Host staying as a guest - bad experience

[John1080]

Hello Everyone,

I haven't been on the Community Center in a while.  However, we are currently staying as a guest in an Airbnb and must say it is the worst place I've ever been, so I would like to see how some other hosts might approach this, since we know that mentioning things before check-out, both as a guest and as a host has the potential to bring forth a preemptive negative review. 

We have checked in and this place is absolutely disgusting. I won't go into the details, but it looks as if it hasn't been cleaned at all, including dirty dishes in the dishwasher, dried food on fridge, stove, etc, dust everywhere, dirty toilets, etc. 

The host has good reviews and it is not an inexpensive place, so I'm quite surprised this place doesn't have a 1-star rating in fact. If we were paying a minuscule amount, I would not be as upset, but my partner's father is visiting from out of the country and in this location, the rate, not only for this place but for the market is $400 a night for this time of year.

I did go back through all of them and have found a few reviews that mirror my complaints. The host did not respond very well and not professionally at all to these criticisms. Because of the Airbnb review system, I do not want to mention anything to him before we check out, as I do not want him to end up leaving me a negative review preemptively. (If I was not a host, concerned about how it could impact my listing, I would not even be concerned about it). 

I do care about my good rating as a guest, but I'm also concerned a negative review could impact my host profile.  I thought I had read a posting similar to this in the past, where a host said that in fact they believed it did, but I've been unable to locate that post this evening. 

I am thinking to either:

A) Leave a negative review after checkout and just be done with it. There is no reason that we should end up with a negative review, as I have not said anything to him as of yet. And, I can tell from his demeanor that he doesn't take hosting seriously, leaving "They were great guests" for the vast majority of his guests - the only negative reviews he's given seem to indicate that the guests did indeed make some comment or complaint to him before checking out. 

B) Contact Airbnb after checkout and explain the situation. I honestly don't even think this place should be on Airbnb!  I'm not overly concerned about a refund, although with the way this host has disrespected his guests by leaving things in such a terrible state, I feel there should be one issued. I don't know what Airbnb would do if I wait to contact them after the checkout period, as I've never had to handle this as a host before.  I would not want Airbnb to contact the host before he left his review, for obvious reasons. 

Has anyone had any issue similar or have any insights on this that I do not? Has anyone heard of a negative review as a guest impacting a host's profile? Other than of course, potential guests being able to read that negative review as part of my profile. Does it impact the algorithm or the ranking system for listings at all? 

Thanks!

John

[Cheryl389]

It's ideal to take pictures to document the situation. If you want a refund, it's better to contact Airbnb and/or your host ASAP to determine if something could be worked out. I host and spend 4 hours cleaning between guests to make sure that this doesn't happen, and this isn't something that I would find acceptable either. 

The rating system does really impact host profiles. Two people have given me 4s and it has dropped my score to the point where Airbnb might even issue me a warning. A 5 is meant to represent everything is okay, and a 4 means there are some problems detected with the listing or with the accomodations. Lower scores indicate an even worse situation. Offering a low rating would impact how the listing is placed in the search, and the host might be suspended. However, the only way to get your money back, even a portion, would be contacting customer service.

[Alice595]

@John1080 If the host has received a lot of good reviews which are much more than bad reviews, I would think that the cleanliness issue you saw could be just because the cleaning staff did not do a good job. Or they might have not had time to clean before you checked in. It could take literally a few minuets to make a place very dirty.  A guest had a party in my place and left tons of trash everywhere. It took two people six hours to clean.

 I suggest that you could tell him your concern about the cleanliness if it is just the cleanliness issue in a friendly way. I would encourage hosts to help hosts instead of doing something to damage each other.

[Ana1136]

@John1080 as a Superhost yourself you should report all the problems upon check in and he might be able to fix everything. It is the worst not to say anything and write a bad review. Also if you wanted a refund that is done after you said what is wrong and he didn't fix it and not after you finish yoir stay there while the host thinks everything is great. He might not even know what the place is like, maybe the cleaning staff didn't get a chance to do their job right. You will never know since you never complained. I am in no way saying that the host should be excused, leaving a clean space for the guests is number 1 priority. But you as a fellow host didn't handle the situation very well. 

[John1080]

Thank you everyone for your input.  I have not reported this particular incident because, as I mentioned, upon reviewing this host's past reviews, he has responded in a manner that is quite frankly, not stable. From the past incidences, where someone had complained or merely pointed out issues, he has 'freaked out' with his review on the guest's profile. Case in point, when someone had complained during his stay that there was trash in the trashcan and no new trash bags, his response was "There is a market down the street to buy trash bags".  As another example, when someone had mentioned that the dryer wasn't working and the host didn't attempt to fix it, his response was "This guest complained about the dryer, but this is off season, so this is really a first world problem."  As a host myself, I find this behavior from a host appalling and he obviously gives retalitory reviews to anyone who questions or points out issues within the space.

As you can see, this host is not really a reasonable or stable person, imo, and his history suggests the pointing out of any issues at all, small or great, result in him giving a poor review to the guest. 

Again, thank you all for your input, but my main question about whether receiving a poor review as a host being a guest could negatively impact the ranking of the host. Of course, to most, that question seems nonsensical, but since we all know the algorithm Airbnb uses for host rankings in searches is a mysterious creature, it's worth examining in such extreme cases such as these. 

[Helen3]

Honestly @John1080  I am suprised you are taking this view. You know that an irrational response from a host or guest amongst a sea of postive reviews for both your listing and as a guest will stand out like a sore thumb and anyone considering hosting you as a guest will see it for what it is.

The comments that you have quoted from the host about previous guests don't sound that bad at all and certainly don't make him sound unstable.

Also I am rather puzzled by your comment that you think a poor review as a guest will affect your ranking as a host this is a) not true one doesn't affect the other and b) you already said this host generally gives great reviews.

[Mark116]

@John1080   I doubt that your position as a host would be affected by a negative review as a guest, if only because airbnb doesn't care about negative guest reviews and never does anything to remedy a bad guest. 

I would still recommend that you tell the host the place doesn't look like it had been cleaned since the previous guests, it is possible there was a mix up of some kind and the cleaning people never arrived, as a host you know how terrible it is to be blindsided by a bad review when the guests never complained of anything, you should at least give the guy a chance to respond.

[John1080]

@Mark116 ,  thanks. Yes, I am inclined to agree that I should notify you because as a host, I would want to know if my staff had not done their job. However, when we arrived, he himself was here and it appeared he was the cleaner. He said, "Oh, I just happened to be here," but my intuition tells me he was 'cleaning' it himself in this case. 

I also doubt that a negative review for 'complaining,' which seems likely given the history of this host would impact my host status or rating (again, to everyone, yes that seems like a silly proposition in the first place, but of course, it's always better to be sure, since we all know the wacky things Airbnb does from time to time). 

[Linda108]

@John1080   From your responses to the feedback from other hosts, it appears you have decided to provide a negative review without notifying the host in advance and allow him to correct the situation.  The lack of cleanliness seems to be not visible with a cursory inspection as you would have upon check in.  I do not believe that guest reviews are included in the host review rating, but would affect your rating as a guest.

While you are not seeking a refund it is too bad that your holiday was negatively impacted by the lack of cleanliness.  I suggest that you own that you did not report your issue to the host because of your concern for the host's previous reaction to other guests' reports.

Your post is an important reminder to all hosts that how we respond to guest feedback will affect the mutual respect that we all need to have between guests and hosts.  Thanks

[Helen3]

Hello @John1080 

It's a shame an an experienced host like yourself didn't check this hosts reviews before deciding to stay with them.

I don't think a guest should ever be afraid of contacting a host for fear of a bad review. You have done nothing wrong. It is the host not you who should be concerned about a bad review.

You said you are concerned about contacting Airbnb/the host because the host  hasn't responded well to previous guest complaints. I think any host considering you are a guest in the future, will see your reviews as a host and previous guest reviews and will put any remarks from this in context. So this is not something you should be concerned about. 

You know you could have contacted the host to resolve the issues within 24 hours of arrival  and if they couldn't be resolved Airbnb would have cancelled and help you find something else. Quite honestly I am suprised something as minor of fear of a bad reaction from the host, would have made you stay somewhere that sounds so dreadful and that YOU describe it  'as the worst place you ever stayed in'.

[Emilia42]

@John1080, what ever happened with this? Did you ever end up enjoying your stay? Have you decided not to review the host?

[Lilly28]

@John1080 

Perhaps I am the only host/on the forum/ who finds being in your shoes must be so unpleasant situation - that better not telling the host anything, wait 12 or even 13-14 days - and write your bad review.  Once dealing with a person who thinks he is always right - as I understand is the fact with your host - there is nothing you can do to repair the situation. I am sure if you tell your complains to the host - you will be emotionally turned down. Why suffer more than you did until now just to help someone who  does not deserve it? Do you think he is a person who respects you/as a person or as a guest/ or who  one who you will be glad to grant him your respect? Go your way, is my opinion.  

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

 @John1080  what happened at the end?

For 400$ / night I wouldn't stay in a dirty accommodation. I would take pictures, contact the host, ask him to clean the place and if he wouldn't then I would call Airbnb, ask for a refund and find another place to stay.

[Ana1136]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 but he obviously felt the solution was to stay in a dirty home, not tell anything and write a bad review in the end while being upset all his vacation because of what might the host answer 🙂 I should be the least of his worries, as a paying customer he has the right to have a clean space if nothing else.