Revenge Rating or Review~

[Sarah1485]

Airbnb does not protect their hosts from revenge ratings or reviews.

If it is INARGUABLY clear a revenge review/rating has been left, the review should be removed. There ought to be an arbitor to whom we can go who wil review any evidence and the thread. If they clearly see the guest (or situation the guest created) is problematic, the host has no bad ratings/reviews and they then conclude the review/rating is vengeful not truthful, HOW can  Airbnb still defend the leaving in place of such a review?!

Their fallback is a pat, We leave all reviews. Why?

A one night review carries as much weight as a one month, and after my  one night guest's dog sliced its foot on an oyster shell in the bay out front, bleeding and staining everything from the deck to all rugs to shower curtain etc.- easily hundreds of dollars of damage- I asked for only $100 compensation. The guest didnt agree; it was only when I pointed out the deck would have to be sanded that she conceded. Consequently she left no review (she would have had to lie) but only a low star rating.

Reading other host's similar issues, seems we all conclude we cannot ever risk asking for compensation (I wont again; a security is now moot) and cannot risk reviewing a bad guest as they know itll be lousy and will  leave a revenge one in return. 

Who does this help? Only the bad guest who'll go on to do it (whatever that is!) again.

I repeat, why isnt there an arbitor -esp. for "Super Hosts"!? I must admit I cringe when they read the fawning script or the automated voice greets me acknowledging my Superhost status-as I know it means nothing for me in terms of protection. Flattery without purpose. If it actually means what Airbnb says it means about us, prove it. Do us the service, honour and respect of valuing truth over money-and protecting the next host from the bad guest. Airbnb has a responsibility to its hosts here.

Your system is broken.

[Emiel1]

@Sarah1485 

The review system is obsolete and it has become a powertool for the shady guest. Better stop using it.

[Maia29]

This is exactly why I don't request any compensation that costs me under $500. It isn't worth the bad review-and that is exactly what a guest will do if you ask for compensation. It sucks, but if IS unfortunately a disturbing reality for hosts. And good luck asking a CS rep to assist.

[Don-And-Emily0]

Could not agree more. It seems Airbnb values these misbehaving guests than they value  hardworking hosts.

We pleaded and begged to have one such review removed, but the response we heard over and over again was that the guest did not violate the review rules. So the message we got from @airbnb is that guests can damage and steal your property as long as they write pretty and “color within the lines” 

This rule is demoralizing and unfair. The least @Airbnb  could do is remove the revenge review after 1 year or two. 

Trying to get compensated for damages is another impossibility. We will never attempt it again. It’s just a waste of time and effort. 

[Elaine701]

Considering how difficult or impossible it is to be compensated for offending guests, we just try to prevent these types from booking in the first place. There's no foolproof way, but you can greatly reduce these unfortunate occurrences with lots of vetting (another topic). But suffice it to say that it's a lot like an egg; If it smells funny, it's best to avoid it. 

Having said that, and considering that your chances of receiving any compensation are very small, we no longer file "host guarantee" claims, or confront the few offending guests that make it through the vetting gauntlet. Doing so will most certainly result in a retaliatory review, usually thick with fabricated nonsense. 

With that in mind, we just smile and thank them for choosing our place, and wish them well on their journey. This approach always facilitates an honest review from the guest. And some guests actually feel guilty about whatever disaster they've caused, and try to make up for it by writing particularly glowing reviews. 

We, on the other hand, will be honest and direct in our reviews of the guest. They can't see your review until they write theirs, so, no chance for retaliation. They too will most likely tell the truth. Always, in our experience so far. 

But the minute they read our review, we'll inevitably get a message containing all of the vitriol and fabricated nonsense that would have otherwise gone into their review. And that alone rather validates the tactic. 

It's really all you can expect to achieve with these undesirable types. The best you can hope for is to avoid them in the first place.

🤨

[Evette10]

@Elaine701 thank you...after reading your comment I am re-considering requesting payment for a bed my current guest broke. I asked this question earlier but maybe you can tell me what you think?

Below is my situation:

My guest broke the bed in the bedroom she is staying in and I had to have my daughter-in-law run out and get a bedframe, 9 o'clock at night. The guest said that she was watching TV and when she reached over to get a drink out of the mini refrigerator she heard a crack. I live in another state but I had my daughter-in-law go get a bed frame and take pictures. From the pictures one of the main boards on frame was snapped completely in half and the right side of the bed frame looks like she was standing on it or something and it's snapped in half as well. She has been staying at my home for about 40 days now and there has been no issues with the bed until now. She doesn't check out until 14 August.

My question is do I have to wait until she finish her stay to request that she pay for the damages? She has about twenty-two more days before she's schedule to leave. The final payment will come in on the 1st of the month and I'm afraid she is might leave early and leave a bad review. We have had great guest/host interaction so far...but I need to replace this bed. The bed is 3 years old so I plan to only request half of the price to replace it.

Any help is much appreciated.

[Elaine701]

@Evette10 

My goodness. 

Ok... Long-term renter. Youve had a good relationship so far? 

The bed frame is replaced. It's all ok now? 

The guest has never offered to pay for it? Do you sense this guest feels "entitied"? She might leave? Over this? Sounds touchy. Or did I misinterpret that? 

His much money are we talking about here? 

Its always best to keep Airbnb out if if you can. And if the money is petty, and with a halfway reasonable guest, you should have actually gained some brownie points with this guest by quickly replacing it. And if she privately knows she is responsible, a good review is probably already in the making. 

If it's a lot of money, it may be wise to let her know about it, but ask politely if maybe she'd be willing to pay half. Perhaps over a coffee in a friendly setting. Don't force it down her throat, just test the water. See how she reacts. Any reasonable guest should appreciate that. 

I don't know how much a bed frame costs, but I doubt it's a lot of money. It may be wise to just let it go, despite her not being conscientious enough to offer to pay for it. Because she's been a good, long term, paying guest so far, right? 

Unless you feel for some reason that this guest is going to give you a bad review anyway. And if that's the case, then you may as well ask for the money. Nicely. 

You need to keep emotion out if it. And trust your instincts.

If she has the hallmarks of a "bad" guest, you can expect her to write ridiculous things about you and your place if you confront her with this. If it's only a small amount of money, just let it go. More grief than it's worth. 

But I'd keep Airbnb out of it, unless it escalates to something much worse, like eviction. It's not in your interest to let it go that far. 

[Evette10]

@Elaine701  Great advice thank you for looking at it from all sides. I appreciate your feedback. I agree it not a huge amount of money and I don’t like or want a lot of drama. Things have been going well so far with this and I don’t want that to change. Initially I was upset but you have a point…emotions aside it’s not going to be worth it. 

Thank you for your assistance.. I appreciate your feedback. 

[Pat7985]

I had the same experience, as echoed by all the hosts here. Requests for review removal seem to be routed to the illogical and illiterate support staff. "It's just their opinion, and we find no violation." Guest was not only caught, but Airbnb stepped in and threatened to cancel the guests' reservation if the guest didn't pay the extra guest fees (sneaking in extra guests). Days later, I got retaliatory reviews and bogus security camera suspensions. I decided to remove my listing and left Airbnb ... at the end of the day, the time spent talking to Airbnb is like waiting in line for the DMV...when the DMV has moved buildings and you're at the old location.  We hosts take all the risks, and Airbnb should preserve the hosts' ASSests

[Antonia404]

Arbinb,  also have an email service that doesn’t exist and doesn’t contact users, and it sounds so beautiful and enchanting on zoom.
@Tara-Bunch
@Catherine-Powell