Lack of Host Support!

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

Lack of Host Support!

I have been doing a bit of research!

 

According to Quentin Decock, bnbflow founder & CEO in March this year......

The total number of listings on Airbnb is 2'000'000. Though that does not mean there is one host per listing, some do have 200 listings (or more) on their profile, it is quite impressive.

According to the distribution, there is an average of 3 listings per host today (March '16), which gives us about 650'000 hosts on Airbnb. So let’s assume that that has grown to 800,000 by the end of 2016.

 

That’s Quentin’s statistic, not mine!!

 

In 2 years of hosting I have never had a problem that required the financial intervention of Airbnb, and I fall into the category of 70% of hosts who are in that situation. We have issues but these issues do not require the intervention of the Airbnb help in a compensatory sense.

So the potential problem pool is reduced to 240,000 hosts who in a two year period will lodge a claim for monetary compensation with the resolution centre, Trust and Safety...whatever you want to call it. Around the world that amounts to a potential 328 claims per day. That is not to say that every one of those 328 calls will result in a financial settlement, that’s just the problem calls that will be received!

Most companies that are a fraction the size of Airbnb would field at least double that number of problem calls in a twenty four hour period, and they deal with it........

Why in the hell can’t Airbnb!

We see complaints about lack of contactability, lack of help, lack of compensation daily!

https://community.airbnb.com/t5/Hosts/Airbnb-ignoring-my-request-for-insurance-claim-on-guest-damage...

This is our current problem child....and hope that @Victoria won't mind me bringing this up.

She has had $4,200 damage don't to her property by an Airbnb guest, and in 2 months she cannot even get a response from Airbnb let alone any action! She just does not know what to do next.

She says all she wants is for this 'GUEST' to be held responsible.....is that so difficult! After all she didn't invite him, Airbnb did!!

This has got to stop! I am a new kid on the block, I have only been on Airbnb for two years but old timers like @Lisa & Cody will tell all that it never used to be like this. If this company was struggling to survive I would perhaps cut them a bit o slack! But this is one of the fastest growing most profitable companies on the planet', and it is time to stop this emotional 'clap trap' we are being subjected to and start, 'from the top' to remember how this company came to be where it is. I can assure you the reason it IS where it is, is not a left over air mattress in a second bedroom in San Francisco that helped out with the rent.! It is hosts like me who over two sites have had eighty 5 star reviews, and two 4 star reviews out of 87. That is what has made Airbnb great and I don't think it is too much to ask that we get a definite guaranttee of support when we need it.....not just silly words!

Cheers.....Rob

 

 

34 Replies 34

I too had guests stay and they damaged my kitchen counter top by putting a boiling hot oven dish straight from the oven on our newly resurfaced coutertop and melted it!  They even lied and said they didn't use the kitchen but we were there when they did it. Absolute liars! They also broke a number of other rules with regard to smoking on our property and were very loud. They disturbed us every night until 2, 3 O'clock in the morning! 

AIrbnb won't compensate  me as they consider it "cosmetic damage". Too many very intentional loopholes in their Host Guarantee which they use to dishonour their claims that Hosts should book guests instantly with confidence...yeah right! Airbnb do not look after their most important "assets" , top quality hosts who welcome absolute strangers into their homes on a high level of trust.

I'd love to know if there are other companies out there who look after their hosts  better and consider them a "priority. 


@Ehukai0 wrote:

SHTF—-I have had wonderful experience hosting never a bad experience yet finally I got the dreaded guess that you guys are all talking about it did damage to my property yelled were very difficult broke lots of rules and I was quite shocked because up until that point I’ve had a very pleasant experience well I contacted Airbnb and they were really no help at all and I was very disappointed in there when I reach out to them for help a little they did I mean I’m really mad I put in the request for the damage property and they made me jump through so many hoops and deadlines and Cindy asking to send the same pictures over and over when I know they had them already and they denied it because it was lack of evidence and I gave them all the information I could I’m just furious I’m not making this up someone damage my property and I’d like $400 back



I had an ugly experience: Lack of support in behalf of the host. The customer representative was very rude , she didn’t help me in absolute. The customer services was inconsistent and did not investigate the issue. I have 13 reviews of 5 stars. However in this particular case the guest threatened me with a bad review because I couldn’t find a camera that allegedly she left at home. The customer services did not investigate The threatens agains me, instead off she call me neglecting and mistreated me. Can you imagine if I allow this guest go to house while another guest was occupied the house?? I don’t understand how she thinks that I have to do that!! . I asked the cleaning crew! I couldn’t find the camera and the guest as revenge made about 3 pages of destructive bad review.

Ehukai0
Level 3
Aiea, HI

I’m so furious with Airbnb apps very disappointed the puppet they just told me not to support their house without the holes are making them hand over fist in money I don’t know what to do about I’m so upset I want I want to stop posting

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

Well, I know what would work to change this, too bad it would be virtually impossible. ALL AIRBNB HOSTS organize and snooze their listings for the same entire week sometime in the future. In other words, a general strike. Think airbnb might take some notice if they had NO money coming in for an entire week?

Marilyn98
Level 2
Toronto, Canada

I had my first HORRIFIC experience after hosting for 2 years. The guest was a drug dealer!!!!! The DEA ransacked my home and AirBNB will not give me the time of the day. They don't lead by example. Here we are doing our very best to EARN our SUPER host status and they treat us like garbage when there's a real situation. I have asked the person handling my case to call me at leat 6 times already and she hides behind emails and assumes she knows what I need and send me these generic emails. I can't believe how terrible they are. It's very sad because I really liked Airbnb, but this experience has made me regret posting my vacation home on their site.  I want to take this to the news, but am affraid of the reprecussions and what that might do since this person was a drug dealer. I went from loving this site to hating it completely. As soon as I'm done with the guests already booked I'm stopping this hosting business. 

Manuela235
Level 2
San Fernando, Nicaragua

FEB 27th CEO of airbnb is hosting another Q & A......too bad he won't address the real issues LACK OF educated professional support staff who read messages or take calls live and respond to issues immediately... support is all "off-shore" meaning = CALL CENTERS WITH ENGLISH SPEAKERS IN A DEVELOPING COUNTRY  with little or no experience in real 100% customer support to resolve issues.....BRING BACK "LIVE CHAT" !!!!

Hosts beware. I’ve snoozed my listings.  Mediators believe guest lies without checking, add new interpretations to the Host agreement to support the Guest position, heavily penalize Hosts for canceling in the event of Guest issues, help Guests break local laws, and deduct monies paid the Host from future Guest payments. Mediators also regularly appear to take the Guest position on damages and other issues (based on many other community entries) so there appears to be little point having AirBnB hold a damage deposit for us. If the mediator is shown to be wrong, AirBnB just stops communicating, won’t even answer simple questions.  The latest:  Contrary to what I understand of our obligations based on many conversations with AirBnB agents and a review of the terms, the mediators are now insisting the entirety of any document given the Guest (properly formatted, including the full and exact terms) must be on the listing page or given to the Guest prior to booking, even if the terms are already on the listing page, are local law, and are available online.  Apparently this includes any evidence as to the state of the home just before the Guest arrives.  Clearly impossible, as it is impossible to upload any documents or add any formatted material such as boxes or tables to the listing.  It is also impossible to even send the documents to the Guest prior to booking because Hosts don’t have their contact information.  In my case, Guest emails prove the Guest: 1) negotiated a lower rate based on 2 months; 2) knew about the agreement and the terms prior to booking; and 3) was more than happy with the accommodation and with signing.  Then, 2 weeks after moving in, the Guest emailed me a request to send AirBnB an earlier leaving date so he could go traveling.  He is still in my home, and he still has not signed the agreement.  Again, this is a required online government document that the Guest could easily have accessed from the listing information, and that the Guest must adhere to in this province whether or not he signs it.  The Guest apears to be breaking local laws in leaving early, and AirBnB apears to be complicit. 

Jon162
Level 2
Dallas, TX

There is no question that Airbnb does not support hosts. Especially one's with a lot of listings, we have 90% 5-star reviews and never once has Airbnb ever really cared about any situation, we have had including fake reviews from Guests that have not stayed at the property. Property management especially through Airbnb is very hard and no one on their support team is well equipped to handle the issues that do arise or know how to read into situations properly. If someone has no reviews, it would make sense that they would support a host who has hundreds of positive reviews, but they do not. I carry my own insurance, Airbnb would never support a claim let alone small issues that have arose in the past for us. Other travel websites do a much better job of understanding we handle 100s of guests a month and treat us accordingly.  

Adriana723
Level 2
San Antonio, TX

I had the ugliest  experience: Lack of support in behalf of the host. The customer representative was very rude , he didn’t help me in absolute. The customer services was inconsistent and did not investigate the issue. I have 13 reviews of 5 stars since the house started on February 2019. However in this particular case the guest threatened me with a bad review because I couldn’t find a camera that allegedly she left at home. The customer services did not investigate The  threatens agains me, instead off they call me neglecting and mistreated me. Can you imagine if I allow this guest go to house to look for the camera while another guest was occupied the house?? I don’t understand how they think  that I have to do that and it’s contradictory ! . I asked the cleaning crew! I couldn’t find the camera and the guest as revenge made about 3 pages of destructive bad review. Right now AIRBNB is sending me messages that my house may be in risk because this ugly guest.

Stefica1
Level 2
Nanaimo, Canada

Recently I had a family of four (mom, dad and two older teens) who left a  deep scratch in my patio door - right at eye level, right where one looks out at the view.   When they left, I found the glass was deeply smudged, with finger prints all over it, along with what appeared to be a long squiggly line.  It wasn't till I washed the window that I realized the long squiggly line was actually a scratch in the glass.  I contacted the glass company who  had originally installed the patio door (less than two years ago) and they came right out and confirmed it's deep and the only fix is to replace the glass.  As it's a double paned sealed unit, both sides needs to be replaced at a cost of $802.00 Canadian.  The guest refused to pay, and now the AIR BNB Claims specialist has determined this scratch in the glass, at eye level, is "normal wear and tear"!!!  In whose world is scratching glass at eye level "normal wear and tear"?  Very frustrated and feeling completely unsupported by AIR BNB.  This was the first time I have had damage done to the suite and asked for Air BNB intervention after being a Super Host for three years.  

 

Evgeniia3
Level 1
Las Vegas, NV

Unfortunately, I've been waiting to hear back from Airbnb Support for TWO MONTHS now on a technical issue with my profile which makes it so that my listings are not online. Thus not being marketed. Thus my place is empty and costing me a lot of money.
Anyone any solutions?

Try listing with other companies. VRBO, Booking.com , etc. AirBnB is not the only venue. I’m learning myself that AirBnB is not my only option. 

Terri184
Level 2
Indian Mound, TN

I have been a host for approximately 8 years (since 2012).  I am one of those hosts who not only holds numerous listings but have successfully invited many more individuals to the world of hosting also with multiple listings and even manage many accounts as a co-host in many different communities and states.  There are numerous regulations to follow in communities for example in the Arroyo Grande/Pismo Beach listing, I have repeatedly informed guests and Airbnb that this listing is capped at 12 individuals.  Any more than this jeapardizes my ability to continue hosting.  I PROVED through the message thread that recent guests originally booked for 8 guests.  Further reminders beyond those in my listing were sent to these guests and to Airbnb stipulating that there are cameras monitoring the guest traffic at all entrances.  We have had issues with this in the past so we over emphasize it.  These guests then informed us they would be having 18 guests and “some” dogs.  We incorporated a double penalty in our listing for dishonesty on guest count, per the advice of an air bnb case manager to help protect us from this. We informed them of this AND reminded Airbnb.  Airbnb threatened to penalize us for a cancellation.  They booked another home for the additional 8 guests.  When these guests arrived our cameras spotted  22-25 guests on both days.  They stayed the nights.  When we showed the video footage to Airbnb where they entered the home, single file like a clown car exit, they fought us until we agreed to take half of the compensation owed to us.  The following week, a family told us after booking that some of their guests had cancelled and our listing that sleeps 12 comfortably was now too expensive for them.   We have a strict cancellation policy.  We informed them of this.  They asked for early entry and when granted, they went on a witch hunt taking photos in garage and storage under basement steps stating that the plCe wasn’t clean to their standards.  They then took a photo of a dead bug looking like a roach and another looking like a dead moth, stating there was now a problem and wanted all their $$ back. Air bnb not only stood by them but cancelled the reservation with penalty to us as hosts for the siting of insects and what looked like an unclean environment with photos taken in garage and basement.  First they forced us to accept 25 people who needless to say trashed our listing without our agreed upon penalty compensation and most likely brought in the roaches since we had no problem prior.  We fumigated and this may have caused the siting if insect remains, still Airbnb was incredibly guest accommodating but proved not to stand by the host.  Even though we had proof through Airbnb message thread on both of these incidents and the appearance of deception and extortion on the part of both guests with threats of bad reviews if we e revised our rights based on our listings terms and conditions, one right after the other, absolutely NO support from Airbnb .  

Edward204
Level 1
Vancouver, CA

I'm still trying to sort through their decision and rules that would empower them to not give me the damage deposit requested from a guest that nailed holes in my walls, scuffed another wall with paint and broke my couch. This was from a 1st time guest user account.

Having guests arriving in hours that were in need of the couch sofa bed to sleep on during their stay, I had to replace the couch and scramble to fill in the holes in the walls and paint the unit in time. Heaven forbid if I were to get a bad review from the upcoming tenants for not having amenities that were advertises..... either way I seem to have lost. 

I got 1 written response back via email saying I did not report in time - which was not true - it was reported within 8 hrs of the guest checking out.

When I called and asked to speak with a manager about their decision - she claimed that the reason given was not correct. She would look into it and get back to me. 

Then I got this email today from the original adjuster basically saying we wont take your calls with no further explanation as to why they reverted to their original decision.... 

I run 3 companies and if I ever got word that my employees had responded in such a way I would give them notice.

 

expect a lot of this when you try and deal with the bnb resolution centre: 

Hi Edward,

I'm Fernando with Airbnb.

The Claims Management Team has performed a thorough review, as per my previous emails and as per the Terms of Service, we have decided to uphold our original decision.

We determined that a payout could not be processed in this instance.

As further communication will not change the outcome of this case, we consider your case closed, and we will respectfully disengage from further discussion.

Kind regards,

Fernando

Carol639
Level 3
Columbia, SC

Extremely frustrated and annoyed with the lack of support from AirBnb.  My account was mistakenly deactivated for 30 days and when I contacted Airbnb, after holding for 45 minutes, they said I needed to be patient and they would have a case manager look into the issue.  I have a guest scheduled to come today.  I called and spent over an hour on the phone with no resolution.  They kept telling me that they understood and I need to be patient until they resolve this issue.  So basically Airbnb made a mistake and instead of immediately repairing the mistake, I am supposed to be patient.  This is not the 1st time I have contacted Airbnb support on an issue and it appears their main function is just to string host along.