Airbnb Host Desperately Need Help

[Hadrian1]

Hi. I am a superhost with over 4000 reviews.

I am a professional host and I make a living by managing Airbnb rentals.

It has been a hard year for everyone, especially when you make a living from Airbnb.

The worst part is, Airbnb supposed to be your ally and assist you. But Airbnb reps only listen to the guest and never even gave me the opportunity for a fair trial. I have requested to speak to my supervisor many times, and never got replied.

I give you few examples:

1. A guest claimed that he got bit by bed bugs in my home. The guest submitted a doctor's note to Airbnb showing that the guest got bit by an insect. Without consulting me, the guest was awarded a full refund and my listing was deactivated. I had to call the pest control company to provide an inspection (at my cost) and show that my property is clear from bed bugs and insects. But regardless, the guest has been fully refunded. The guest could have gotten bit by anything. An insect bite can be fleas, ticks, mosquitos, and the guest can bit anywhere, in the park, on the grass, etc. It is unfair that the guest got a full refund by this allegation.

2. A guest book a room for his son. The son used drugs in our home and invite homeless people to the house. We got threatened by the homeless/criminal that he does not want to leave. We called the mother who is in another country. The mother apologized and admitted on the AIRBNB APP that the son has a substance abuse problem. We had to call the police and change all the locks in the house. We submit a resolution request for damages two days later which the mother refused to pay. We escalate the matter to Airbnb and Airbnb replied: because we accepted other guests in the house it was hard to determine who invited the homeless. For that reason, the reps say it is against Airbnb policy to claim the insurance. The rep then closed the case. Once your case is closed, you can not even communicate with the rep anymore. It is unfair and the denial excuse does not make any sense. The mother admitted all fault that was done by her son on the Airbnb app.

3. A trans woman booked to stay in our home. This person invited unauthorized guest, smokes marijuana inside the room and smell the whole house, get drunk, pee on the floor, and start being hostile, and much more. We called the police but the police will not remove the guest until the reservation got canceled. We called Airbnb and I was put on hold for over one hour and thirty minutes and the call got disconnected. We called Airbnb again, and the support ambassador could not help unless putting us on hold again until a case manager or someone from trust and safety team picks up the phone. The immediate action that the support ambassador could do is to do cancellation by host. Because the situation with the guest escalated and the police could not act until the reservation got cancelled, we had no choice to agree. We prioritized our safety and the other guest's safety. The guest was refunded in full and our calendar was blocked. To put more salts to the wound, the Airbnb rep contacted us because we call the guest with the pronoun "he", we discriminated against a Trans Woman and my account is being noted for violation. This person has a male gender name, masculine look, and in the heat of argument we call her by "he".  I tried to explain to the rep that I am a gay man and we don't have any intention to discriminate. I ask the Airbnb rep to consider the whole situation and he replied essentially say it does not matter what the guest did nor how she behaved in the house, but the fact that we mistakenly call him by a he was enough for us to be penalized. 

4. A guest claimed that our room has an odor. The guest contacted the Airbnb rep asking for a full refund after 5 night stays and the Rep immediately sent us an email saying that we are in violation for not providing a cleanroom. I told the rep why did the guest had to wait for 5 nights and then ask for a refund? We asked if we can go to the room to check the source of the odor and the guest refused. We have 5 stars average rating in cleanliness. The guest has 0 reviews. I asked the rep to be fair to us and to our reputation history. The rep replied cockily that we are in violation and that his decision was final. I told the rep if the room truly has an odor why are we not allowed to check the room? The rep then added a new allegation saying that we lied about our amenity and that we did not provide internet service. I said that is not true. I sent a screenshot of our internet speed. I also ask the rep to contact our other Airbnb guests in the same property to see if they can connect to our wifi. No one has an issue connecting to our wifi. We offered to help the guest connect to the wifi in which the guest refused. If the guest truly has a wifi issue, why are we not allowed to help? But regardless, Airbnb noted our account again for violation in cleanliness and no internet. I requested to speak to a supervisor, and until today, no replied.

I have much much more stories where we, the host, with over 4000 reviews and have hosted 6000 guests treated like garbage by Airbnb reps. Every week a new insult and humiliation by Airbnb reps. Airbnb rep continues to become our prosecutors and the judge. The host is not given a chance for a fair trial. Airbnb reps can simply close the case and your communication stop. I have advocated for Airbnb. We are a responsible host that follow the law, respect our neighbors, and only try to make a living. I don't understand why Airbnb treated us so poorly.

I am desperate. I have multiple jobs, and my primary income is doing Airbnb. But there is only so much more I can take from Airbnb reps. Thank you for reading my post. Please if you know anyone that can provide justice to me, please let me know. Thank you.

[Helen3]

Hello  @Hadrian1 

Sorry to hear about your experiences.

1. I would have submitted a claim through Airbnb for the guest to pay for the costs of having your place inspected and if you were booked up the costs of the two weeks you had to stay closed.

2.  One of the reasons Airbnb doesn't allow third party bookings such as the one you accepted is that there is no vetting of the guest who is staying. Another reason for you not to accept them is that Airbnb doesn't have to accept claims against it's guarantee if you accept a booking outside of it's T&CS.

3. I am sorry you have such a difficult guest. Where you live do you have to ask the police to intervene if it's a guest in your home or can you evict yourself once the booking is cancelled?. I agree Airbnb need to be able to be more prompt in these situations.

4. I would ask Airbnb to reinvestigate this one as it clearly states in its terms that guests should alert the host to any issues within 24 hours and only turn to Airbnb if the issue can't be resolved with the host.

You seem to have unfortunately had a number of problem guests. Would it be worth you reviewing how you vet guests before accepting their bookings?