Should it be mandatory for hosts to display wifi speeds? - follow up to recently locked thread

[Helen3]

Recently a guest made his first post on the forum which he started off claiming that all hosts were dishonest because he didn't feel he had received the wifi speeds he needed to run his business from his STR (even though he hadn't actually checked with the hosts to see what the speeds actually were before he booked) . And that he thought it should be mandatory for all hosts to display wifi speeds as at every single one of the Airbnbs he had stayed at the speeds were lower than he expected.

As experienced hosts a number of us tried to explain to him that it wasn't an effective or practical solution for a number of reasons.

1. Firstly because speeds fluctuate particularly at the moment with Coronavirus where many more are working from/staying at home.

2. Secondly we as hosts have no control over our wifi speeds, so we shouldn't be held accountable for something outside of our control. 

3. Thirdly speeds fluctuate around the world and between states within a country and even within a town or city or street.

I was one of the ones that suggested a simple solution to him, which was to book Airbnb at Work stays and take the simple step of asking the host about their wifi speeds and explaining his need to upload and download huge amounts of data during his stay.

I do appreciate that not all hosts are completely upfront about the quality of their wifi and in some countries/areas you are never going to get decent speeds. But my few is as a guest if an amenity is an absolute essential for your stay such as wifi speeds, that is simply common sense to check what the actually speed is before you book. Sadly the discussion turned into a bit of a slanging match and the discussion was locked.

I was rather surprised to find a  personal message from Matthew  in my inbox today..which said :- 

.."what a nasty person you were in the thread....but ultimately you don't matter."

I thought as adults we had long moved on from the playground and name calling.Matthew if you think it appropriate  to make these sort of remarks to a random stranger on the internet, then have the courage of your convictions and post them publicly, so everyone can see what a delightful individual you are.

@ Nick  would you block this individual from sending me further private messages please.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Ann489     @Sarah977  @Helen3 

So here we are again.

*[Inappropriate content removed in line with - Community Center Guidelines]

[Nanxing0]

I think instead of the actual speed test results, it's probably feasible and acceptable to ask the hosts to disclose the internet service they are using, for example the Verizon FIOS 100Mbps/100Mbps, or XFinity Blast! Internet, etc. By doing this guests can get the idea about how fast they can expect the internet to be and free up the hosts from such liabilities such as poor performance due to internet traffic and/or service provider's maintenance, etc.

[Helen3]

It's a good idea @Nanxing0  but not terribly meaningful for guests who are less knowledgeable about these sort of areas. I don't know if seeing that would help them understand what sort of wifi speeds they may experience.

[Nanxing0]

I received a message from this person as well. Here's a copy of the message.

Julian1134 to Nanxing0

**[Sensitive information removed in line with - Community Center Guidelines]

[Emilia42]

What this message really says to all people who know better::

Airbnb Support14:54

Like I said, Airbnb has been talking and talking and thinking and thinking about implementing an Amenity check for hosts, but it is still in the implementing phase which means the higher-ups are still sitting around staring at eachother. Check back with us in  November 2024 and in the meantime just continuing doing what your doing.

[Ann72]

@Nanxing0  What an unpleasant message - petty and arrogant.  Thanks for posting.

[Ann72]

The verification program - cool.  We've all read the posts exposing the growing pains of Airbnb Plus.  I actually love looking at those because the pictures are so pretty, but the hosts who've posted here about getting the verification were pretty frustrated by the whole process (and claim they haven't made any more money since going Plus). 

I'm just wondering where Airbnb is going to get the personnel to review all those video walkthroughs.  Haven't they laid off one or two people in recent months?

Anyway, it appears they've been working up to this kind of verification with those messages I've been finding on my listing page.  "Does your home have hot water?"  "Does this listing have a stove?"  Those amenities have been checked for 6 years, and no guest has ever said that the place had neither, so the only reason the question would come up is because Airbnb has decided to start checking up.  But as per youzhe, they got the Walmart version of the algorithm, so it was unable to do a simple thing like compare the listing claim to the reviews.

[Sarah977]

@Ann72 There's a host or two on another hosting forum I follow who said they got these virtual walk throughs. That it was all kind of silly- they just had to walk around the house and show the rep on the other end that there were hangars in the closet, towels, a stove, etc. As you say, if guests haven't said that there were missing amenities, what a colossal waste of time.

And when they first announced this verification of listings way back when, it was supposedly about weeding out scam and bait-and-switch listings. It was a reaction to the Vice article exposing all the scam listings. Now it's about showing them the toilet paper rolls? When we have pages of good reviews, none of which mention being scammed?

How they have personnel for this when they can't even answer a phone call in less than an hour and a half is ridiculous and laughable.

[Ann72]

@Sarah977  EXACTLY!

[Debra300]

@Ann72, @Sarah977, @Yadira22, @Helen350, @Helen3, @Emilia42,

I know this is a bit of a digression from the original subject, but here is an article about how Plus is practically not being supported any longer:  https://skift.com/2020/05/29/airbnb-plus-is-all-but-abandoned-as-a-grand-dream-that-never-met-expect....

In the article, the writer states that one of the failings of the program was that Airbnb didn't have the staff to support it, and outsourced the group who handled the enrollments into the Plus program.

[Ann72]

@Debra300  I believe the prosecution rests.  🤣

It's not such a digression.  We were talking about amenities and then about 
Airbnb's roll-out of a program to assess those amenities, which naturally led to their management of other initiatives...

[Debra300]

@Ann72, @Sarah977, @Yadira22, @Helen350, @Helen3, @Emilia42,

Okay, then I will go all the down the rabbit hole with this next article: https://skift.com/2020/07/16/airbnb-shakes-up-hosting-management-while-resuming-plans-to-go-public/

Let's see if this executive shake up will repair relationships with hosts and guests.  It seems like Brian got rid of the one guy who was questioning his moves.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Debra300 

That would make a great topic starter, particularly as "financial irregularities" (from memory) were cited as part of the departure. Probably way too involved for here. 😀

[Helen3]

Please do digress @Debra300 I think amenities is such a key issue for hosts and guests.

[Gordon0]

Mandatory, no, I don't think so, @Helen3. While I do display my speed, I also mention it's likely to fluctuate. Of course, stuff like this is easier for people (like me) who live in cities, but I wouldn't want to encourage the sort of individual this is about to choose my listing.

Having worked as a BT engineer for many years, I really can't be faffed with the mansplainer guest.