The Air BnB Representative that called me...

[Darci4]

On July 17th I contacted Air BnB about a suspicious guest who booked, then had trouble paying.  I messaged the guest twice and then sent a request for money.  I then received a text from the guest asking me to wait, he was putting money in his account.  When I tried to look at reviews and his "story" there was nothing on his page.

Then this guy shows up at my door.  I show him the room and bathroom.  He says he's going outside to use the phone.  Then he left with no explanation a few minutes later.  It was all super scary and I'm glad my boyfriend was here at the time.  Was this guy casing my house?  Would he be back to rob me?  Is he going to come and kill me in my sleep?  What was going on?  

The next day I see that the payment came through at some point.  I refunded the money immediately because I didn't want to have anything else to do with this guy...

I said in my review that this guy was "sketchy" and asked them to investigate. 

Later I sent in the above information.

Tonight (about 7:30pm Central on July 20) I get a phone call from someone who says she's from Air BnB.  At some point I asked her if she was in the US because she had a pretty thick accent.  Heck.  Is this Jorge's partner seeing if I'm home?  I'm still not convinced she was with Air BnB...

I looked all over the website for a direct phone number so I can check all of this out, and can't find one.  My daughter is a Super Host and she says she has a number for someone that will answer 24/7.  Hmmmm, shouldn't that be available to all of us, especially when we could be dealing with criminals and God knows whatelse?  

The woman I spoke to was insulted because I asked her if she was from the US.  Well...gee.  She didn't seem to have read the information I sent about this guy and was indicating she was going to do something about the money.  The money?  NO.  Check out this GUY...the one that acted so suspiciously, with no reviews and no background info on his page.  She was NOT understanding at all and I'd like to know exactly where she was in the world and if she REALLY and TRULY works for Air BnB.  Advice anyone?

[Fred13]

Well, we all have different approaches, undoubtedly as a result of our personal experiences and certainly individual nature. Today (after 69 years on this Earth) my objective in hosting is to meet the guests (every 4-5 days different guests, been doing it for years), make them feel comfortable by talking about THEM and I keep constantly in MY mind that the only reason why we have even come into contact with each other, in the first place, is because they are renting my place (temporariy). The 'relationship' will definitely be short-lived. They leave smashing reviews, and I come away always thinking the world of them. A beautiful thing. 🙂

On the other hand, your hosting logistics are different than mine I gather;  my guests will never have the element of surprise on their side (like with this odd fellow); heck they have to book for years in advance to even get to meet me, giving me more than ample time to weed out the ' too strange' from the 'normal' ones.

Good luck.

[Clara116]

@Fred13 well written. As a new host and new Superhost I spent months educating myself about everything I could before hitting the publish button - and now continue learning from the pros like you and many others. This community is very cool because the host tell it like it is and I am often surprised at the folks that open their homes  when they are not fully prepared and have a concept of the world that is somehow unrealistic. 

I like to look at folks listings and read reviews and I learn as I go - things I certainly wanna consider doing and ALSO, stuff that I would never consider doing.  

Also, there seems to be a bunch of "Right Fighters" as host - I fear they will not have a smooth ride or very enjoyable journey. I say this as a reflection of the quick backfire in defending what they say. You were very diplomatic with Darci and I wanted to say thanks for your approach - its helpful and a good guide.  

Bird Island looks totally amazing - it is on my wishlist for sure..........of course, I am living in Pensacola and so you know we too have a peice of paradise on our beaches and waters, however they don't compare to your private island.

Best to you Fred & Ruth

[Fred13]

Clara you are very kind. Hosting is (like everything else) a step-by-step mental journey. I am forever amazed why I couldn't see just yesterday what I could so easily 'see' today. 😉