Hi All,
I’ve been a committed host on Airbnb for nearly four years and have consistently provided a great experience for my guests with 46 positive reviews to date. Unfortunately I’ve just had my first bad experience with a guest and I feel completely let down by Airbnb and the way they have handled this situation.
On arrival the guest said everything was “amazing.” I even checked in with her to make sure she was happy and had no issues she didn’t respond. Then 36 hours later I suddenly received a message saying she had to check out due to “safety concerns” claiming the property was poorly maintained and not as described. Her reasons kept changing throughout the process.
She submitted a partial refund request for half her stay but failed to provide any evidence to support her claims. I however submitted clear video evidence showing that the TVs she said were broken worked perfectly (they are WiFi-based which also proved the WiFi was working throughout the property). I also submitted WiFi speed tests to back this up. Despite this Airbnb has allowed the guest to leave a damaging 1-star review my only one out of 46 which is clearly retaliatory because her refund request was denied.
What has frustrated me the most is Airbnb’s handling of this. I was reassured all week by multiple agents that I had done nothing wrong that the review would be taken care of and that I had nothing to worry about. A senior case manager even confirmed on the phone that I was not at fault and that the review would be removed. Yet when the time came Airbnb reviewed the case in just five minutes and chose not to remove the review despite all the facts, evidence and the guest providing none.
The review itself is inconsistent and contains proven falsehoods. The guest rated cleanliness a 4 but claimed flies were “dropping from the ceiling”?! She stated the property is not suitable for families although multiple previous family guests have left glowing feedback. She also claimed to have reported me to Trading Standards (a threat) yet I was never informed of any complaint or given the opportunity to address her concerns as she chose to leave without prior notice.
To make matters worse the guest left the property in a disgusting state and even left uncooked food in the oven requiring additional cleaning.
What I find completely unacceptable is the repeated false reassurance I received from Airbnb all week. I was explicitly told I was not at fault and that this would be resolved in my favour. Airbnb failed to follow through and has now left me to deal with the consequences of a false and damaging review despite all the evidence clearly supporting my case. There are multiple errors in the review which in themselves violate Airbnb’s own review policy.
Hosts deserve honesty and fair treatment especially when we do everything by the book and provide clear evidence to defend ourselves. I am incredibly disappointed in the way I have been treated. Every time you call they thank you for being a Superhost but when you genuinely need support they don’t provide it.
Has anyone else experienced this? I would really appreciate hearing how others have managed similar cases.
Thank you.
