Disappointed in Airbnb

[Farah1]

I have been hosting for 4 years and always maintain a positive/good relationship with Airbnb.

Unfortunately, Airbnb made me feel disappointed with the way they handle a recent issue that occurred.

For the FIRST time in 4 YEARS of hosting, I needed to ask my guests to leave and vacate the property.

I have an entire unit listing that is located on the lower level of my private house. I knocked on the door to say hi and found out there were 2 unauthorized guests. As I mentioned in my other post, I gave a 10pm curfew ONLY for that night and sent a reminder that it is against the house rules to bring unauthorized guests. Since then, they became SUPER rude to me... I mean it, not only rude but EXTREMELY rude. They tried to make me feel guilty for not allowing them to do that which is inappropriate because it is not a surprise, it is their responsibility to read and understand the house rules (this was an IB by the way - I resend the house rules right away once the reservation was confirmed and she said she agreed) and it is REQUIRED by Airbnb for guests to agree and follow house rules.

On the 2nd day, I sent a message to check on them. She said that her BIGGEST ISSUE is because I am not allowing her having unauthorized guests (max. occupancy is 4 and she already has 4 and she wants to bring 2 extra = 6 = exceeding max. occupancy).

She said that she is in town to visit her family, so I *should* have told her that the extra 2 will not be an unauthorized guest.... Hmmm interesting! I only have 2 comments for that 1. Did they or did they not in the reservation? Not. So, that means they are unauthorized. 2. She NEVER communicated this to me prior to her arrival (that she wants to have the additional 2 people come hang out at the unit).

So, basically, she is saying that the ONLY way I CAN make her have a good stay is if I BREAK MY OWN RULES by letting her have extra unauthorized guests.

I called Airbnb and was being *harassed* by one of the case manager. She *threatened* me saying either I give this guest a refund (for breaking my rules!) or she will let this guest leaves me a review (which of course she will leave me a bad review for not getting what she wants).

I was shocked and VERY DISAPPOINTED. I feel that I was treated inappropriately. I have been hosting MORE THAN 1,500 TRIPS in the 4 years! I am contributing to this forum to help others and the community. This case manager is favoring the guest. Rewarding the guest with $ because she wants to break house rules. I could not comprehend that... why? Because it does not make any sense nor ethical at all!

At the end, I spoke with a different case manager. At that point, I have been on the phone for HOURS and have been telling the same story to at least 10 people in Airbnb. I was hurt, I was sad, I was disappointed, I was exhausted.

I have a strict cancellation policy and house rules for a reason. A policy is a policy. I have my dignity and integrity in living my life and hosting. I will never take anything that is not my rights nor take advantage of others. Though Airbnb and the guest decided to make me be the one to be punished (loss payout) for no mistakes.

They vacate the premises around 8pm the 2nd night of their stay. I only get paid for the 1st night even though they use the unit until 8pm the 2nd night and I got compensated NOTHING for it.

What Airbnb case manager said:

- They rent an entire unit, so MAYBE they ASSUME they can do this > NO! It is in the house rules

- It is maybe just during the day > NO! The first night it happened in the evening and it does not matter what time, no means no and a policy is a policy

It is very *INTERESTING* to see Airbnb promoting and allowing people to break their own policy and bend house rules.

It is FAR AWAY from "fair". I have always been having a good faith and want to keep the positive attitude and relationship with Airbnb, but they disappoint me so greatly. I am being punished for following the policy and being compliance and a responsible host. The guest is being rewarded for breaking house rules and pressuring me to agree that she can break house rules.

[Huma0]

Thanks @Farah1. That is just one experience. Luckily I have not had to call Airbnb otherwise to have guests removed...yet.

I think, as others have suggested on this thread, it does seem to depend on the case manager or rep you get on the phone/responds to your email. From what I have read on these forums, Airbnb in the USA does not seem very supportive of hosts at all. My experience in the UK, where we get put through to a call centre in Ireland, has been the opposite.

I have never tried to claim damages from a deposit or put in an insurance claim or anything like that, but whenever I have called, I have gotten through super quick and I could not fault the attention or response/action that I got. I have to say, compared to most of the customer service I deal with day in and day out, the people I have spoken to at Airbnb have been way above average.

The problem seems that whomever you end up dealing with, they make a decision and that seems to be final. There doesn't seem to be much in the way of appealing that decision, so if you are unlikely to get someone who doesn't listen to you, you hit a dead end.

[Farah1]

@Huma0 that is the unfortunate thing. I think it is very important to have a clear standard, set of rules, and guidelines on how these customer experience people should handle and solve an issue. It is a sad truth to know that it is depending on your "luck" whether you will get a supportive CS or not. On top of that, it is hard to believe that this CS can break their own/the company policy and claim that the decision is final and you cannot have anymore discussion. Some also say that reaching out to them via Twitter tends to give a better result.

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Farah1 Human beings have the tendency to break rules and even if they are aware that is unfair that makes them even more happy. What I would do with such guest is as follows: I would ask them for extra cash for the two extra unauthorised people. Remember whenever someone breaks the rules you can eventually ask for some extra cash even if Airbnb prevent us from charging  guests outside the network in such a case I think that would be the only fair solution. Good luck for the future as I am sure you will get plenty of great guests!!!  

[Farah1]

Hi @Oomesh-Kumarsingh0 thank you for joining the discussion. Without the extra unauthorized guests, she came with a group of 4 (including herself) which is th  and max.occupancy. So, it's more than about the $. I couldn't and didn't want to charge extra $ because it would be exceeding the max.occupancy then it would be a concern of safety, comfort, and liability. Most importantly, why would I want to break my own rules for the sake of stranger's happiness when it is clearly communicated from the beginning.

[Natasha3]

Farah,

I'm dealing with exactly the same situation as yours.

I have the same policy - No parties. No outside guests, day or night. 4 guests maximum.

I rent an upper part of the house where I live .

My current guests were very well aware of those rules but still tried to scam me by bringing extra people. She lied about extra  electronic keys for her b/f and another couple, that turned out to be for the third couple. Then 10 minutes after I left them they signaled another friend to come in. (My friend happened to be waiting for me outside so she saw where that woman has waiting).

Also I have security camera monitoring the gate entrance so it's easy to see whose getting in and out.

The first thing the next morning when I realized there were 6 people staying in the house I called Airbnb about the best course of action to deal with this situation. So far I'm dealing with a very understanding CX who said that Airbnb has a Zero Tolerance to House Rules Violations policy. He suggested to contact the guest and I could definitely charge for extra guests. Although I would rather have guests comply or leave and live in a quite and peaceful house than get extra $. 

I sent a polite email to a guest to review the House rules again and honor the terms of rental to which she agreed. That was in the morning, not only she didn't reply she kept letting other friends in and the third couple stayed.

I'm honestly at lost how to deal in a situation when you have to terminate a rental and evict the guest. I'm concerned with a damage that they might cause or create a nuacense in a neighborhood that is pretty quiet. I read your story and realized that terminating a rental because guests violated the house rules can be a punisment for the host.

What I came to think is to put a prohibitive pricing for extra guests in excess of allowed maximum in the house rules. Thus the guest who booked  would know that there are financial consequences for the house rules violation. Otherwise our house rules have no teeth.

I guess that my current guests who came to a huge music festival thought that they would be ok with paying small fee for an extra person if they get caught.

Anyway I sent another email to the guest staying that they were in gross violation and they will be charged $50 per person per day until 3pm and $100 per person per day after that. I'm editing the House Rules to add $150 per extra person. The point of it is to make it more feaible for them to book another place for those extra guests.

BTW the guest still hasn't reply but Airbnb said they will be on my side. They check out tomorrow so I'll keep you updated.

[Huma0]

@Natasha3 what happened? Did you get the extra guest fees in the end?

[Natasha3]

@Huma0 It started all very optimistic then went downhill when it came to a Resolution Center.

I posted about  Airbnb Policies from a Supervisor here

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Hosting/Airbnb-doesn-t-have-a-mechanism-to-enforce-your-House-Ru...

In brief, 

• if you have a flat rate for your unit then Airbnb will charge $0 per any  additional guest over allowed maximum. 
• if your listing and house rules explicitly say $$$ per person exceeding maximum they will still enforce only what you set for extra person in Pricing Section. (For instance, I put a "prohibitive rate" for over max guests because I don't  want them at any price - still they will only apply my regular per person rate).

Honestly, what she said contradicts what the other CX told me, contradicts my previous experience with CX regarding House Rules violations, doen't make any sense and I started to question whether there is a legal basis for such approach.

The same as @Farah1 I will continue to dig with this case further. It's not a matter of monetary dispute now but what  Airbnb's does, can do, what their policies mean when they say Zero Tolerance to House Rules Violations. Or whether we are at a mercy of a particular CX's knowledge and attention skills.

[Farah1]

@Natasha3 I suggest that you reach out to them via twitter if you haven't and/or ask to speak to a supervisor.

[Farah1]

Hi everyone,

As I mentioned before that I tried my best to *fight* for justice through phone calls, emails, and tweets via Twitter. The case manager who handled the case said that the decision was final and that was it.

I want to share an update on this case. I received a phone call from one of the supervisors about this case. She was friendly and respectful. I explained to her about what happened and she apologized that the case was not handled ideally the first time. She agreed that I should not be punished for following my house rules and Airbnb policy. She apologized for what happened and how the case managers treated me when this issue happened. I need to give credit to this supervisor and I appreciate her time and assistance. She sent me the remaining payout, so I will receive my payout in full. She said that guest isn't entitled to a refund if they break house rules.

I am grateful for this. I am glad that my hard work is paid off - what goes around come around. I hope I will never need to deal with this kind of issue again.

@Jessica & Henry @Annette @Jann3 @Ange @Kate @Kelly @Alice & Jeff @Huma

[Huma0]

@Farah1 I'm so pleased to hear this. Well done to you for pursuing it and getting a just result. It is still a shame that it depends so much on the individual case manager you get on the phone and that you had to go through so much schlep to get there, but I'm glad it worked out in the end.

[Huma0]

Also, @Farah1 thanks very much for the update. Many people post on the forums and get lots of feedback/support but then never come back to tell us what happened! It's good to know the final outcome.

[Farah1]

@Huma0 agreed that it is still unfortunate that sometimes we need to depend on our "luck" to have our case resolved.

You are very welcome! I hope that this thread can be helpful for others.

[Andrea9]

Congratulations @Farah1! And thank you for the update. Goes to show persistance does pay off!

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Farah1

Thank you for the update!!! Such good news!!! 

I'm glad you got your payout as you deserve and that the supervisor (=ABB)  acknowledged that you did nothing wrong by insisting that your house rules and ABB policy be followed. I'm also really really glad to hear the guest won't get a refund!!! All things considered, too bad this wasn't handled properly the first time around, but I'm glad you hung in there! 

[Kelly149]

@Farah1 Great news farah. Hope it leads to more education and better follow through for the rest of CS. 

Thanks for updating