Reviewing Guests who seek discounts

[Stephanie365]

The dryer in my AirBNB went on the fritz and my repair man wasn't able to get parts yesterday. 
I have a local guest checking in tonight for a romantic getaway evening. As a courtesy, I notified him the dryer wasn't available even though in my listing I say the washer and dryer are available for longer term guests. (I put this language in after I had one guest stop over and used my place as a laundromat, running loads  non-stop for 6+ hours) So, technically he doesn't even qualify to use it. But I would never stop a guest from using it either.

I receive a message immediately saying this would be a terrible inconvenience to them and what kind of a discount would I be giving them. 

I've been doing this for 4 years and the only people who have ever used the washer/dryer have been week long+ stays with the one exception. No one who lives local coming for a one night stand is going to even be thinking about doing laundry. Clearly this person is the type who looks for reasons to get a discount.

Should I mention this in my review?  Something along the lines of "Joe was a great guest and I would be happy to host him again. He will, however, look for opportunities to request a discount so make sure everything is perfect."

I have no problems giving a discount when it's warranted. I've even given discounts when the guest has declined my offer to do so. So this isn't about being cheap as a host. It's about letting future hosts know this person will pounce on any opportunity to ask for a discount, no matter how minor. Because if we decline their request for a discount, it can affect our review.

[J-Renato0]

@Stephanie365 

If you say he was a "great guest" there is nothing wrong with him. It does not make sense to criticize him.

It is not a good idea to say "... so make sure everything is perfect".

Every host are suposed to make everything working perfectly. If there is some issue that can not be fixed during the guest stay, the host are supposed to offer some compensation.

Maybe you could write it on the guest review - "Hard to deal with if there is a minimal issue".

Just my personal opinion.

[Sarah977]

@J-Renato0  Your response doesn't seem to relate to this host's issue. 

There wasn't any issue at all. The dryer wasn't offered as an amenity for a 1 or 2 night booking. So there was no reason for the host to make sure it was fixed or offer a discount. The guest was just scamming for a discount.

[J-Renato0]

@Sarah977 

Sorry for being honest, but I thought your reply somewhat arrogant and unnecessary.

My response is relate to this host´s issue indeed.

I was commenting the review the host in question wanted to post.

I was suggesting what is proper to say in my point of view. It is not necessary to advise hosts to make sure everything is working properly in a "review".

Please, read again what I have written. If you can not understand my point, I can do nothing to make it clear to you. I am sorry that you did not understand it.

If you want to have an argument or dispute you are addressing the wrong person !

I wish you a wonderful day.

[Richard531]

@Stephanie365 @Brian2036 @J-Renato0 @Lisa723 @Sarah977 

Obviously, we can't go back in time, but I think the perfect move would have been to say nothing at all about the dryer.  He likely would have never noticed. 

If this jerk were to somehow discover the dryer being down, and complain that it wasn't working, you could simply say: "You are correct.  Our dryer is turned off remotely for short term guests as per our house rules" and then sent an image of said house rules.  Case closed.  

I had a similar issue but far less annoying as it all happened after the fact.  Our oven was out of order.  We put a label on it mentioning that it was not working.  In a review, the guest decided to say something along the lines of "Everything was absolutely perfect!  However, their oven didn't work, but we didn't have plans to use it anyway."  I'm like, "Why the heck did I even put that label on there!?!?"  

Sometimes it's better "to apologize later, rather than ask for permission first."  If the chances are that you can get away with it (and you'll need to be deliberate about the risks you're willing to take) then I think it's worth the risk to save an up-front headache.  

Thoughts?

[Brian2036]

@Richard531 

Thanks for your interesting perspective. I enjoy thinking, which is something I don’t share in common with many guests. Not all, certainly, but when it comes to people born after the turn of the century…

OFF-TOPIC! Sorry. People have been moaning about the younger generation for at least 6,000 years and probably a lot longer.

In this instance, you’re clearly correct. It was not an amenity available to that guest and they didn’t need to know.

The host erroneously assumed that the guest was a decent, honest person like herself, and would respond with, “Thanks for letting me know, but I’m going to be far too busy violating my neighbor’s wife to do laundry.”

In your example, I think I would have told the guest that the oven was being repaired. Or maybe not. It seems that I am one of the few people left in the world who actually bake anything, so it’s a gamble, but a fairly safe one.

If I were planning to roast a possum, as some of my favorite guests are wont to do, I would be somewhat annoyed if the oven didn’t work.

On the other hand, I would use the cast-iron Dutch oven that is graciously provided in the FULLY EQUIPPED COUNTRY KITCHEN and forget about it.

[Stephanie365]

Well, the main reason I mentioned it was my repair man came out the day prior to Joe's arrival and based on the noises I described, the age of the dryer, and the repair man's experiences with the brand of the dryer, he was reasonably confident it was the main bearing that was failing. He disassembled the dryer and discovered that while the bearing was well worn (greater than 80%), it was not the source of the problem. The blower motor had failed. He had to order that part and it wouldn't be in until after the holiday weekend.

My repair man asked if he could leave everything taken apart to make his job easier. I informed him I had a guest arriving and to at least make it superficially attractive, which he did. But all of the "guts" of the dryer were stored in the dryer barrel. I didn't want the guest tossing something wet in the dryer on top of all the parts. That's why I informed him not to use it.

Fun Fact: I was this guest's 3rd AirBNB stay. At least on his current account. I went back and read the other 2 reviews of him as a guest and they were very simple: He was a clean guest. Then I read the reviews he left for his hosts and (surprise!) he had another booking where "there was an issue prior to checking in" but the host "made it right" with a discount. He was that rookie host's 2nd guest ever and although she lived in the US, based on her listing description and what she writes in all of her reviews, English is not her native language and she says the same thing for every guest. While I don't know for sure, I can surmise from my experience with him he pounced on her inexperience and language barrier and scammed a discount. So he's received a discount for 66% of his AirBNB vacations so far.... 

[Brian2036]

@Stephanie365 

He may have received a discount for 100% of his stays, including some he booked on other platforms.

I’m sure he’s very proud of his record.

This person is little more than a sneak thief, in my opinion, and I hope someone identifies him as such soon.

[Clara116]

@Brian2036 @Stephanie365  Thanks Brian, finally someone hits it direct on the head. The guys a scammer and preys on hosts, esp. newer hosts. 

Hosts really need to read up - be alert and stop allowing this stuff from happening. 

Stephanie now I see why you had told the guests - but still you as host know you bear the burden and responsibility. Reading the guests reviews after the fact surely didn't help you did it? You might have done that before had an avoided this and showed this jerk that his game of scamming doesn't work with all hosts. 

People will continue doing stuff  most often when they are allowed -

What we permit, we promote. 

happy hosting

[Inna22]

@Stephanie365 I do not think you should go into details and leave parts like "did not even" out. I also think that if you mention resolution center, your review qualifies for removal.

I have had a similar situation and instead of informing the guest I taped a note on the amenity (it was a second dishwasher) that said NOT WORKING AND NOT PART OF THE LISTING or something along those lines

[Monariz0]

You should have just offered to put his laundry in your personal dryer at home. 

[Stephanie365]

Well, he definitely likes to play games. He waited until Day 14 to leave me a less than 5* review. He claimed the towels were musty. (They were not as they were washed and dried with fabric softener in my main laundry the morning before he arrived). It was his dig at me for only giving him $10 off his stay.

I'm sure he expected a great review. He didn't get one.

[Stephanie365]

So, going back and looking at this guy's profile, my review makes his 3rd review. 

He received a 3 for communication and a 2 for house rules and 5 for cleanliness (because he did leave my home clean). And of course a Would Not Host Again.

He still has a 5* rating in all categories. How is this even possible? 

[Linda108]

I am not sure why, but when I look at his reviews I don't see any ratings, including an overall rating.  Your rating continue to be stellar!   Anyway, his review was essentially positive but obviously picky.  Your response probably will not play well with potential guests as your response could be more neutral rather than accusatory, IMO

[Emilia42]

@Stephanie365 It will take a little while for this star ratings to update. Check back tomorrow and see if they have changed.