No show guest wants a full refund and still allowed to review my home

[Conner11]

Im not making in progress with Airbnb on this matter, please help. I had a guest book a very busy week for 3 days about 2 weeks in advanced. He no shows after the first night so I message the guest to see whats happening. He said he booked the wrong dates and wants his money back, full refund. I tell him I can not do that but might be able to work something out with him. I then learn Airbnb allows quests to review my home, after canceling the stay, via star rating(cleanliness, accuracy, etc) and a public review. My worries is this potentially could ruin my Airbnb reputation even if they have never physically been to the home. The situation is ongoing but I am blown away Airbnb allows a guest to ruin my reputation because they booked the wrong dates and ultimately no showed while also demanding a full refund. Has anyone had any experience with this, Airbnb is acting like its my problem and nothing they can do. Any help on proving to Airbnb to remove the review all together would be helpful! 

[Helen350]

Hi @Conner11,   I'm sorry for your situation. There are many posts just like yours on this forum. Type 'No show review' into the search top right, & you will see an exhaustive quantity of discussion on this thorny subject which blights us all!  eg. https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Help/It-is-outrageous-and-unfair-if-a-guest-does-not-show-up-and...

[Emilia42]

This is the perfect example of how the Airbnb review system holds hosts hostage. This guest has the advantage of tanking your ratings all because he demands a refund which he is not entitled to. Airbnb will be of no help. 

Unfortunately, until something changes with the review system, we will continue to see this happen over and over again.

[Emily487]

@Conner11 

Yep, this totally sucks. 

My advice is:

-Do not enter into any kind of agreement about a refund that goes beyond your stated refund policy. Never offer. I say this as a total bleeding heart who wants everyone to be happy but once you offer, AirBnB will take that as a concession and they will use it to strong arm you into offering MORE of a refund.  I'm sorry that you booked the wrong dates, AirBnB will refund  you based on my listing's refund policy. 

-If he leaves a negative review (which he might even if you offer a refund so don't offer one!) just respond with a This guest booked the wrong dates for his trip. I was made aware of this a day into his booked stay. AirBnB utilized by refund policy. This guest's review reflects his frustration with these circumstances. Don't respond with anger, defensiveness, or snark....your response is really for all future guests to read and they will want to book with a nice guy who is thoughtful and kind. 

You have very good reviews and ratings. Soon, his one bad reviews will be buried by pages of positive ones. Even if you "superhost" status is lost for a quarter, please know that it's just a shiny sticker for hosts....it makes no difference in if you get paid, if guests book, or the quality of your guests. I firmly believe that quality pictures and good communication make more of an impact on guests than the superhost status or the ratings we are given. 

I just had a lovely potential guest cancel one day into her booking and she never even showed up bc her work plans changed. I told her them same as I outlined above. She gave us 5 stars in all categories and a kind review and I did the same for her. 

[Ute42]

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@Emilia42  , @Conner11  , @Emily487  , @Helen350 

Airbnb says:

It is true that hosts and guests who cancel a reservation on the day of check-in or later can leave a review, even if the guest doesn’t stay in or enter the listing

Here's the official statement:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Hosting/To-Clara-Liang-Product-Director-Last-min-cancellation-be...

Everyone has been fighting tooth and nail against this policy, in vain.

[Rc6]

@Conner11 I have had an unfair, undeserved, negative review removed from a guest with an apparent mental disorder. And they even stayed two nights and paid. I would keep calling and ask to speak to a case manager. You might even say you plan to de-list if the unfair review is not removed.

You have more rights than you might be aware of. There are cases where the host has taken Airbnb to court and fought to have the review removed. You can listen to one such (United States) case via the below link I am attaching, courtesy of I believe @Susan17. The fun part is the last few minutes, where the Judge takes Airbnb to task over their shameful treatment of hosts. Best of luck!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIrFlISFC1w