Reviews. Airbnb allow guests to downrate Hosts based on what's NOT in the listing!!!

[Anne8842]

I don't offer shoe polish to my guests or polish their shoes or scrub guest's backs. I also don't offer food or tea/coffee in my listing (as it happens I do provide milk, tea/coffee, etc. regardless). We can think of many examples of services that AREN'T provided in our listing as a Host. I had 4.8 when a guest marked me down by a mere ONE star and stated it was because I didn't provide food and she had to help herself to tea/coffee.

I tried so hard to get Airbnb to remove her Review because it immediately knocked me down to 4.6!! They simply said it hadn't gone against Airbnb's Policy. THAT's because their Policy fails to include a sentence stating the Guest must a) read the Listing before booking; and b) be factual in keeping with what is offered in a Host's listing. I have since had 6 guests ALL giving me 5/5 Reviews and I STILL haven't reached 4.8 again!!

PLEASE help me get Airbnb to incorporate a) and b) into their Policy. Any of us can have this happen if the guest fails to read our listing and decides they're unhappy about something we don't offer in our listing that they would like us to.

[Gesia1]

Well this just happened to me. I had a quest that couldn download a video game bcause according to Airbnb safety rules you should not allowd downloading. So she didnt like that she could not download the game so she damaged my stove oven. She bitted up eggs and trhrew them all over the oven and turned it on, then she went on to write a review saying that mystove didnt work  and that it took for ever to make scrambled eggs also she wrote in the review that I didnt have cable tv. lots of Host dont even have TVs I have Nexflix and You Tube you can see it all there  I was onthe 5 star range ready to become aSuper Host every quest had given me 5 stars and this Guest has lied. Well she gave me a 4 star  and now like you that brought my points dow,. Also after this I have not have any more bookings. I called Costumer Service on this and like you they gave me all kinds of stories Oh dont worry you will get up there again, well there is nothing we can do because that is the quest opinion, I really got so angry  how can you just favor the quest with out finding out the truth. IFirst of all I have in my qQuide book rules that I wont accept quests younger than 25, well they Some hoe instant bookt her. The quest lied to them about the ammount of people and booked as if she was the only quest. Then she messaged me that there would be 8 only 4 showed up. But they left my place a mess, They left a bathroomwindow open, lights on, and a mest up kitchen oven. I have started t file a complaint against this quest and it has been an ordeal. I send them the photos of the oven, empty bottles of beer inside a kitchen cabinet a burnt expensive bathroom towel but I am not so good of a quest according to this bratty 23 years old quest

I think that perhaps is not worth listing my huse with Airbndb because I can see the writting on the wall about people damaging thing and the property and even when I myself ademand a deposit in casese like this wich is the rule . I am having a hard time getting the help they have written that they give host in situations like this. They told me they wont remove the review of this guest. I wonder if that quest has a friend working for Airbnb ?  

[Gesia1]

Also the Quest is supposed to read the rules before AirBandB approves them I dont know where on the gGuest page it will appear that they have to agree to the Host rules. But  in any case if you have your Quest Book and they dont follow your rules then they shall be held liable.

[Derek157]

The rating system is disgracefully biased against Hosts.  AirBnB should realise that it is actually the HOST who is paying their wages, NOT the Guest, since the amount paid for the accommodation is abated by AirBnB's service fee.  Additionally, guests may leave degraded markings without giving any explanation.  For example, if a guest has read the description of the place properly, there is no reason to mark it as a 4 or less for "Location" unless it is blatantly untrue, in which case they should complain to Air BnB.  They should also be required to put a brief comment for any marking less than a 5.  There is little point in marking "Cleanliness in Common Areas" with a 3 if you do not say why the mark was downgraded.  The Host will know that as far as he or she can tell, the place has been properly cleaned but needs to know if anything has been overlooked - it does happen!  What is even more annoying is if a departed guest is politely challenged by AirBnB message to tell the Host what issues caused the downgrade and they don't bother to reply.  In that case AirBnB, having been shown the message and lack of response, should remove the offending low mark.  AirBnB - by all means protect your guests but also remember that with hosts leaving the system because of dissatisfaction with the marking system, the guest's options in a particular area are reduced.

[Ange2]

@Anne8842      I agree, it is totally egregious but as far as I can tell Airbnb will never change it. Their new policy of making reviews "relevant" and removing irrelevant reviews  is a total wash because they say  "if it is useful to guests" they will not remove it, "useful"  covers anything and everything for future guests who do not read.  And if it's dishonest and nasty that doesn't matter because for some reason it's "useful" too. 

[Anne8842]

It's so unfair to Hosts. I now have had 9 x 5/5 reviews since that one put me down from 4.8. That one marked me 5 x 5/5 stars and 1 x 4/5. I'm still not back to 4.8. I now have to ask all guests not to mark me down for not providing food even though my Listing doesn't say I do (I don't). I'm just waiting for someone to mark me down for not polishing their shoes or scrubbing their back or providing a jaccuzi, none of which are offered in my listing.

We MUST all get together and ask Airbnb to include in their Policy a) Guest must read Listings before booking; and b) Guest NOT to downrate a Host on something that's NOT offered in the listing. Then the Hosts are protected. I don't know how many more 5/5s I need to get back to 4.8!!