Airbnb alternates stay without consulting host - bad review, loose super host status

[Emiel9]

We had guest that wanted to end their stay with us because one of them is super alergic for cats and could not stay in the shared living. We offered them a solution and they told us to think about it. Then out of nowhere I received an alternation confirmation. The guest had contacted Airbnb and Airbnb support just changed the reservation to end that day. Airbnb didn't even contacted me!

The guests were able to make a review because the stay was not cancelled. They made a very bad review. Together with other situation in which guest didn't respond to messages, didn't show up and made bad review (Airbnb should have canceled the stay but didn't and also don't want to remove the review) my year average dropped to 4.7.  Now I loose me super host status which I already had for 2 years and Airbnb support tells me they will not remove the review.

More explanation: The guest wanted to end the stay because of the cats. Ofcourse we state there are pets (cats) living on the property and it's all over our reviews (because most people really like Ollie). We told the guests we understand but it's in the listing details and they booked a guestroom (no cats there). Then they added there was construction noise in the house. We had some construction noise during the day, but we had told them up-front there was construction going on.We told the guests the potential for noise during working days is also in the house rules and we are very sorry they missed it.

Because we are always booked and we don't want a bad review we told the guest we will find a solution. I told them we do not cancel a stay because we loose super host status and we are sorry but we didn't make the fault. But because we were sorry for the guests we offered them to stay at other property of us (they booked our guest room, the property we offered was whole house, seriously good location and nice). The people told us they will think about it. So they went to work and a few hours later I received the alternation confirmation. 

Because Airbnb just changed the reservation and didn't back me up by telling the guests they made a mistake not looking at the house rules, the people think I'm a bad host. They are very rude in message and told me to not contact them again because Airbnb fixed the problem for them. 

So I contacted Airbnb and they confirmed they should not have alternate the stay without contacting me. So Airbnb give is full refund. But they don't want to take away the bad review and this is very painful because I loose my super host status which I have for 2 years because of this bad review. I contacted Airbnb and they told me they will not remove the review. Also the case manager was quite aggressive when I asked to reconsider since Airbnb didn't back me up, made a mistake in the process on which I look very stupid for the guest. 

Please help me with this one, kind regards,

Emiel

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Emiel9  what can I tell you.. you know everything.... the worst reviews and complains come from guests who didn't read the listing and expected something else.

And from those whose plan has changed and wouldn't be refunded if they cancel so they just make up some lie, call Airbnb and voila! They are refunded for all the days not spent or even better - for the entire stay. And we are left without money and with a false review and bad rating.

my last guest ( I wrote a post about) already left me a review and I know it is a bad one. I may lose my superstatus as well. But with everything else I have to handle on an everyday basis it can't upset me anymore.... life is too short 🙂

[Emiel9]

Mistake

[Emiel9]

It's so unfair because Airbnb didn't follow there own rules/processes in both situations in which I get bad review. Almost all other reviews are 5 star. 

I think they should remove a review when Airbnb made these kind of mistakes because due to that mistake the guest had a bad experience with me. The guest think I'm not following the rules because Airbnb support just changed the reservation without backing me up + the other situation the stay had to be cancelled because it was instant booking and Airbnb promises that when you feel uncomfortable or a guest isn't replying on the messages, they will cancel the stay, but they didn't). 

I even disabled instant booking for a while because I felt unprotected and very bad about this situation! When I did Airbnb made it hard for me to disable with all kinds of warnings and telling me about the possibility of cancellation with instant booking etc. etc.

As hosts we put so much effort, a lot of people really don't realize. It's very bad that Airbnb didn't back us and follow their own processes.

[Anonymous]

@Emiel9  Be aware that it's been Airbnb's policy since 2018 that reservations that were terminated or cancelled on or after the check-in date are still eligible for reviews - even if the guest never physically arrived at the property.  A consumer-protection law in the United Kingdom forced them to make this a policy, and they have applied it globally.

You can not have a review removed just because the guest failed to read your listing. That said, if the text of the review violates their Content Policy, that would be a reasonable cause to have it removed. I don't see any reviews from the last few months on your profile that fit your description; are you sure they didn't remove it?

One more tip - even though the cats are disclosed in your Policies, I recommend either featuring them more prominently in the listing text and photos, or verifying that guests are aware of them before accepting a booking request. It's not that you've broken any rules, it's just that it might help spare you from these issues in the future.

[Karen-and-Brian0]

@Anonymous yes for sure, photos of the cats are essential - guests don't read but they almost always look at the photos. 

[Emiel9]

Dear @Anonymous , thank you for your reply.

Actually I don't want the review removed because the ended their stay or cancelled. I want it to be removed because Airbnb didn't follow their own processes. The stay was alternated without contacting me as a host.

Due to this the guest think I'm a bad host because I told them I cannot cancel their stay because I than loose my super host status.  So me and the guest decided to find another solution. Then they contacted Airbnb without informing me. Airbnb just changed the reservation and didn't back my story. The guest now think I'm a bad host because it was so easy for them to change the reservation by calling Airbnb.

I can imagine the guest think it's strange, but actually Airbnb should have told them it's not a reason to change the stay and they at least should have contacted me.

PS I didn't make a review for the guest yet, to postpone the publishing of their review.

[Anonymous]

@Emiel9  As far as I can tell, Airbnb followed the process that is triggered when the guest reports a Travel Issue, and Airbnb decides that they satisfy the requirements for a full refund rather than the terms of your cancellation policy. In this scenario, the guest is supposed to demonstrate that they've made an effort to resolve the issue with the host first, and might be asked to provide evidence, but honestly the operator on the case probably just wanted it off their desk as quickly as possible. 

Clearly you're much more concerned about the review than the refund. I'm not sure how you can be aware of the content of the review and ratings if you haven't published your own review yet, but assuming you're correct about it being negative, it's still entirely plausible that you will retain your Superhost badge due to a) the fact that it's not a host cancellation, and b) the effect of even a 1-star rating may be diluted in the sheer volume of other ratings you receive. Even though the Airbnb rep should have done more due diligence (e.g. checked your listing for the disclosures about the cats and construction), this has nothing to do with the fact that the guest is still entitled to write a review. That's an entirely separate issue.

The only thing you can do is publish an honest review of the guest so that you can go ahead and see what they have written. Check it against Airbnb's Content Policy to verify that it doesn't clearly violate any of the rules. If it does, you can then try having it removed on that basis. If it doesn't, prepare a gracious and factual Host Response addressed to your prospective guests to put this review into context. I think you might be overestimating the impact one review out of over 300 will have on your future as a host. 

[Emiel9]

@Anonymous thank you! It is indeed not the money, but the dishonest review which I'm concerned about. I do so much for the guests and this guest was out for the money.

Update: so I had to make the review because it was the last day, so I did. And I got a 1 star review. I think my first one:(. I have to write a response on the review so I will later.

As far as I know they didn't violated the review policy so probably I cannot ask to remove with this reason.

Because of this review and the other one I mentioned in earlier post I'm at 4.7. So I will loose my super host status if I don't fix it before the end of this month. This is so unfair compared to all effort I put in Airbnb and since I follow all procedures and Airbnb made a mistake.

Almost all my guests that did stay with me following the normal Airbnb procedures giving me a high rating.

@Anonymous  or other host, any advice on how to solve this before end of the month?

Please note Airbnb alternated the stay, so they changed the end date to the date the guest was calling.

[Anonymous]

@Emiel9 The best thing you can do is stop stressing about this arbitrary Superhost thing. You're a great host, the vast majority of your guests are happy, and you will continue to get bookings from more guests because this stupid review is only 1 out of 326. What you should do is write a calm Host Response that addresses the issues and corrects the things that aren't true, with your future guests in mind as the audience. 

And then you should keep on doing your job as usual. "Superhost" is not real; it's just a Silicon Valley tool of psychologically manipulating people based on primal status anxiety. The fact is, you have a successful business and Airbnb is not your boss - it's just a service you happen to be using. Don't lose sight of that, and you'll be fine.

[Emiel9]

Anyone?

[David6]

@Emiel9 

I have been at war with Airbnb the past few months . Like you, because of retaliatory reviews I’m also at 4.7 now .

there is literally nothing we can do. I reached out to the new head of hosting, she just replied like a corporate robot citing airbnb policy re reviews. I already KNOW!!! So I had to let it go reluctantly. 

One day a new competitor will enter market. I’ll dance in the street, and airbnb will regret the total disregard they show hosts. It’s happened with so many companies in the past and Airbnb are feeling untouchable at this time. Let’s see in a couple of years... 

[Emiel9]

Hi David, please note I'm not complaining because the review is bad. People can have a bad experience or write something because they experienced a situation different.

In my case I would like to have the review removed because the process isn't followed as it should (see my previous messages).

Actually Airbnb already confirmed earlier that they made a mistake by not backing me up regarding the house rules and by not consulting me before the alternation. They also compensated me.

That leaves me with an injustice feeling regarding the review. Actually that's for me a bigger deal than the money. It feels very unfair to have this review since I followed all procedures and Airbnb made a mistake.

Today I called Airbnb support and the operator was friendly, understanding and they will take a look at this specific situation. I have a good feeling after that conversation, maybe it's going to work out fine and the review will be removed. Still it was a bad few days for me as a host but these things happen and we also have very good experiences. And a mistake can be made, if they remove the review then I cannot complaint and just hope it will not happen again

[Linda108]

Pretty sure that no hosts have the magic bullet for dealing with your concern about Air BNB making a mistake in the handling of your situation.  I totally agree with @Anonymous .  I have been through losing the SH status due to a low rating due to guest error in reading the listing.  Now I have SH back and frankly I do not see any difference in bookings.