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[Gemma5]

Hi,

I am after some advice around how to handle what has been a really awful experience with a guest.

She arrived yesterday and immediately sent me an SMS complaining that the place smelled of cleaning products.  Our airbnb is in our back garden so I went round to have a chat with her to explain about the enhanced cleaning protocols we have committed to and that we are cleaning thoroughly for our guest's benefit, to protect them.

However somehow this made her more angry and she said she "doesn't do cleaning products".  I said to her that the last thing I wanted was for her to stay with us if she wasn't happy with the place so I offered to refund her in full if she wanted to find somewhere else for the night.

This then set her off again, and she said I was kicking her out (which I was not!).  She just kept saying that the other airbnb she stayed in managed to be clean without smelling clean and I should be using eco friendly products.  I explained that actually I do use eco products where possible but that I was also following airbnb's protocols, I had the cleaning handbook in my hand.  She started to use profanities and called me a 'pathetic person who shouldn't be in this industry at all', hit the book out of my hand, slammed the door in my face so hard that a picture fell off the wall.  My 5 year old daughter could hear her shouting and has never heard language like this before 😞

My husband came out to see what was going on, she looked at him and said "at least he's got the common sense to stay silent like a man should".  At this point  I asked her to leave and gave her all her money back in cash.  I was just desperate to get her out of our home.  She continued to shout and swear at us.

I called airbnb afterwards to explain what had happened.  They told me that they completely understand..however basically said there was nothing they could do. 

Despite being very upset and angry that someone should come into our family home and treat us like this I still would not want anyone to not have a bed for the night so I called a nearby hotel and checked they had vacancies, they did and the price was the same as our airbnb so I messaged her to tell her she would be able to stay there if she needed somewhere.

I caught some of the abuse and profanity on video and still when I watch it back find it hard to believe anybody would behave in such a way.

I think the person is new to airbnb as she only has one (good) review.

I don't know what I should do next.  How to review her?  I am sure she will review me badly and I'll probably lose my superhost status because of it.  How can it be OK for guests to be so abusive and get away with it?   It is not fair on me and not fair on future guests that may be treated this way.  I am especially upset that my daughter heard this.

How would others handle this horrible situation?

[Inna22]

@Mark116 Same here, got rid of two prosperities, two are rented long term. Two combined into o e (per license change and city demand) and left as short term to have the hand on the pulse. 

there were no guests at the place for a day and next not to move in for another day or two so definitely not a lock out. It is a coded door. 

do you have to pay for your license?

[Mark116]

@Inna22   Yes. $250 per year, non-refundable, so we're out that money if the permit does not eventually get approved, but you're allowed to rent while it is under review.  We are waiting for the in person home inspection, which is on hold due to COVID.

JC put in pretty strict rules on who can have a STR, as an entire place it has to be an owner occupied 2-4 family house/building...but based on the search results, the city isn't enforcing any of this yet.  The luxury high rise apts. are still renting, although I have seen over the past few months craigslist notices where people are literally giving away entire apartments full of furniture for free...and that furniture is exactly what you would see in a property management airbnb.  So, I assume these are professional airbnbs and the owners are liquidating the furnishes so the units can go long term. 

[Paul1255]

Hi @Gemma5  I hope you’re well.

This sounds like a horrible experience that you’ve been through, doesn’t sound at all pleasant- I hope you and you’re family are fine.

You mention that you refunded the guest in cash, which is perfectly understandable because  you wanted the situation resolved and the guest out of your listing ASAP.

Did the guest cancel their stay on the platform when they left? 

Sometimes guests get a cash refund from hosts and then cancel their stay and get another refund via the platform- so it’s always best for guests to be refunded by Airbnb via the method that they booked their stay with just to be safe.

I hope your next guests are great 🙂 

[Gemma5]

Hi @Paul1255  thanks so much for taking the time to read my post and respond.  Yes she has cancelled and won't get a refund.  In all honesty this situation was so bad it was a case of doing anything we could to get her to leave.  I hope our next guests are great too!  we've had over 200 guests come through our airbnb so I guess in a way we should feel quite lucky that this is our first really bad experience.

Thanks again

[Helen350]

@Gemma5 What @Paul1255 is saying is that she might get a refund (automatic) from the platform, by cancelling, so get refunded twice..... And that it was unwise to give her cash, you should have gone thru the platform. It would depend on your cancellation policy and/or whether SHE claims unfair eviction...

PS Your superhost status should be safe, because you have 182 reviews and 4.94, so even a 1* review will either not change your average or put it down a tiny bit.

[Inna22]

@Gemma5  please make sure that you never give cash to guest again or just send them a refund through the platform via resolution center. Refunds related to cancellations should can’t be handled through cancellations. Having said that, I totally understand that you were frustrated and desperate for her to leave. She sounds like a nutcase and it’s great that she left your property right away. I seriously think there might be some psychological issues. This is not normal.

Two things I would recommend:

One. Message through the Airbnb messaging system with some thing like To summarize what happened, you were given full refund in cash at the property. You need to have this on record. 

Two. I think you should call Airbnb and report assault by a guest. She did kick the book out of your hand. It sounds harsh, but should the guest choose to escalate this later, and she might given her mental status, you will have this report on file. Not only you will be protecting yourself, but hopefully other hosts.  

i’m so sorry your family had to go through this. This is not OK. 

[Gemma5]

thanks @Inna22 .  I have reported her to airbnb and sent them video evidence but they have come back to me saying I can review her if I like.  They're not going to take any action.  In my mind this is actually negligent allowing a guest who has a record of abuse to carry on booking with other hosts - who knows what she might do next time to some other unsuspecting family - particularly as she knows now that she can get away with it

[Fred13]

   Many years ago I encountered such a situation, the 'creature' also entered the realm of insanity.  I told her she had a choice, physically thrown in the boat or walk into it on her own two legs.  The trickiest part was keeping my Mrs. at bay, she wanted to strangle the woman on the spot. (rolls eyes)

   She threaten a bad review, I promised her a crushing one in return. She never left a review. I left it a doocy one 10 minutes before the 14 days expired. To date I am sure she is still sticking needles in some voodoo doll thinking of us. 

[Inna22]

@Fred13  what could she possible not like on the island?? And did the rest of her party leave?

[Fred13]

Oh no, when I asked the one that made the original reservation who is the lunatic, he said they were an added couple in the last minute. Believe it or not, she ended up staying because she promised to behave; but the original couple however wanted to 'kill' her during their 5-day stay. LoL

[Sarah977]

@Fred13  My friend had some house guests- an old college buddy of her husbands with a new wife they'd never met. Within 15 minutes of their arrival, the woman came down from the guest room telling my friend she should fire the maid because there were dust bunnies under the bed (What kind of person, invited to stay in someone's home, for free, checks for dust bunnies first thing, let alone mentions it?)

The woman was a constant PITA until my friend's husband unloaded on her one day, telling her that she was well aware that my friend had just recovered from 2 years of dealing with breast cancer- a double mastectomy and reconstruction and that she hadn't complained once throughout the whole ordeal.

That shut her up, but they were mighty pleased to see them go.

[Trevor243]

Reviews will make no difference. You can report her abuse (and knocking the manual out of her hand) to the police. Although you're renting out through AirBnB, normal life, the law and everything else still applies.

[Kath9]

@Trevor243, what do you mean that reviews will make no difference! It certainly makes a difference to future hosts!

[Trevor243]

You seem to be forgetting that normal life exists outside the AirBnB bubble of reviews. The correct way to report assaults etc is not an AirBnB review, it is to call the police.

[Gemma5]

thanks for responding @Trevor243 .  In hindsight I should have called the police but not much point now as the incident has come and gone.  Airbnb are not going to take any action  - the only response I've had from them is that I have the opportunity to review them.

As this is a new user to airbnb she only has one review so far, so if I put mine up people will definitely see it