Cowardly guests who hide behind their review

[Brian68]

I'm pretty much done with guests, who if they have a problem during their stay decide to say nothing and then moan about it in the review after.

Why is that?

It's very simple actually, the guest thinks if they request or complain about something during their stay that it will influence your review of them.

As a host,  I rarely hear from my guests and I do check in on them very occasionally to make sure they have arrived safe.

No news is good news they say, absolutely not!

For all intents and purposes you have been led to believe that there were no problems, issues or complaints?

Basically I feel like I am flying blind and 99% of the time give the guest 5 stars only to find out and to be fair, mostly private feedback that there have been issues.

I just feel that that reviews should be subject to more scrutinisation and changeable by Airbnb if the guest has failed at any time during their stay to message you about it on the app or via email and then gone on to make it public in a review.

I'm happy to listen to guests concerns or if there are issues and would not discriminate ( I already had to change a water heater out for someone who had no hot water for 24 hrs, no problem at all).

But DON'T keep quiet and then blub about it afterwards, because you are the worst kind of guests.

[Helen427]

GWhy are these Guests who are writing such negative things / complaints in the "Private Feedback" section of Reviews?

It's an issue that I to have been subjected to which should never have arisen & lays fair & square back on the Guests.

I was slammed on a number of issues that were all matters that the Guests imagined I had failed to do, or did in their eyes but are baseless.

It was me as the Host that was at fault but the lack of communication - message systems confirm otherwise, as do txt msgs in my files, checkin was also my wrong doing despite the fact one Guest came around the day before check in - he was late, day of actual check in - his Guest decided she wanted to come prior to listed check in time & caused me inconvenience as I had other things I needed to go and do, they checked out several hours after contracted check out time, only paid for one Guest when there was 2 & made out in the wider public arena I was at fault.

My listing was in part because of that "paused" yet it wasn't me who was at fault.

The other Guest who very disrespectfully said he would "not" recommend to stay was an IB who not once before booking so much as write me a msg, I had no background details about him & he had the check to try rebook my place but thankfully I had a prior booking that stopped him.

He gave me 4 stars & my overall rating was a 1 star.

He had the nerve to say he had a "stressful experience" which only he was responsible for.

Anyone who thinks they can book into someone else's home without asking questions, reading a listing prior to booking & then complains needs to look at their own behaviours and do something about it than throw stones at others.

There's an old saying " People who live in Glass houses should both throw stones" , and " people who live in Stone houses should not throw Glass"..

[Helen427]

Sorry folks, that should read, Why aren't these Guests writing such criticism / or complaints in the "Private Feedback" option which is there for a reason?

Other Guests, including my very first Guest wrote very complimentary things and raised a couple of things that were not for public consumption or anyone else's business.

People who live in Glass houses should not throw stones.

Microsoft auto correct is such a nuisance at times to, isn't it??!!?

Agreed Brian

[Brian68]

@Helen0

This is so exactly what I am saying.

To Airbnb can you hear us?

Should you mention as a guest in your review any complaint or misleading info that you failed to mention or enquire about to your host during the time of your stay so that it could be resolved is therefore invalid and the review can be struck off.

[Huma0]

I think a lot of guests don't have the confidence to complain about something during their stay perhaps for the same reasons as many hosts don't bring up issues with guests who are doing something wrong, i.e. they worry that it will make the rest of the stay uncomfortable and result in a bad review. I think this is especially the case when the guest is staying with a host in their own home. They feel awkward about complaining.

It's still annoying though when guests don't mention something that could easily be fixed and then bring it up in their review or reflect it in their ratings.

I always welcome guests in person, given them a thorough tour and ask if they have any questions and to let me know if there is anything they need. I also ask guests in person or via a message if everything is okay with their stay or if there is anything else they need, usually on the second day. Sometimes this helps, e.g. they might mention the room is a bit chilly or that they would like extra towels and I can sort it out straight away. I often find they are more likely to respond with a query when I message them as some are too shy to ask in person.

However, there will always be those guests that tell you everything is great and then only bring up issues in the review process. I had two ladies stay who seemed really happy with everything. When I checked them in, I asked if the room was warm enough and they said it was perfect. Later they did ask for an extra duvet because they said they didn't want to share one. It was only after they checked out that I realised they had accidentally turned the heating off and the room was freezing. I could have fixed this straight away, but they had said nothing. In the review, they said the room was cold but I'd given them an extra blanket so it was okay and they gave me four stars. This is totally misleading as it makes it sound like they told me they were cold and I didn't bother to adjust the heating.

I recently received my first four star rating in quite a while. Unlike most guests, these ones gave me some private feedback on why (didn't mention any negatives in the review) so I guess I should be grateful for that. It was still frustrating though because their complaint was that people from the street could see into the shower. This is simply not true. Not only have I checked this from the street, but it would defy the laws of physics! If they had mentioned it, I am sure I could have found a polite way to reassure them or suggested they have a look from the street if they didn't seem to believe me. Anyway, nothing was said, so now it's too late. Perhaps they thought it was something that couldn't be fixed (plus there are two other showers), so no no good would come of mentioning it during the stay.

These are small things that adults should be able to bring up without embarrassment. It's not like a guest wanting to tell you your place is filthy or smelly or that they think you are weird! I try to convey to my guests that I am approachable so that they don't feel shy to ask about something, but it doesn't always work...

[Fred13]

True, if they do so in private, then it is really harmless, unless reflected on the star rating.

[Stay-Asheville0]

I take all feedback very seriously and I never rate a guest based on their feedback of me... that defeats the purpose.   I think most people read these insane reviews and realize those people are fault finders and book anyway.  At the same time, I think that Airbnb shouldn't be putting so much pressure on us with the new superhost requirements when people are rating us for things like value and check in....  It's insane to think someone can cancel a reservation and still leave a review.

[Charlene59]

I had a guest complain that my house was not a two story home. The picture was on the website. It is a one story beach house. They also complained that the room was small. I had all the dimensions listed including the bathroom and closet measurements.  Two days ago I had the guests call the police on each other. I do not have a five star , and I think it is because I do not have five star guests.

[Anne880]

I it wonderful to know that I A NOT ALONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!This has ben the most debilitating aspect of the AirB&B eperience. I can accept and welcome feedback. It is just when it is accompanied by disdainful, cndescendng, arrogrant, and/or unappreciative energy that I have had to grapple with personally. When the feedback has that "edge" to it, it can, if I allowed it to, dimish my enthusiam and enjoyment and sense of anticipation of meeting th next guest. A Boo. Hissssss. on the bad vibes. A thanks for the feedback that maks say, "Ah....appreciate that!'

[Brian68]

Hi Anne, thanks

It's very odd but I get a sixth sense when it comes to guests before their stay.

I am usually right, I must have a a talent or gut feeling about who I feel might be an issue.

I do wish they would speak up during their stay.

So many things can be addressed like this and everyone is happier they got something from the experience.

[Asif8]

Hi Everyone, 

One thing we could all do is prepare a feedback form for guests on a daily basis and get feedback to improve and on the same page get it rectified and take a Thumbs up and Thumbs down from guests, continue the same for the number of days and if guests complain we can reply by posting the same

Also advisable if you could do the below

- Gift Sovereigns of Dubai or the particular space ur offering per guest. It does make a difference a great difference

- Take a picture along with the guest which would help in showing how happy the guests were

- Ask the guests about their flights and offer them Check in assistance online

[Robinson-Lee0]

This is exactly how I feel! Despite checking in with guests several times to ask if they need anything, they will say "everything is great" and then leave a review complaining about something I've not heard anything about! 

Recently had a review that no toiletries were provided but they just didn't look in the bathroom cabinet where there is always shampoo, conditioner, body wash, Qtips, feminine products, hair dryer and curling iron!

Another guest complained that they could get the cable to work -- our listing states there is no cable, the tv is for DVDs and streaming, Nexflix etc 

It is most frustrating as my husband and I work hard to provide a budget friendly, clean, safe, comfortable home and because folks do not bother to read or look or contact us if they cant find something i get a surprise negative cmomentary. Sorry for the rant! It's just discouraging.  

[Helen427]

One has to question how many of them where they are bought to the attention of Airbnb's C/S attention go on to continue abusing Hosts hospitality using their own parents Guest accounts.

[Personal details hidden as per the community guidelines] claimed to me he had stayed in other Hosts Airbnb places yet there's absolutely no evidence on his profile he had, indeed it was a newly set up account in his own name he Instant Booked my private room.

When I challenged him why there were NO REVIEWS on his profile and no evidence he had ever stayed in Airbnb homes he said his " my mother booked then for me".

Airbnb it's cowardly guests like ** who should be Instantly banned from using Airbnb platforms.

How do Airbnb propose to "flag" such people when they "work systems" to beat the systems in place?

It may be an idea where Hosts have been written "cowardly reviews" to report/ flag these Guests behaviours and alert other Hosts.

There needs to be mechanisms in place to "link" known associates and families accounts so Hosts can form a decision with all Guests background history.

To other Hosts, I confronted this Guest as he was removing items belonging to me from my home and consuming food items that I made clear were out of bounds and what he was permitted to use was excessive for a normal person to eat - a packet of cereal was eaten within 3 days by him when a normal person would not eat that much in a week.

I ensured he received a msg through Airbnb's msg system about the removal of household items so it was in Airbnb msg systems which they also need to "join the dots" with to "flag" such Guests.

May I suggest that other Hosts write a Legal type of letter to those whose behaviours are outside of been acceptable so it's on your said Guests records, including and most notably there Retaliatory Reviews - perhaps something along the lines of that used to "Cease and Desist".

We must all be mindful Police and law enforcement can and are legally able to access such Data should the need arise which may help to protect other users in the longer term