Offensive review

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Helen245
Level 2
Manchester, United Kingdom

Offensive review

I've just had to turn a guest away for the first time as they basically set up a fraudulent account. I tried to help them, tried to get airbnb to help them and in return I received 3 days of offensive messages and calls.

They didn't accept any responsibility for their actions and refused to understand that their behaviour was in the wrong.

They told Airbnb that I was racist, which I had to point out didn't make any sense as they specifically told me they wanted to book with me because of my reviews. My reviews are from people from all over the world, no prejudice here.

 

Now they have left me a review that has been made public on my account calling me a racist and a thief. I understand that we will all get bad reviews from time to time, but this one is shocking.

Airbnb claim it doesn't breech their review policy, does anyone have any advice how to deal with this please?

1 Best Answer
Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Helen245  

 

I agree with @Ann72 that your response to the review was very good. Is there any reason you did not leave a review for the guest? By the way, he appears now to have verified his account so maybe he at least learnt something, but there's nothing there to warn other hosts about his behaviour.

 

Airbnb rarely remove guest reviews, but I'm a bit surprised by this one. I should think that calling you a racist was indeed a violation of the content policy

 

https://www.airbnb.co.uk/help/article/2673/airbnbs-review-policy?_set_bev_on_new_domain=1633439893_M...

 

which include

 

 

  • Profanity, name-calling, and assumptions about a person’s character or personality

 

In this case, I think that it's worth fighting for the review to be removed. Forget the rest of the review because Airbnb don't care when it's a "he said, she said" scenario. You should focus on him calling you a racist. That is not acceptable. If there was evidence of it, they would have (or should have) removed you for the platform.

 

If you do manage to get the review removed, make sure you ask Airbnb CS to remove the ratings too. They may tell you that's impossible, but it's not, because I have had a review + the ratings removed in the past. They can do it, they just say they can't.

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6 Replies 6
Ann72
Level 10
New York, NY

@Helen245  What a terrible experience!  I took a look at your listing.  I didn't see the bad review on the first page.  When I clicked to see all reviews, I found it by scrolling down.  This is because the reviews aren't organized by date.  

 

Your response was professional and reasonable, and I think any potential guest who does come across it will see that it was he and not you who was at fault.  You have absolutely stellar reviews from everybody else, and this one will quickly be pushed so far down that few will ever see it.

 

You can try again with Airbnb to get the review removed.  Sometimes persistence will win out.  Maybe at the very least you can convince them to move it to the very last page of all your reviews.  But if they won't, you don't have anything to worry about.

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Helen245  

 

I agree with @Ann72 that your response to the review was very good. Is there any reason you did not leave a review for the guest? By the way, he appears now to have verified his account so maybe he at least learnt something, but there's nothing there to warn other hosts about his behaviour.

 

Airbnb rarely remove guest reviews, but I'm a bit surprised by this one. I should think that calling you a racist was indeed a violation of the content policy

 

https://www.airbnb.co.uk/help/article/2673/airbnbs-review-policy?_set_bev_on_new_domain=1633439893_M...

 

which include

 

 

  • Profanity, name-calling, and assumptions about a person’s character or personality

 

In this case, I think that it's worth fighting for the review to be removed. Forget the rest of the review because Airbnb don't care when it's a "he said, she said" scenario. You should focus on him calling you a racist. That is not acceptable. If there was evidence of it, they would have (or should have) removed you for the platform.

 

If you do manage to get the review removed, make sure you ask Airbnb CS to remove the ratings too. They may tell you that's impossible, but it's not, because I have had a review + the ratings removed in the past. They can do it, they just say they can't.

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Helen245 

 

PS, I find it useful whenever Airbnb CS tell me something is in line with their policy to respond by directly quoting the policy back to them. You might have to do this a few times, but there's only so long they can continue to directly contradict themselves...

Branka-and-Silvia0
Level 10
Zagreb, Croatia

@Helen245  I agree with other hosts and their advice. I would just add something... guests' "verified" identity on Airbnb means nothing. In case a guest steals from you or attacks you Airbnb will not tell you the guest's name, maybe not even to the police.

 

So, if you want to know who has a key to your property you have to verify them yourself, on arrival. I take a picture of the ID or passport of every single guest in a group, including children. I don't care what nickname they use on Airbnb, they can change the name anyway, anytime. It means nothing.

 

If they reject to show the IDs they cannot stay.  In Croatia this is mandatory but I would do the same even if it isn't. It is written in my house rules as well.

 

Colleen253
Level 10
Alberta, Canada

@Helen245 Agree completely with @Huma0 that the review violates the  review policy and that persistence is needed to have it removed. Try using chat instead of calling, as that way you can link the policy and cut and paste the relevant section of it, exactly as Huma did here. Harder for them to push you off when the facts are staring them in the face. 

 

Helen245
Level 2
Manchester, United Kingdom

Can I just thank you all so much for your great advice and support. I was starting to feel a bit defeated by it, but I'll fight hard now to get it removed.

 

Thank you!