Review: I'm not happy with a guest

Stephan23
Level 2
Cape Town, South Africa

Review: I'm not happy with a guest

Hi All,

 

I really for the first time do not want to leave a review about a guest who left yesterday, I'm a bit annoyed with them. First up I lease an entire unit, a 2 bedroom apartment. Anyways I'm new to Airbnb so I dropped my price to get feet into my door and get more reviews because algorithm seems to be the key word when wanting to be bumped up the listing search engine etc. So I had a guest who booked for 2 people but when they left it was 4 people (which I didn't mind as long as they would make me aware so I can leave 4 sets of towels instead of 2 and prepare the space for them accordingly). Then things just started to add up, firstly they said they'll be there at 3pm and only got there 5pm, I don't live there but I do live 6mins away, so not a massive problem at all. When they left, I notice 4 people and not 2 like discussed, also I noticed they had moved my furniture and the TV was not on the satellite channel it was on HDMI slot 1 so the probably had music, not a massive issue either. When I changed it to TV it was on a music channel, not an issue. I also notices loads of empty booze bottle, people drink so what? But I then noticed my bottle opener was busted and a broken glass and for what ever reason a 2 prong plug missing too. Lastly the check out time is 10am and I clearly asked them to please respect that, the reason being, I have another guest arriving same day at 2pm and it only gives us that 4hour window to do a thorough clean and change over of linen and towels etc. They only left at 10:50am so I lost almost an hour of cleaning and preparation which is needed.

 

So when you add this all up, even though its not one massive incident, it really does all add up to be more than just a bunch of small issues the bigger picture here is it lands up being a bigger issue rather than a few small ones? I need advice on time management, etiquette, hosting and what ever else I can use? When they left they were friendly and actually good people just youngsters so I don't want to be that 35 year old grump but actually I don't care this is my place and it needs to be respected!!! Sorry for venting but I'm still a little annoyed so how do I deal with the review side now? I really don't want to write anything to them!?

 

Regards,

Stephan

12 Replies 12
Marit-Anne0
Level 10
Bergen, Norway

I would not want these guests, so please leave an honest review and a thumbs down so other hosts do not fall into the same trap.

Booking for two and show up with 4 is actually a big no-no.  A booking is a contract between host and guest and the number of persons has to be correct.  

A broken glass etc. that is down to wear and tear, it could happen to anyone.  Has happened to me and I am not exactly a youngster. But I am a responsible guest and get replacements if at all possible.  

Yes, please let us all know about guests like you described. I would be so angry!

 

Your Lv10 so your experience is what I'm looking for when you write a review does it show everything, is there a way to write something that is only seen by other hosts like a foot note for host eyes only kind of thing?

Post this idea on Host Voice and then ask others to give a thumbs up.  You post this by going to the Discuss drop down box.  You need a number of thumbs up for airbnb to take notice.  Other sites like workaway have this capability and it would be great to have hidden messages so the bad guests stop making new profiles.

@Stephan23

You leave star ratings for your guests that no-one can see except airbnb.

There is also an option to leave a message to airbnb that no-one can see but airbnb.

An option to leave a private feedback to your guests is presented. 

Then there is a thumbs up/thumbs down. This is also only for airbnb to see and I think will prevent these guests using Instant Book in the future.

An honest review is the only way to warn off other hosts.  If you do not want to be direct, you could write something like "did not quite follow the house rules" - this would be enough of a warning to experienced hosts. Or maybe something in the region of "bit messy, but could be down to lack of experience with airbnb". 

My guess is that messages that only hosts can see would lead to more declines - not in the interest of airbnb.

Stephan23
Level 2
Cape Town, South Africa

Hi Lisa, sorry for my ignorance but where do I find Host Voice? Is it on Airbnb website? I can't seem to find a section that is called Host Voice? 

Hi @Stephan23

 

Sorry for the delayed reply.  I am also fairly new to this forum (sprained ankle and so extra time).  I have discovered you must include @ and the name of the person you would like to reply to you so that they get an email.  I also just read that if you hover over your profile in the top right corner here you can see "community activity" if you want to get back to any posts you were interested in or looking to see if there were any updates.  You can find Host Voice under the "Discuss" tab at the top.  It is the last on the drop down menu.  If you put the post maybe start a new thread with a link asking people to give it the thumbs up if they want to.  One of them will be from me.  Lisa

Babs0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Agree about the broken glass not being a big issue, a good guest will at least notify the host and offer to replace or reimburse!

Babs0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Stephan23,

 

Too bad it was not the best experience! But all hosts appreciate honesty, please remember that. Just keep it straight and to the point: unless you have a strictly no alcohol in your house rules ( I can imagine in Dubai for instance), mentioning a lot of empty bottles doesn't really belong in there. Maybe mention something like "check-in time was not honoured, together with no note to alert me to breakage left me unable to prepare the apartment properly for my next guests"?!? That would make me as a host more aware that they will need more reminding about check-out, if I would even want to host this guest. Thanks for being honest! 

 

And it would be totally okay for you to go in right after your check-out time, even if they are still there. Also gives you the opportunity to check on how they leave the place. 

 

Good luck!

Jennifer259
Level 2
Woodbridge, VA

Consider two things:  What you want to be able to enforce (like check out times, etc.) you need to have in both your written agreement and also in whatever guest information/house rules guide you provide to the guest with a booking.

 

We expect guests to be polite and courteous and respect our spaces/homes, but to enable that, a host needs to make clear the expectations.  Realize that a lot of people will have never stayed in an Air type sharing environment or a vacation rentals.  Yoou will also attract more people new to this market if your price point is lower.

 

You're going to have a lot of guests who only have hotel expereince.  None of the troubles you encountered would have been cause for concern for a hotel, and thus it wouldn't intuitively occur to guests with hotel stay backgrounds that they should have handled things differently.

 

Try to focus on setting out your expectations, and doing so in a pelasant manner.

 

Statements like: "Please inspect the home on arrival and advise the host of any issues with the home or its condition.  Should something becaome broken or damaged during your stay, please advise the host immediately, so that arrangements can be made for a replacement so they guests after you can enjoy the same quality experience."  They go a long way.

Gerry-And-Rashid0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

The biggest issue is 4 people rather than 2 - the rest is really not a big deal. 

 

You need to beef up your house rules and say only the number of guests booked can stay. It's alwasy useful when someone is booking to ask them to reconfirm how many people will be staying.

 

Check in and check out - again when people arrive, you can politely remind them that you will be there at xx hrs to start cleaning as you have another guest arriving. It usually works.

Andrea2951
Level 1
Toledo, OH

As a guest of air bnb I do my best to make sure the place is returned like I had it...i do my dishes...place the towels in the washer and dryer and for the love of god if I had broken anything I’d at least leave an apology letter...they don’t see your review until you see theirs so I’d be honest about it