Superhost assessment to be postponed due to pandemic

[AandM56]

Hello Airbnb hosts,

After years of hard work, I will lose my Superhost status because of the lack of chances to boost my ratings. I want to formally ask Airbnb to postpone the Superhost assessment during the covid pandemic. Who's with me?

[Sandra126]

That was one of the suggestions on the listening panel. I think they will do that, as it has no cost.

[AandM56]

Apparently not 😞

[Helen350]

@Jamie638 

[Helen350]

@Sandra126  @AandM56  No, it IS going ahead on 1 Apr 2020 as usual. But they will ignore factors affected by coronavirus, eg No. of stays & cancellations, so hosts who still have 4.8 & & good response rate will be OK.

https://www.airbnb.co.uk/resources/hosting-homes/a/answers-for-superhosts-about-the-coronavirus-160 

[AandM56]

This is still unfair, in my opinion. I have had over two months without any booking so I missed out on a lot of chances to increase my ratings.

[Helen350]

@AandM56 Superhost is based on the WHOLE OF THE LAST YEAR, not just the last 2 months. So if the 10 months prior to the last 2 months got you an average of 4.8 you'll be fine! The coronavirus only really affected bookings in the last 2 weeks of March... I got 9 bookings in March before the shutdown, & 4 in February, so I don't think you can say lack of bookings was due to Coronavirus, until the last 2 weeks in March. So you are really being assessed on 11 & 1/2 months out of 12! 

[Helen350]

@AandM56 Did you know you can check yourself if you will retain your Superhost status?

- Go to 'Performance', then 'Opportunities' then click the Superhost box in the middle.....

- You can enter the dates of the assessment period just gone, i.e. period ending 31 Mar 2020, from the drop down menu..... It will tell you your averages under "What you're doing well"/"What you haven't met."  If your cancellation rate & stays hosted is in the "What you haven't met" category (in red?) they will IGNORE that & still let you retain SH if your Overall rating & Response rates are OK.

- It all seems perfectly fair to me!

[AandM56]

Hi there,

I have been Superhost continuously since 2015. I know how it works 

my bookings were affected for over a months due the most countries’ lockdown since January! 

I had a bad review from someone that did not stay and did not cancel (Airbnb does not remove those ones) - he purposefully wanted a full refund Or nothing without a cancellation. 

not many reviews since then, as people have not been traveling or they kept my calendar blocked till a week before their booking and then canceled preventing me from getting other bookings/reviews.

[Derek157]

I beg to disagree.  I WILL lose my Super-host status at the JULY assessment.  I have just been awarded it again at the April assessment but noted that my rating is 4.7 and have to improve to 4.8 to retain SH.  Like @AandM56  I had two screwed reviews by a guest who obviously didn't understand the rating system and thought that 4 stars was good - as we know AirbnB think 4 is "Indifferent". That particular bone has been well chewed elsewhere.  Normally I could work to improve that and recover at least 0.1 by the July assessment.  However because I am self isolating on both age and medical grounds I have NO bookings for the next twelve weeks so it is impossible to recover the situation by 1 July.  I had to cancel FIFTEEN bookings between now and then, and AirBnB obviously agreed it was reasonable because they refunded my guest in full.  But I lost over £800 in revenue and will lose my Super-host status .  Perfectly fair?  I think not. Surely there should be some sort of appeal system?

[Helen350]

@Derek157 I tend to agree with you about the July 2020 assessment, IF we are prevented from hosting for the entire period between now & then. I consider this April assessment to be less of an issue; I had plenty of bookings up to & including 21 March, 2 days before the lockdown in the UK, & 9 bookings in March 2020. It was only the last 2 weeks of the assessment period where things dried up, so to lose 2 weeks in the last WHOLE YEAR does not significantly affect SH status...... But Yes, if a 3 MONTH period is wiped out, that would skew the figures! - I'm sure Airbnb will adjust assessment criteria in July, if necessary, as they did this time..... Who knows, they MAY freeze things if the world market is still in lockdown as July approaches.... I wouldn't spend the next 3 months stressing about it! : )

[AandM56]

@Helen350 Than why don’t you agree with the previous assessment? It might have not affected your business but it might have affected others!? 

[Helen350]

@AandM56 You lost SH because of too many 4* reviews. I have no way of knowing whether these were reasonable or not. Your place looks a bit bohemian... Some like that.... I do! - But many modern guests prefer soulless boxy grey & white "cookie cutter" uniformity, & only give 5* to places like that! - Could be a compliment that you've lost SH??? Don't obsess over Superhost! Get a grip! I read your profile... You are a highly educated woman with many advanced degrees! You appear to be an expert on everything under the sun! Do you really need the silly little Superhost badge, the status equivalent of a brownie badge, a scout badge, or a primary school 25 metre swimming certificate? 

[AandM56]

@Helen350  I’m sad to see you miss the point. This thread isn’t about me losing my SH but about the fact is unfair to be assessed right now. Airbnb has been a good way for me to earn extra money throughout my miserable life as a PhD student. It has been an amazing way of getting to know great people and such. I am loosing (I actually have lost) fate in the way they operate and the way the don’t care about hosts, their well-being, and their commitment. 
You are welcome to have your opinion on the reason why I open this thread and welcome to think I am crying out for a stupid badge. However, I did started this because I feel that my experience, and the experience of others around the world, has gone through several disruptions recently and feels unfair to rate our performance on that. You might have read my profile and seen a few reviews here and there. Since January I had a total of 14 nights booked in three months (90 days approx). This is not my usual calendar look! You are welcome to count the days yourself you can see them on top of each review. 
For some, getting hard work recognized is important and assessments during these times add pressure! Might be not your case. I am sure you are smart and kind enough to let other people with opinions different from yours express their concerns.

Have a lovely day.

[Helen350]

@AandM56 No one is hosting right now because of The Virus! When we start up again, guests will still find your place attractive enough to book with or without SH! As @Sarah977  said, it is unlikely to affect your bookings; guests don't take much notice of it & neither should you! When I lost mine for 6 months in the early days, I observed no difference.... most guests don't know what it is......