Guest Misrepresentation - Incorrect Guest Count - Is this a party?

[Anna9908]

I recently had a guest reserve my house. Her stay was for 4 people. On our listing we only allow 6 people total to deter parties. Our pricing also goes up after guest 3. again to encourage less guests to stay.  When she arrived, she arrived with 8 people. Does this count as misrepresentation? She did not alert us ahead of her check in and we contacted her about it after reviewing the security cameras. We also requested she pay the additional fees associated with additional guests (this is pending resolution). She gave us a hard time, referencing our rental agreement (which actually does state she needs to pay for unregistered guests).  Does this count as a "party"? How do I report her behavior to Airbnb? I am fearful she will leave me a bad review. I do not think the review process should leave hosts feeling afraid when a guest is inappropriate. I am also concerned that Airbnb policies are very vague and confusing when it comes to guests. When it comes to host policies like reporting a review, it is very strict. There do not seem to be much definition around "misrepresentation". Also, what is actually done to the guest once reported?

[Susan249]

You shouldn’t have allowed any of the guests in house u til preliminary sorted. 
they are aware of rules not having guests make them sign. I have it all the time, airbnb used to support but some of the ambassadors you can understand or they’re not grammatical.

put in the threads any other guests on the property will not be allowed. Call police have them removed ring airbnb but make certain you know who you’re talking to. I was given information regarding changing locks initially and then airbnb said that’s not our policy and refused to pay despite the guest saying in message threads I’m keeping the keys 

[Angelica-Y-Jorge0]

@Anna9908 this is unfortunate. If you have proof in the video of the 8 people you should be able to collect for the additional people over 6 since that's what you list as. Unfortunately, this would not constitute a party as Airbnb classifies a party as 16 or more people or creating a disturbance in the neighbourhood.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2704/party-and-events-policy

I think you can expect a bad review. I would wait till the last day to enter her review to avoid her getting the notification you completed yours. She may forget to complete it in time.

Hope this helps

[Anna9908]

Thanks, Jorge - I appreciate you forwarding this my direction. I must admit this is another disappointing rule definition from Airbnb. I feel like hosts should be able to determine what is deemed a "Party". For example, my listing says "6" but you invite 8.... That is a party for me and my listing that makes me incredibly uncomfortable. I think it is sad too that we tell each other "Expect a bad review". It does not seem right or fair to hosts. I am sorry, Jorge - not meaning to sound like I am taking any frustration out on you. Just wish I saw more change and recognition with Airbnb that there are issues with the review process and established policies that leave hosts feeling violated. I do appreciate you taking the time to "re-direct me". What confuses me, however, in the definition is the following part,

<><><><>

Parties and events

Until further notice, all disruptive parties and events are prohibited, regardless of size. Guests who hold these types of events may have their account removed.

[Angelica-Y-Jorge0]

@Anna9908 I agree with you on the review process. I think if there is a case open with Airbnb such as this a review should not be allowed to avoid retaliatory reviews. 

As for the definition of party, I think you will have to prove to Airbnb that it was disruptive and I think that may be hard to do. They do have no tolerance for parties so may be worth a try. 

[Colleen253]

@Anna9908  Yes, that is misrepresentation, no doubt about it. I think it's important to be unequivocal about unregistered people. Prohibiting them, and then asking the guest to pay up for them is mixed messaging. Bearing in mind that prevention is always the best policy when operating on Airbnb, what I find helpful in cutting down on this type of thing happening is using explicitly clear language in my house rules regarding unauthorized guests and maximum occupancy. In my rules I also ask the booking guest to provide directly to me the full names of all guests on the booking. When a request comes in without this info, it alerts me to the fact they haven't read the house rules. This happens about 98% of the time, incidentally. I then direct guest to read the rules, and provide the info. That serves a few purposes. To put the booking guest on notice that I won't tolerate any extra people not on the booking, and to cut down on instances of it happening. It also provides a clear account of who exactly is going to be at the house, and how many. If it did happen that extra people show up, I would remind the guest of the rules they agreed to, and that the extra people must leave, rather than be paid for. If this did not happen, I'd next contact Airbnb to cancel the booking, and then go there myself to remove the entire lot. There are times when you just have to put aside thoughts of retaliatory reviews. I'd far rather stand up to a troublesome guest. But as I say, prevention of these situations is even more preferrable.

[Anna9908]

Hey Colleen, 

Thank you for your suggestions. I have actually gone out of my way to ensure the guests are communicated to appropriately about not having unregistered guests. It has already been put into our "house rules" but then once I confirm their booking, I remind them again that unregistered guests will result in additional fees with my message to them once I confirm their booking. Additionally, I make all guests sign a rental agreement stating that "all guests must be registered" and "failure to register will result in $50 fee per guest for non-disclosure". So I do not think they can deny the fee I have requested in return for their lack of rule following. I think what has me more frustrated is that I reported the guest to Airbnb for misrepresentation and support has not responded to it yet. It has been since the morning when I reported the guest. I worry about her staying elsewhere and am struggling with leaving her a review. I hate disputes in reviews and often feel they are petty. However, as a host, I often look for reviews to determine if they are "host-able". The bad part is my only real repercussion is leaving a negative review, but then it triggers her review. Which no doubt would be unpleasant. Additionally, I asked Airbnb to remove her review privileges', which should definitely be a feature. However, I don't know if they would classify under this in the "party ban". She just skirted all house rules for right now, and since I have no contact currently from support. It feels like they aren't doing anything about the misrepresentation on her side. What are your thoughts about leaving her a negative review? I just feel like the review system is pretty broken. 

[Colleen253]

@Anna9908  “What are your thoughts about leaving her a negative review”?

Though I’ve only had a small handful of troublesome guests, I have never shied away from leaving a negative review for them. I feel it’s important. At the very least, you can write ‘X stayed 2 nights” if you must, with appropriate stars, which will still send a message to other hosts to be careful or steer clear. And I always wait until the very last minute to do it, to avoid the trigger. My experience has been though,  that troublesome guests usually can’t be bothered to write a review, so if yours hasn’t yet, it’s very likely she isn’t intending to anyway.

Yes the review system needs fixing but ‘it is what it is’. Same with CS. Nothing will change anytime soon. We have no choice but to be savvy and creative in how we navigate the rough waters, by ourselves. 

[Anonymous]

@Anna9908 If a group of guests exceeds your occupancy limit, you do have the right to refuse to check them in, and forfeit your payout for the booking. And if a guest books for 4 but shows up with 6, you may require them to complete a booking alteration with an updated fee before handing over the keys. But once you've granted guests access to the property, most of your leverage is lost. Airbnb won't enforce the terms of your separate rental agreement, nor will it levy fines on your behalf.

I don't think there's anything you can do to prevent this group from writing a review, but you might be able to deter excess guests in the future by including a strict rule against unregistered guests/visitors in your actual listing.