How do I complain to Airbnb about a host. The place looked tidy but was very dirty. I have photos.

[Rachel1730]

Hi Community.

How do I reach Airbnb to inform them of a host who advertises with good photos but the place is very dirty.  It looks somewhat neat but I could not feel clean while being there.  

The kitchen sponge stuck to the bench I had to rip off the bench.  Then it left a powder over the bench.  The stove controls were so dirty, you could not touch them without wiping your fingers.  Months of grote left behind.  

Snot or faeces left around where you get toilet paper.  It was there before I got there and remained there while I was there.  You know how grime builds up from the bottom of the shower and grows up the shower screen, it was half way up the shower screen.  Half the screen looked like the smokey screens one can choose, but this was due to lack of cleanliness.

I had only used Airbnb several times and had great experiences and so I was shocked by what I found in the third.  

I think these hosts should be monitored somehow.  

While I stayed there, both men left the toilet seat up after they finished their business.  That was here nor there for me.  But on the fourth day, the seat was left down and urine and a pubic hair was left on the seat.  I was shell shocked.  It was intentional.  This is a host and his long term Airbnb.  When I complained and I was upset, he asked me to leave.  Not fix the problem.  He felt inconvenienced by me being inconvenienced.  One has no where to go with that type of behaviour.   

I can't believe a host believes how he lives is acceptable for his own standards let alone a paying customer.  This needs everyone to be in the know.  When you pay for a service, decency and cleanliness are the minimal one should expect.  

[Sarah977]

One thing I'd suggest to you for future stays is that you don't book places with shared bathrooms, unless it's just shared with the host. My listing is a private room/bath in my home with shared kitchen. I only host one guest at a time.

Several of my guests have told me that they quite like the experience of home-sharing, but that having their own bathroom is important to them. Unless the host is really on top of it (one host here on the forum once said he nips into the bathroom and does a quicky clean up about 5 times a day, but few hosts will do that), having to share a bathroom with random other guests seems like a crap shoot as far as everyone respectfully leaving it clean for the others.

@Rachel1730

[Rachel1730]

Sarah977, a great tip.  In future I will certainly keep that in mind.  I do appreciate this advice.  I am thinking of using Airbnb in the coming months and now I feel pleased I got in touch with the community.  I am learning a thing or two.  Cheers.

[John5097]

There is a post pinned to this sub topic on how to contact ABB. If is was just filthy conditions, I would just leave a review. However, a host should not be evicting a guest for reasonable dialog about the conditions of the place they have paid to rent, especially when the place is filthy. I could see how a guest would think 4 stars is good, when in fact its probably bad. 

 Even if its a couple, the toilet area is usually how you described, although the men are at least house broken enough to lift the seat. 

I'm sure that letting spare rooms is a challenge, as there are shared spaces, and people aren't going to agree about politices and such. If it was that dirty you should have also just left for another place if possible. The host should have first offered to refund the days you hadn't used. But just tossing someone out over something like this seems unreasonable. He should have contacted ABB if he thought you were being unreasonable. If you were constantly venting anger beyond making the host aware of the situation ABB should have been contacted to sort out a resolution. I've had to deal with difficult renters where emotions ran high, but always offered them a resolution to see if it was acceptable to them, and if they would agree to those terms. 

[Rachel1730]

Hi John5097

Thanks for your response John, I did vent and I was upset.  I spoke to the other guest about the mess in the toilet.  He denied it.  I got on with it.  My days were planned and full on.  It was not until the following day did I make the complaint to the host.  How he managed the situation escalated it.  

The host was dismissive of how I felt when I vented.  I was gob smacked.  It was only the following day, when I was leaving that I remember something I read about Airbnb advising hosts and guests communicate through the Airbnb app.  That is when the Hosts attitude changed and he became reasonable.  

He did refund me four days.  He thought he was doing me a favor by refunding the full four days, he wanted me to know how he was not going to take out advertising fees and the like.  

Its easier said than done to just leave.  One never plans a trip to cancel upon arrival.  I had driven 8 hours that day, all I wanted was to chill out and get ready for bed.  

[John5097]

@Rachel1730 best not to focus too much on a single hair, as hair in bathoom is very common after a single use. But the built up grime is unacceptable for shared spaces. The risk of antibiotic resistant bacteria, for example, even from raw meat would be a risk even in a very clean kitchen. I'm by no means a clean freak but would be unwilling to travel to some parts of the world where super bugs are rampant. 

[Rachel1730]

Hi John5097

The mess in the bathroom was a change in behaviour.  That is why I talk about the guys lifting the seat prior to this mess.  

I never expect clean freaks John, I am not a trivial person.  Life was not about the accommodation, it was a roof over my head while I did my thing in Adelaide.  I am a vegetarian and had been on the road for four days, I was looking forward to making a meal for myself and chilling out, to recoup, top up my energy level, as I had so much to do.  

I did not go and check out the state of the kitchen for an inspection, I was utilizing the kitchen to fix a meal.  It was when I came across the appalling state of the kitchen.  

But I have a few tips under my belt now.  I was just shocked really.  My first two stays were drama free.  That may have put me in a comfortable mind frame.  

Thanks for your feedback, it is appreciated.  

---

@John5097 wrote:

@Rachel1730 best not to focus too much on a single hair, as hair in bathoom is very common after a single use. But the built up grime is unacceptable for shared spaces. The risk of antibiotic resistant bacteria, for example, even from raw meat would be a risk even in a very clean kitchen. I'm by no means a clean freak but would be unwilling to travel to some parts of the world where super bugs are rampant. 

---