Host responded rudely

[Noreen24]

We have a stay booked for September for three nights. In feb we sent a friendly message asking a question and saying how excited we were. No response. Figuring it was early, we let it go. Last week we sent another message saying we knew it was early, but we were organizing and asked about best way from airport. Again very friendly.  When we didn’t hear back we messaged again saying we were a bit concerned that we haven’t heard back.  We actually thought she may not have received. 

The answer we got back was so rude! She said ” for goodness sake take a look at my profile. I have three bookings today!!  I’ll get back to you later.”

We responded again calmly and friendly. That we understand she is busy and could have just said that rather than the way she did. But we were still looking forward to our stay and would reach out again as we got closer.  

Her response was I will not be told how to respond and  “ reach out” is an American expression.  And that she no longer feels comfortable with us as guests. 

She said she would contact airbnb and get back to us that day. That was three days ago.  We have stayed in so many places and have had the best connections both before, during and after our stays. We are so stunned by this. 

Now we are the ones that don’t feel comfortable. 

Any suggestions on best way to handle? We have copies of the messages. 

[Ava30]

As a host myself, not responding is unacceptable, especially this far in advance. If it were me as the traveler, if I could cancel with no penalty I would. You might check first though to see if someone else can accomodate you. Since I don't know where you are going and how hard lodging is to acquire, I cannot comment more than that. You can also contact Airbnb yourself, especially if you are now uncomfortable with this host. You don't want your vacation ruined with tension from the host before you even get there. I have one listing and a business that requires a great deal of my attention, but I ALWAYS respond to guests, usually within a few minutes but never more than a couple of hours. Good Luck, I hope it works out well for you. 

[Noreen24]

Thank you for response. Yes, I too get back to clients quickly. I do understand life gets busy and extra time may be needed. 

But it takes the same time to write a professional kind response as it does a  rude one.  And I still don’t understand the “American” comment. 

Appreciate your understanding!

[Kelly149]

can't hurt to call CS and ask if you can be allowed to stay somewhere else. They might take care of it at no penalty to either of you.

If communication beforehand is important to you and you have enough time to plan ahead then you might be better off to have more interaction with the host before you book (do an inquiry rather than IB) 

Good luck

[Noreen24]

This was not an instant book. 

We were just sending a quick question that came up as we were making plans. 

We have never had a host act like this, so we it won’t put us off.  We love Airbnb and always appreciate the hosts and their hospitality. 

We are lucky to be able to travel a lot,  so it’s bound to happen I guess. 

Thanks for help! We contacted CS and were told we would hear back. 

[John1574]

@Noreen24

Hi Noreen, can you please copy and paste a link to this host's profile page.

I think we'd all like to see it.

I'd consider it fair play to you.

That's not an American expression!

Thumbs up if you like a post.

[Noreen24]

I will do that once I see how it unfolds with CS. 

Btw my niece goes to school in RI may be “reaching out” to you in the future. 🙂

Thanks for the support!

[John1574]

@Noreen24

We have a great place right near Brown & RISD, not far from RIC or from PC.

Com'on down.

[Lisa723]

I detest the phrase “reach out” as do many I know but I wouldn’t comment on it in a reply to a guest. 🙂 

[Noreen24]

That’s interesting. I would not  have thought that phrase would bother anyone. Good to know though. I will use “contact you” in the future. 

I have phrases I don’t like as well. But like you said, I don’t respond to clients that way. 

Thanks for reply! 🙂

[Patricia55]

@Lisa723

Heh, thought it was just me... 😉

[Rachel0]

I also hate the expression "reach out" - it sets my teeth on edge.  However, @Noreen24, that does not excuse the behaviour of your host and if I were you I would be looking for somewhere else to stay as if she is like this now, it does not bode well.  Where are you travelling to?

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

Personally I'm not a fan of the expression "reach out" ....... I'm not sure if this is accurate but when someone says they are reaching out (to me), it feels to me like that person is implying they are doing me a huge favor to help or benefit me by being the one to contact me first so it has always seemed like a very passive-agressive expression to use.

But regardless, the way that host responded/reacted to you @Noreen24 was plain rude and uncalled for - if I were the guest in that scenario, I'd want to contact ABB CS and use that reply as a reason to request a cancellation with no penalty to book somewhere else. (I'd check what other ABB options are available before initiating the request to cancel though.)

[Noreen24 · Accepted solution]

Hi Everyone,

i just wanted to update you all. We did contact Airbnb and the case manager cancelled our reservation  with no penalty.  She could see the correspondence and agreed it was out of line. 

We just booked another place, so we are  all set. 

Thanks for the help!

[Sarah977]

@Noreen24   So glad it worked out favorably for you. Inexcusable host communication- you're actually lucky she responded this way and you were able to secure alternative accomodation- I think she would have been unpleasant to deal with once you arrived, as her bad attitude is clear.

And BTW, I also can't stand the expression "reaching out".  It's just more newspeak for no discernable purpose- what's wrong with "I'm contacting you"?  I felt the same way when people started calling "signs" signage 🙂