Terrible guests, no support from Airbnb

[Melissa3002]

I had terrible guests a couple of weeks ago. They asked for early check-in which I could not accommodate. They checked in 3.5 hrs early anyway while the cleaners were still there & finishing up. Guests messaged me the house was in great condition & the cleaners had left it in perfect shape. Guests had 1 pet on the reservation but brought 2 & refused to pay the pet fee saying the 2nd dog was a service animal. Neighbors made 3 noise complaints in less than 2 hours over the dogs being unattended & the continuous barking. After messaging the guests, I received several rude messages in response when they returned to the rental 7hrs later. I contacted support in regards to the dog as well as unauthorized guests not on the contract. The guests told support they wanted to terminate their stay & requested a full refund due to the home "being messy" in which support allowed. Check out is by 10am. The guests refused to leave the property until 2 days later when security at the resort was involved. These guests stole several items from the cable tv boxes, decorations, towels, hair dryers, dishes, etc as well as leaving dog waste all over the property. When they vacated the home they left the propane oven on 350* which caused a significant fire risk. Everything was reported to support. I do not have original receipts for most items that were stolen so I did not ask for reimbursement. I did ask for additional cleaning fees for the pet waste and compensation from the early check in & check out. Its been 3 weeks & support has made no determination, they have requested more photos of the pet waste, they are asking for a website for the subcontractor (which they do not have) & more documentation of the guests not checking out when they were supposed to even though I provided time & date stamped video footage of the guests finally leaving. Do hosts really not have any recourse for guests like these? Does support automatically side with guests regardless of what they do? Im at a loss of what I can do as well as being out of $3k for this reservation. Thanks in advance!

[Melissa3002]

Yes ma'am! Very detailed too. They could've burned not only our house down but the surrounding houses too since it's in a campground.

[Joan2709]

@Melissa3002

Don’t see your review? Did Airbnb remove it?

[Melissa3002]

I can see it on her profile. It was 3 weeks ago

[Joan2709]

@Melissa3002 

Not seeing it on your listing?

All the ones I see for July were good reviews from you? 

[Melissa3002]

The guest did not leave me a review. They checked out 8/10

[Joan2709]

@Melissa3002 

Yes..even if they didn't leave a review your review of them should appear after 14days. I don't see your review of them.

[Melissa3002]

I have no idea. When I go to the guest page it's the last review she has. If it was taken down would I still be able to see it?

[Joan2709]

@Melissa3002 

Ok...I understand now. Since they didn't leave a review, it won't appear on your listing, but you as Host can see the review you left them on the Host side. 

Sorry for the confusion. I'm kinda shocked they didn't try to retaliate against you so that's a good thing. 😊

[Melissa3002]

I was notified today by Zara, in support that my review was removed. This is exactly why guests like this keep getting away with things & hosts don't know to stay away from them.

[Joan2709]

@Melissa3002 

Well...it would depend on what you wrote in the review. If it violated any of Airbnb review content policies, then the guest can request the review be removed. If you mentioned anything about the "fake" service animal, that would be grounds for Airbnb to remove your review, as it is considered discrimination. Even if it is likely this was a pet and not a Servicie animal. Also, if you don't have proof the guest stole anything, you cannot mention that in your review.

It's better to be vague and say something like:

"Important House Rules were broken, there were XX unregistered guests on the property, and unexpected additional cleaning was required after this guest's stay. We cannot recommend these guests to other Hosts and would not host these guests again."

I agree the Review system is broken. A guest can write a review full of false information in retaliation against a Host who is enforcing House Rules or files a damage claim and the review remains. 

[Melissa3002]

I hate it for other hosts that will see their good reviews without knowing what they've done. 

[Joan2709]

@Melissa3002 

I hate this as well.

Did Airbnb tell you why they removed your review? They should tell you why they did (what content violated their review policies). 

The only way to prevent a review you write about a guest from being removed is if you use the wording I suggested, as none of that wording violates Airbnb content policies. This is the only way a guest like this will be stopped.

[Melissa3002]

It said I disclosed personal information in the review. I should have reviewed the policies again & reworded it like you suggested.