Problems with Airbnb and resolution center, no help at all. Awful guests protected by Airbnb. Be ver

[Janie12]

I'm a Superhost from Montreal, who has been doing business with Airbnb since June 2016. We hosted, so far, more than 90 reservations. Lately I had major issues with one guest. The initial reservation was for 2 guests but they were at least 5 people. Which we have proof, since it was caugh on the outside camera. The person who did the reservation was not present everyday of the stay. As usual they did the party on the last day of the reservation.They smoked in the unit, even if it's strictly prohibited by the house rules. They left cigarettes butts on the wooden floor, burned the sofa and left a hole on it. They left burned marks on the living room table and on the master bedroom table. Additionally they broke the iron frame of a leather chair and broke 3 glasses of wine. They smoke an amazing amount of cigarettes in the unit.

Worst then the problem itself, the way Airbnb has handled this situation is a real nightmare.

We called them, and told us that they handle this situation only over email.
So we wrote to them, a first time : no answer.
A second time : no answer.
A third time : they sent us a prewritten response, like an automatic email response.

We wrote to them again and again. and then they sent us an other automatic response. Everytime this process is taking 2-3 days to have an answer.

So we wrote to them again, and then the answer was that after considering all the informations and documentations we gave them the conclusion is that they cannot pay for any damages, since we had an other guest who checked in before we filled the complaint.

From AirBnb : Hosts must submit their request either 14 days from the guest’s check out, or before the next guest checks in, whichever is earlier

The thing is that our unit is almost always rented, so the same day they checked out , we had an other guest coming in.
We cleaned as fast as we could and tried to fix the maximum of damages.

If something like this happen to you. I would suggest to you to cancel the next reservation and not rent to anyone until the situation has been resolve by Airbnb.

So to them it doesn't matter at all if the guests ruined a couch , a chair, did a party and smoke in the house. We had a 1000$ deposit for this apartment.
We asked for 1698$ Canadien dollars and they offered us 0$. Final decision.
Things are handle in a more humain way with every other competitors of Airbnb.

To treat a Super host, like this, who invested more than 400 000$ for this unit, makes us think that maybe we did a mistake by choosing Airbnb over the competition. Choosing an other option for our business is now something we planned on doing in the future.

Do you have any suggestions on how to reach out to them?
Do you think its normal the way they handle the case?
They say they gonna back you for a 1000 000$ but they dont even give you the deposit.....normal?
Thank you for your help.

Sent from my iPad

[Lois-and-Darryl0]

@Janie12:  So sorry about your experience.  Your apartments ARE stunning!  I recommend you spend a Saturday afternoon perusing through Airbnb listings, both in urban centers like Montreal, and other places, to compare listing prices.  I suspect you are sorely under-valuing your apartment, and that is leading to attracting the "wrong crowd."  We have recently come to feel this way, though we can't compare to your places.  But, when we started up last June, we wanted to establish a clientele and kept our price low.  We have others in the vicinity that are lower, but not with the same amenities or updated features.  We've started creeping up to see if what others, including Airbnb, have told us - is true.  While I don't know the exchange rate, I can say that your beautiful apartments, for their size and features, sitting in the U.S., at that U.S. rate, is VERY under-valued.  (Just my opinion - and I'm NOT a professional!)  🙂  If you are always booked anyway, and you know that every human is going to be looking for the maximum that they can afford, you know you are attracting folks that are right at the edge of being able to even book your home.  So, consider pushing it up a little, and you may not even see a change in your occupancy rate.  Good luck, and keep the faith. 

Lois & Darryl

Mtn Haven

[Carolyn99]

I have just had a similar problem with a claim for damaged carpet. I did the claim in a timely fashion. At this stage just uploaded photos of damage. The guest did not respond so I asked the resolution team to step in.  After a while I called to check what wasd happening to find the case had been closed as apparently I hadn't responded to an e-mail they send me withing 72 hours. 

I swear I NEVER received these e-mails ( so obviously i didn't respond). I have taken this up with them again and they will not accept that I didn't receive their e-mails. 

It is rubbish that for something as important as claims/resolution they ONLY use e-mail, whereas with messages from guests, bookings etc they appear on the site dashboard and are pushed to both your e-mail and phone. They should at LEAST do this with 

claims. I am absolutely furious right now.

All of us who feel let down by the airbnb 'trust and safety' team and that they reneged on  their promise to hosts to protect our property against such damage should write to the CEO. If we let it go ..it appears there is No Problem ...when clearly from all the replies and comments I have seen on tbis thread and others' there seems to be a culture of protecting and believing the GUEST as opposed to the HOST. This is not ok. I am definitely not going to rest until I at least have a reply from the Ceo. 

[Pete28]

I was going to replace my 20 yr old carpet in the unit, but now... Maybe not. As a few folks have mentioned, I'm happy with my craigslist and goodwill approach to furniture - assume anything will get destroyed and focus on robust items which are pre owned to minimize cost.

Anyway, I think we can all agree that the chance of making any claim against the security deposit or Airbnb guarantee is very unlikely.

Beyond that, has anyone had any luck with conventional renters or STR insurance ?

Other ideas for clawing back losses ? I have a full time rental with no furniture and hold $2600 (one months deposit) against any and all damage. It is a surreal world where STR offers so little protection. I have had renters repaint and clean to get their deposit back. So much easier than Airbnb.

[Lee-Ann3]

Agreed.  Airbnb could care less about their hosts property.  I feel like I'd have better luck elsewhere.  The resolution center is a joke.

[Jason760]

Ive been on a few other sites for a few years now.  Rarely an issue with guests and never a big issue.  I was reluctant to join AirBnB as i didnt like the amount of control AirBnB exercises over the hosts.  Looking for more bookings, finally I joined.  My first booking, AiRBnB undercharged for the booking.  My second guest cancelled when I asked for his license plate number which is required by my HOA for neighborhhod entry.  AirBnB backed his cancellation saying I have no right to ask for any personal information.  My 3rd booking was awful.  The guests got me in trouble with the HOA for sledding in the road, they left party confetti all over the house, checked out late making my next guest unable to check in ontime, and left a huge damaging stain on my dining room table.  Guests denied any culpability and AirBnB resolution center has been no help.  I think its time to de-list.

[Lee-Ann3]

Yah, I'm there too.  Crappy guests should be the ones who who should have to leave ... not the hosts.  Airbnb is making idiotic responses to  valid claims and Their resolution center is staffed with ineffective people.  It's  a joke.   I'll list elsewhere as soon as my current reservations are finished.

[Wendy200]

I am also an Airbnb super host with over 300 reviews. I had a guests destroy electircal, bleed all over sheets and blankes, and rip veneer off the wall. He said he’s sorry, said he’d like to pay me the $300 I asked for but when I sent a “request for money” the guest paid half and said i’ll give you the other half next month. I asked Airbnb to collect it as I don’t like to go “off site” with money between myself and guests. 

The rep, Kevin, interrogated me! He asked me for receipts for the goods damaged, images of the damage, and estimates for repairs. I told him, the guest wants to pay me, I just need a way for that to happen. 

After sending kevin most of what he asked for he wrote to me claiming he didnt get it. What I could not send was a receipt for the repair of something custom (veneer) and the electrical since I’m traveling until fall. He’s threatening to close my case and file in favor of the guest. So basically I had a guest want to pay me for damages they did, and Airbnb prevented that. Nice. Real nice for a compay that I’m moving $50,000 a year through. 

[Mike1034]

@Wendy200 If you had your conversations with the guest in Airbnb message, could you ask Airbnb to check? If the messages are outside of Airbnb message, Airbnb CS would not take them as evidence.

[Lee-Ann3]

wow, that's horrendous treatment of a valued host.  The

---

@Wendy200 wrote:

I am also an Airbnb super host with over 300 reviews. I had a guests destroy electircal, bleed all over sheets and blankes, and rip veneer off the wall. He said he’s sorry, said he’d like to pay me the $300 I asked for but when I sent a “request for money” the guest paid half and said i’ll give you the other half next month. I asked Airbnb to collect it as I don’t like to go “off site” with money between myself and guests. 

The rep, Kevin, interrogated me! He asked me for receipts for the goods damaged, images of the damage, and estimates for repairs. I told him, the guest wants to pay me, I just need a way for that to happen. 

After sending kevin most of what he asked for he wrote to me claiming he didnt get it. What I could not send was a receipt for the repair of something custom (veneer) and the electrical since I’m traveling until fall. He’s threatening to close my case and file in favor of the guest. So basically I had a guest want to pay me for damages they did, and Airbnb prevented that. Nice. Real nice for a compay that I’m moving $50,000 a year through. 

---

resolution center is useless.

[Christine615]

I teel people to send photos of the damage to the guest immediately. We had this happen - women who were darling but got drunk on their last night of a 7 night stay and spilled red wine over linens and tried to conceal it. It was still wet when discovered so we suspect the glasses got knocked over.

We didn't file the claim until after the next guest checked in (we had a rapid turn-over) but they saw that I sent the guest photos before the next guest checked in. So they backed me (the guest ended up paying so I didn't have to fight it.)

The key with Airbnb is lots of documentation sent directly to the guest through the platform and do it right away!

[Lee-Ann3]

I have also had a very disappointing experience trying to collect for damages.  THEY SIMPLY DONT CARE.  If you push them for a better result they will punish you with a letter in your file.  If  you still wont let it drop they will threaten to close your account. ABSOLUTELY  UNBELIEVEABLE.  I am in the process of selling the house and as soon as that is done I will cancel my listing.  I simply can't work with a company that is so disrespectful to the providers of the homes.  They should kick out the GUESTS from their program for behaving so badly, but instead they choose to punish the hosts.  It's an awful thing to be treated this way by your partner. 

On top of that, they can go into your account at any time  and take out money without explanation or permission.  This has happened in my account and I called them on it and they had no explanation.   Thankfully they reversed the transaction but it made me wonder what else is going on behind the scenes that I can't see.   In the case above, my guest said that he paid the $190 damages within a few days of checkout.  He said it took three days and 15 phone calls to get it done, but he had a confirmation number for the payment.  Airbnb conveniently has no record of the payment and the money was never forwarded to me.  They told ME to take it up directly with the guest.  REALLY?  What's the point of having a resolution center if you dont really intend to RESOLVE anything?

I have started checking every dollar that flows through my account.  I am hand calculating every discount or deduction they take.  I don't trust a company that claims to have an office for processing damage claims, but doesn't do anything about it if the guests don't authorize the charges!!  I'm sure that someone in a car crash would rather not pay the damages either, if it was up to them.  That's what the security deposit was for, I thought.  But Airbnb doesn't really collect a security deposit, and they don't actually do anything to collect on those damage claims if the guest is unwilling to pay.  Airbnb is completely on the guest's side and seems to have very little regard for hosts' properties.   It's outrageous and very short-sighted.  BOO on you, Airbnb.

[Christy136]

I am having the same issues!  I am a super host and recently had guest do tremendous damage to my home.  Within an hour of them checking out I sent all of the details with pictures to Airbnb, and requested my security deposit.  Of course the guest did not respond so I escalated it to Airbnb.  Their resolution center is a joke.  I have emailed all the documents, pictures and proof they requested over 6 times now and they continue to tell  me "they didn't get it".  I can tell I am getting the runaround in hopes that I will just give up getting this resolved at all.  Airbnb does nothing to assist their hosts.  I will be removing my listing from their site.  I do not trust Airbnb based on the way they have handled this situation. 

[Jimi17]

I am planning on hiring an attorney to go after AirBNB since I just had guests trash my place. If anyone is interested in joining in the lawsuit, please contact me. These guests broke up the furniture on New Years eve having a very large party with drugs and rug items all over. The place reeks and there are burn hoes in the carpet and mattresses. The final horror was the note they left on my refrigerator: "We hella f*cked you house. Ha Ha Ha. "

I am a Super Host and Air BNB is planning to deny my claim for sure. They have received photos of the damage which they say they will send to the guest with My request for damages.

[Susan17]

@Jimi17 

Save yourself the time, the stress and the lawyer's fees - if they keep messing you about, just take your case straight to the media. The very last thing Airbnb needs right now is more bad publicity related to hosts' homes being destroyed by marauding guests, and you should find that a call to them from a journo or reporter, will get their attention pretty sharpish. Best of luck!

By the way, as per the Terms of Service you agreed to on signing up, class action suits are prohibited - binding arbitration (of Airbnb's choice) only, although it is sometimes possible to bring  a claim through the small claims courts.

Please note: Section 19 of these Terms contains an arbitration clause and class action waiver that applies to all Airbnb Members. If your country of residence is the United States, this provision applies to all disputes with Airbnb. If your country of residence is outside of the United States, this provision applies to any action you bring against Airbnb in the United States. It affects how disputes with Airbnb are resolved. By accepting these Terms, you agree to be bound by this arbitration clause and class action waiver. Please read it carefully.

[Sarah977]

@Jimi17  Heed @Susan17's advice- she knows that of which she speaks. A well-placed article in the media, complete with photos of the damage and that unbelievable note should get their attention.