Host is claiming false damages

Victoria1263
Level 2
Airdrie, Canada

Host is claiming false damages

So a little bit of background... my friends stayed at an air b n b within the last week. They wrote a great review for the hosts. Now the host has written a horrible review on them saying they damaged a bunch of property and they are trying to charge them 1000$ for damage. I know for sure they did not damage it. That stuff was damaged when they got there.  She is also saying they stole stuff. I’m unsure what we can do about it as this is completely not true and inconvenient. Can anyone help direct me to the right place to deal with this. 

4 Replies 4
Linda108
Level 10
La Quinta, CA

On the Air BNB platform, the burden of proof for a damage claim falls on the host and Air BNB decides if there is validity of the claim how much that claim is worth.  If the guests, your friends, are very sure that they did not cause any damage, either by negligence or accidentally, they would reject the claim and the host would provide necessary proof.  This process is very much on the side of the guest, not the host.

@Victoria1263  You say you know for sure that your friends did not cause the damage. Do you mean that you were a part of this group, and therefore an eyewitness? Or do you happen to be in possession of empirical evidence that would be useful to your friends? 

 

As @Linda108  says, the burden of proof falls on the person who files the claim, and it's pretty rare for Airbnb to grant a damage claim that large without a truly extreme incident. But if you show up at a property and immediately notice that it's damaged, obviously the first thing you'd do is contact the host to report the state of things that you found, so that you're not assumed to be responsible for it later. That's kind of a no-brainer. What guests might not always realize, unfortunately, is that it's especially important to make that contact within the Airbnb messenger so that there is a paper trail in the event of a claim.

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Victoria1263  I find it pretty odd that you are posting this, when you don't seem to have been a part of this booking. Can your friends who made the booking not write a post themselves? And you have no way of knowing whether they caused damage or not if you weren't there. Just because they're your friends doesn't mean they are incapable of causing damage. People can damage things without even being aware that they have, it doesn't necessarily have to be purposeful.

 

I had a guest who called me up to her room 5 minutes after checking in to point out that the shelf in the closet was loose (I had noticed it while cleaning, but forgot to screw it back in properly). Because she didn't want to be blamed for it. That's what smart guests do.

 

The fact they wrote a great review isn't in any way material. It was obviously a nice place if they left a great review. Reviews aren't about "You write me a great review and I'll write you one."  They are meant to be honest, whatever that encompasses.

 

Perhaps the host is making it up, but none of us have any way of knowing. Reading past reviews the host has left of previous guests is usually a good clue. If the host has a pattern of leaving bad reviews and criticizing their guests, then I'd doubt the host. If they don't, and your friends are new to Airbnb and have no reviews, I'd believe the host. If your friends had reviews and they were good, it would be hard to know who to believe.

Cormac0
Level 10
Kraków, Poland

@Victoria1263 

 

I don't know or care how old you are, but what you've written is the sort of statements I'd expect of a ten year old child.

 

Cormac say, I did not stay at this Airbnb but I'm sure the hosts is telling the truth...

 

Now do you understand?