Filing a complaint against a host

[Dora441]

I have run into a huge issue with a host.  I stayed at their cottage over the weekend in Saratoga Springs.  It was a lovely cottage but I ran into a problem with the owner of the cottage within 24 hours of my stay.   She accused me (yes accuse is the perfect word for this) of bringing my dog on property.  I DID NOT BRING MY DOG.  My dog was with my ex husband.  She almost kicked us out and I had to convince her that I DID NOT BRING MY DOG.  At the end of my stay, I sent her a private email asking her to explain why she was so unprofessional.  She did not respond for 3 days.  I then posted my review on the site again stating that I DID NOT BRING MY DOG. She responded me by telling me I was a liar and DID BRING MY DOG.

I need to escalate this.  Can someone help? 

Thank you.

Dora

[Anonymous]

@Dora441  You already expressed your complaint, in the form of a review and review response. If you aren't being asked to pay anything extra for the dog, I don't see what your problem is.

The host left you a positive review, which you could have chosen to leave as-is, and future hosts would be none the wiser. But you bafflingly chose to post a n utterly unhinged response, which of course leads the viewer to cross-check the review that you posted which is roughly the length of a Tolstoy novel.

If this incident prevents you from ever booking an Airbnb again, it's only because your own words portray you in an extremely unflattering light. I don't know or care whether you actually took your dog or not, but based on the way you communicated in the reviewing process, I would not trust your account to be credible. 

[Dora441]

@Anonymous Call me what you like but I'm not a liar.  And her Tolstoy length response says a lot about who she is  as an owner and a human. I do not break house rules and I respect the guidelines set forth by the owner.  All I wanted from her was an explanation as to why she though I had my pet with me and an apology would have been nice.  She did nothing and chose to ignore my DM.

[Mark116]

@Dora441  Yes it does, it shows that she is professional, sensible and compassionate.  She had ended up giving you a good public review, choosing as she said to take the high road and never mentioning the dog issue.  It was your extremely long rant that prompted her to defend herself in her response, the fact that this issue has now been made public is completely a result of your own actions.  I'm not sure why you believe you are owed an apology, when she says that she has checked twice with the witness who saw the dog, it is perfectly reasonable that she would credit a neighbor she knows well more than a total stranger. 

Also, I'm  not sure what you want by any 'escalation' the host said in her response that she  had already involved airbnb before she called you, she has a witness who saw a dog on the property, at best it would be some kind of misunderstanding, so I'm unclear what your goal would be, the host did not ask you for any additional  money or cancel  your stay.

[Dora441]

@Mark116 her review of me was not how she really felt.  She just didn't want to ruin her perfect review status.  Oh and by the way I did not bring my dog to her property.  Thank you for your feedback.🙂

[Mark116]

@Dora441  What does it matter how she 'really' felt?  You can't change that.  

[Emilia42]

@Dora441 I don't think you understand how the Airbnb review process works. There is no "She didn't want to ruin her perfect review status." A host has no control over that regardless of what type of review is submitted about the guest. YOU ruined her review status. The host left you completely unscathed. Perhaps because she didn't let her "feelings" of a misunderstanding get in the way.  Aren't there more pressing matters out there to worry about right now?!

[Anonymous]

@Dora441  Here is the entirety of the text of what the host wrote in her review of you that is publicly visible:

  "Dora was a fine guest; left our space as she found it"

This is not in any way tantamount to calling you a liar, which you seem to have some kind of complex about. She did comment more extensively in her response to your deranged review, which is understandable as she had to defend her livelihood against your accusations. Her explanation of why she believed you had a pet with you is quite thorough; basically, she found the report from her trusted neighbor to be more credible than yours.  Regardless of which party was being truthful, the host doesn't owe you an apology or any further explanation. 

You have nothing to gain from involving Airbnb or any other party in this unnecessary drama; I can only suggest that you let it go and move on.

[Dora441]

@Anonymous I will leave it alone with you for as you were not a party to her very nasty call to me when she first inquired about the dog.   I gave her a chance to work it out with me privately. She chose not to. Adios. 

[Anonymous]

@Dora441 You already expressed your opinion about the host's communication in your review. The stay is over, so the matter is settled. One phone call that made you feel a thing doesn't make you a victim of injustice. 

[Danielle476]

Seriously this guest seems like a nightmare. 

[Dora441]

@Danielle476 on the contrary.  But I did not pay over $1,000 for 3 nights  to be treated like garbage.  And if am going to be accused of something I 100% did not do, I am going to fight back.  I would think you would do the same thing if you were accused of something you know you were not a party to.

I am leaving this alone now.  I had my say.  My story has not changed.  It never will. I did not bring my dog and I had every right to share this in my review.  That's what reviews are for.  Thank you for your feedback though.  😀

[Anonymous]

@Dora441  You've completely missed the point. Not a single person here cares whether you took your dog or not. You've shown yourself in your own words to be a thoroughly unpleasant and vindictive person who can't be trusted not to make a huge drama when something goes wrong. 

Plenty of hosts are happy to welcome guests with pets, but nobody wants to have to do business with someone who writes screeds like yours. Fortunately, your review response has spared them the trouble. Anyone who gets a request from you in the future is not going to be thinking "wow, that sensible lady has really convinced me that she didn't bring her dog" but rather "oh my god this a crazy person" and hit the Eject button.