I need advice about a bad host and review

[Hockey0]

My small family recently traveled to D.C..  we got a bad guest review.  The Airbnb we stayed at in D.C. blamed us for a smoke smell and a plastic bag cover on the fire alarm on the ceiling.  The bag was there when we we checked in. There was a musk fruity smell when we came in but how could I know what the smell was. I had no idea it was an issue. As for the bag  I thought there was a Leak or repair under it. Anyway I can prove I have never smoke. I have a medical condition. My kids don’t smoke and my hubby does not and he was only there the morning we left. On top of that we belong to a strict religious sect. We don’t smoke anything, no drugs, no drinking etc.  the host were in Hawaii and have no idea what it looked like when we checked in. what can I do? All of my other host reviews are great. 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Hockey0 all you can do is respond carefully to the review. Perhaps something like. 'I can assure hosts we obeyed all the rules and hope they recognise we are good guests based on all my other reviews'

[Sarah977]

@Hockey0  When you check into a listing, you should report to the host and photograph anything that seems amiss so you don't get blamed for it. For instance, a plastic bag covering a smoke alarm is odd. If the previous guests did that to cover up the smell of their smoking, the host would then realize it wasn't you. 

Just leave a brief, factual response stating what you did in your post here. And if I understand you correctly, the host who says she lives upstairs wasn't actually there when you were- she was on vacay in Hawaii. So if that is true, I would mention that in the response- she makes it sound like she knew you smoked because she lives upstairs, when in fact she was relying on reports from her cleaners or managers.

[Hockey0]

Yeah I thought the plastic bag was there to cover up a repair or something leaking. I did not know that an alarm was under it. I have learned my lesson

[Mark116]

@Hockey0  It's not a bad idea for guests to do a quick phone video of the place they are staying to protect themselves from something like this, where you are blamed for what the previous guests did.  It's a little odd that the cleaners wouldn't have noticed a bag on the ceiling.  We do video before every guest for the same reason, to document the condition of our airbnb, but it works the same for guests, it also protects you from being blamed for something that was a pre existing issue.  

[Hockey0]

Yes I hear you. I will never get another Airbnb without making a little video and taking some pictures. I always took pictures when I left but I didn’t think it was necessary when  I arrived. Either these people are liars and are trying to sabotage me or there staff is in on this. All I can do now is write a reply to the review. Even though I was willing to show medical information and even go as far as to produce character witnesses, they said that the health did not violate any of the rules on the review so therefore there is nothing I can do except you respond. God knows the truth. My only hope is that my other really good reviews will overpower this negative review. 

[Hockey0]

Autocorrect...., I meant to write the host not health did not violate the review  rules. Also these people were in Hawaii so they don’t know what it look like between the time they left and the time I checked in. I can assure you all these things were done before I checked in. Also there was a random order of chipotle that was left in front of the door. I even went upstairs to give the hosts the bag. I figured the delivery guy made a mistake. However of course they were in Hawaii so they didn’t answer the door and just told me to throw it away. That should have been a red flag for me but I just didn’t think things were going to end up the way they did. It seems to me that maybe someone was having an unauthorized stay

[Mark116]

@Hockey0  Yeah, we clean our own Airbnb, and sometimes that feels like a burden, but then I  hear these kinds of stories where cleaners are not doing their job, and maybe it's 'safer' to do it ourselves.  Just remember when you respond to the review that the audience is not really the host, you can send the hosts a private message, the audience for the response are future hosts who you want to reassure that you are a good guest.

[Sarah977]

@Hockey0  "My only hope is that my other really good reviews will overpower this negative review. "

Hosts aren't fools who believe every guest review they read. I'm sure if you were looking at reviews for a listing and the host had a bunch of reviews that said the place was super clean, and one outlier that claimed it was filthy, you would be quite skeptical of that review. It's no different for hosts reading reviews of guests. 

If you leave a brief, factual response, that will work in your favor. "The plastic bag was on the ceiling when we arrived. We assumed it was catching a leak or hiding a needed repair- we didn't even realize it was covering a smoke alarm. We do not smoke at all- I have a medical condition that would make smoking an immediate death sentence. Contrary to what the host claims, they were not resident upstairs during our stay- they were in Hawaii.

Next time I stay  somewhere, I will be sure to take photos on arrival, as I don't appreciate being blamed for the behavior of whoever occupied the unit before me.

Please refer to my other reviews for an accurate picture of the kind of guests we are."