Airbnb bullying hosts and failing to conduct fair and transparent processes

[Shelley220]

Hi,

We have just had  our listing of 13 years cancelled.  We have been removed from the Airbnb community for failing to meet their safety standards!!! We however have not been told what the complaint was or what the safety standard was that we breached.  We had two young girls staying at our property.  Their booking was for 2 people and they brought friends along and an extra mattress.  They moved furniture on the property and left lights, fans and heaters on all day and night while they were not there.  WE live in a sub tropical location so there was no need for heaters.  When we asked them about the extra guests and asked if we could inspect the property just to make sure and subsequently asked them to remove the extra guests they complained. While we were doing the inspection we noticed that they had broken a blind. We raised this with them and we are now de listed.  13 years of excellent ratings seem to mean nothing to Airbnb.  They refuse to speak to us and have just cut us off.  Disgraceful way to behave.  Every business must have a fair dispute resolution process. Airbnb does not.  They say that they reviewed all the relevant documentation.  This is a complete nonsense, there was no documentation.  Just two young very badly behaved young ladies that have been allowed to manipulate the system.  Airbnb are bullies.

[Rowena29]

Hi @Shelley220 

so sorry you have had this negative and very unfair experience.

Unfortunately this is about the 8th or 9th very similar story I have read on these boards.

Of course I have no idea, but my very strong suspicion is that the girls ( in retaliation) have accused you of 1 of 2 things

privacy violation - undisclosed security cameras

harassment ( possibly sexual)

That would account for the instant closing down with no communication ( i'm not for a second saying I agree,  just saying that's what would explain airbnb's actions)

There's a couple of things you could consider.

Apparently reaching out to airbnb via twitter is far more effective , gets  more experienced  CS

You could present your side of the story on social media - approach a local journo - airbnb is terrified of  bad press

List with another booking agency such as Homeaway - never pays to have all your eggs in one basket

None of this is any help in the short term I know and does nothing to help your frustration with being completely ignored. I think you will find in a couple of weeks contact will be made - they are investigating ( very slowly) and the outcome will very probalby be that you are re instated ( if you want to be!!)

For the future - and it's very easy to be wise in hindsight - the SECOND you were aware of the extra guests I would have been on the phone to airbnb so your side of the story was registered first and I personally would have been asking for the booking to be cancelled.  Guests like this are always going to be trouble - better to get them off your property before they can do any more damage, other than leave a negative review.

Other hosts may have different/better ideas.

Good luck with this.

It all seems to dreadfully unfair adn there is nothing worse than being kept in the dark and a complete lack of transparency and communication.

Perhaps one of the moderators will see this post and tag it for Customer Service.

Keep us updated

[Rowena29]

@Sarah977; @Anonymous; @Susan0; @Alexandra0;@Lawrene

Not sure if these tags are going to work.

Just trying to get a few more hosts to reach out and support - )has got a bit buried in the recents due to time zone)

Cheers

[Drew2303]

Thanks, Rowan. It raises my spirit a bit, knowing that it’s not just me. Your thoughts and advice regarding this matter mirror my own thoughts. 

[Anonymous]

@Shelley220  I'm sorry to hear about your sudden removal from the platform. Unfortunately, the Terms of Service that hosts agree to do completely allow for Airbnb to terminate a listing or account at any time without explanation.  

I don't know how you managed to have a 13-year listing, since Airbnb has only existed for 11 years. But if you're a long-term host with no prior complaints, it would have been better for Airbnb to take this into consideration and grant your case a thorough investigation. 

Here's an article about a host who has been through a similar problem: https://globalhostingblogs.com/2019/03/06/when-an-airbnb-host-is-terminated-based-on-false-statement...

I hope you are able to get some answers about the nature of the complaint, as without it it's impossible to know how best to proceed.

[Kevin2193]

isnt an executive or anyone from airbnb looking at what hosts are saying?

[Anonymous]

@Kevin2193 I don't know if any executives are looking at posts from 2 years ago, but here's a rather dark observation:  they might believe that it's in their own interests for hosts to be in constant fear of being cancelled. If you really think about it, that's the whole spirit of the "superhost" program - no matter how many years of consistent excellence you have under your belt, you know your stupid orange badge is only a reflection of how well you've been able to avoid retaliatory ratings in the last 12 months, so in practice it's only a tool to nudge you away from filing damage claims and enforcing your rules. The maximum reward for fulfilling its demands is $100 per year, or $0.27 per day of consistently excellent hosting, and yet many hosts have had their heads bashed into submission beyond all reason out of the sheer terror of the dopamine drop they'll experience if they find themselves in the totally arbitrary lower tier. 

Four times a year, these forums are flooded with posts from hosts who are emotionally devastated by the loss of their stupid badge, or terrified that it might slip away from their grasp. This is insanity - grownups should not be pegging their emotional stability to getting a shiny sticker from a website - but if you're going to involve Silicon Valley in your business you have to be aware that it assumes you're a dopamine addict with the emotional intelligence of a preschooler. 

[Shelley220]

Thanks Andrew,

We have been listing our home with Stayz.com, Booking.com and more recently Airbnb for 13 years.  We have never had a problem of any kind.  The article is very helpful.  I am just completing an application to American Association of Arbitrators, requesting that Airbnb come to a formal mediation.   I have tried to call these girls both of whom are from New Zealand.   I have also engaged a lawyer in New Zealand and we are taking action against them.  Some people have advised that the only two reasons that they could have provided that would have made Airbnb take us down would be undisclosed security cameras or sexual harassment.  We have a security camera, our insurance company makes us have it,  it is covered with a sock and it is disclosed in our manual.  Therefore they have accused us if sexual harassment.  That is very serious and legally able to be defended.  I will keep you updated.

[Sarah977]

@Shelley220  There was a case like this in the US. A long-time host was delisted because a guest reported her to Airbnb for having a gun by the front door. It was actually a fake rubber gun and was in the dog basket- it was a dog toy. The host took Airbnb to court, as well as the guest, who refused to renege even when it was proven to be a toy. I think it is still in process, but I'm going to check with my friend who showed me the videos of the court case and see if I can get more info for you-It may have set some sort of precedent you could bring into the battle.

[Lisa723]

@Sarah977 FWIW it was not a dog toy. It was a prop for self-defense training. Not that this is material to your point. The host was eventually reinstated after she took Airbnb to court.

[Susan17]

@Shelley220 @Sarah977 @Mark116 @Lisa723 

The whole story, including images of the alleged "firearm"... 

Host takes guest to court

https://youtu.be/WgGngGlCBnw

Host takes Airbnb to court

https://youtu.be/oIrFlISFC1w

[Sarah977]

@Lisa723  Yes, it was a prop for a self-defense course. But then it got relegated to the dog toy basket. The point is, it wasn't a real gun and Airbnb delisted the host based on the guest's false allegation, without any investigation.

[Stephanie]

Hi there @Shelley220 ,

Thanks for sharing this and sorry to hear about the situation. I reached out to the CS team yesterday and they let me know they have shared with you the reason for this action. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Many thanks,

Stephanie

[Shelley220]

Thanks for responding Stephanie,

Do you work with Airbnb?  The reason that has been shared is that we breached the security standards.  Within the email that was sent was a link.  The link is connected to my husbands account that has been closed so the account is inaccessible.  Apparently there are only two ways the security standards can be breached, undisclosed security cameras and harassing or threatening behaviour.  We have security cameras, they are a requirement of our insurance policy, they are disclosed in our on site guide book and all the internal ones are covered with a sock.  This is also disclosed in the online manual.  This leaves threatening or harassing behaviour.  There was no threatening or harassing behaviour.  Our guide book tells people not to move furniture and not to leave lights and or heaters on.  When all the lights and heaters were left on for the second day my husband went in and turned them off.  The girls reported that they were interrupted three times.  This is simply not true.  We live in the house at the front of the property which is 20 feet from where they were staying.  We regularly pass guests at the intersection of their gate and our front door, on the way to the pool, in the grounds etc.  The girls must have read the guide book because if outlines that we have cows.  They asked if they could please come and see the cows.  This is simply unfair.  The review process has not been transparent and no genuine reason or evidence substantiating that reason has been provided.  We have engaged a lawyer in New Zealand and will be taking action agains the girls in their own country.  We have engaged a lawyer in Australia and are commencing action Airbnb in Australia.  You cannot impugn someones reputation like this.

[Sarah977]

@Shelley220  It isn't enough to disclose cameras in your on-site guidebook. You have to also state it in your listing description. So if you didn't that would definitely be a security breach. Guests have to have the opportunity to decide whether or not to book a place with cameras. I myself would never book a place that had cameras. And if you are going to feel the need to go in and turn off lights and heaters, that should not be done without informing the guests of your intention.

I don't work for Airbnb-I'm just another host.