay, WA

We have on two occasions rented to guests who seemed fine initially on line and upon meeting them. Unfortunately, they caused a great deal of damage and we wanted to warn other hosts about them. But the review process makes it difficult to do so. I reported honestly in my first review and my husband was so concerned about retaliation from them that I pleaded with Airbnb to withdraw my review. They did, saying I could not post another, and that was fine except that I had no way to warn other hosts. The second disastrous guests I simply did not review, as there was nothing good to say and again we did not want to incur retaliation from people who knew our address and seemed like scammers. Airbnb should have a separate review system that is exclusive to hosts for hosts.

When I am a guest, I appreciate the various reviews to help me choose a place, but as a super host I know that I cannot always access true information about a potential guest. It puts us at risk.

A similar topic, I am currently hosting someone, they also have a reservation next month, and I don't want to have them again, not sure how I can cancel this without repercussions

Sheri73
Level 2
San Diego, CA

Hi AB&B community center 

It’s nice to meet you.

I always have a question regarding the value weight and proportion written by a one night stay versus a one month stay. 
for example. If you have a guest stayed for one month and gave you a 5 stars.  Later one guest stayed for one night gave you a 3 star.  Does that average out to be a 4 star?     
Thank you for reading my question. I appreciate your time and research.  I always wonder how AB&B average out reviews.  Thank you and wish everyone a happy and healthy weekend. 

Marcella69
Level 3
Claremont, CA

@Catherine-Powell Thank you for the advocacy regarding the house rules. I noticed in the last week that the rules are no longer at the top of the page as they used to be. They are now at the bottom. Also, I’m a host and a guest and in ju most recent guest trip booking, the confirmation email does not show the rules. Rather, there is a category lower in the email called “know what to expect,” with a hyperlink that says “house rules” to the right. Clicking this link brings me to the whole listing page, not the house rules, so again I am not seeing the rules unless I scroll to the bottom of the page.

 

This isn’t front and center as it should be and it doesn’t match what is mentioned and shown in the video.

 

Please update us in terms of this user experience, as the rules are harder to find than ever. Appreciate your time — thank you!

Sandra1925
Level 4
El Paso, TX

Oh no, I had not noticed.  I'll have to add them to my greeting. Hate to hear the support is over.

Rick3713
Level 2
Austin, TX

Hello, It was suggested that I try to contact @Catherine Powell. I need some help with a fake review from a user who did not stay in our hotel and promoted another hotel in a 1 star listing of ours. I was told the review would be taken down in 24 hours. A day later, Airbnb said it had "changed its mind". 

Rick Culleton
Lou-and-Keith0
Level 2
Bernards, NJ

Hi Catherine,

There is a big flaw in Airbnb review system that makes Airbnb infamous as paradise of scammers.

The fact is that one out ten guests there is a scammer looking for a free stay. It isn't a matter of them being unhappy with their stay- they want to stay for free, or give you a bad review that could stop all future booking. The supper hosts are their top target because you tend to pay them to keep the Supper title.

The review system applies ONLY to Hosts, not to guests because they can open a new account easily. These scammers will torture you till you have a nerve breaking down.

It is hard to fight scammers but Airbnb should at least reward Superhosts the right to remove a bad review, say per half year or every ten good reviews. But Airbnb did nothing! 

Shivram-Prasad0
Level 2
Hyderabad, India

I fully agree that Superhosts should have an option to remove 10% of reviews if they want to.

 

In India, the problem of free stays is not there but the threat of a bad review is very much present.

So much so that Airbnb hosting is no longer a fun thing. It is very stressful.

We continue because of it is a source of a much needed income and because of a lack of a strong competitor.

 

I have never seen any empathetic response from any of the Airbnb senior management to any posts in this forum.

 

Airbnb top management. Please wake up to this very genuine problem 

Árni9
Level 1
Hafnarfjordur, Iceland

Revenge reviews should not be allowed where it clearle says in the listing that complaints about apartment should be reported to host immitiately allowing him room for improvement 

 

Pets live on property. Guest should not be allowed full refund due to allergy to dogs or cats when it clearly says in listing that pets live on property. Had a case in the spring and airbnb agreed to full refund. Not acceptable I find

Marcella69
Level 3
Claremont, CA

The house rules updates from the video have not happened as far as I can see. I took a screenshot from the video. In the proposed change the house rules are moved back to the top of the listing. On my one listing they are not in that spot, but at the very bottom. What happened @Catherine Powell? 

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Lara220
Level 3
Queensland, Australia

Hi Catherine.  This has not been my experience at all!

 

My last guest guest made up lies to leave early then wrote a review saying their are hidden cameras and listening devices in my place. Airbnb allowed him to cancel and gave him a refund without discussing this with me despite my super host status and outstanding previous reviews. I called to ask for the review to be removed as it is libellous and was told that they can't remove it or "mediate" In addition my account has been suspended. Airbnb have still not contacted me or removed the review. My account is suspended, until I remove the cameras and listening devises that do not exist?

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