Wonder if friends of competition hosts booking to leave a bad review

[Roberta150]

I've had some guests book from a city less than three hours away from here where it's common for people to own a second home in my town and/or have friends here. My last two such bookings stayed this past week, and both caused me serious problems - one leaving a completely unfair review with false statements about my listing and leaving a day early without cause. I'm starting to wonder if they were friends of someone who also runs an Airbnb in my town and booked in order to deliberately leave a bad review to sabotage my listing, which has many five-star glowing reviews over the past two years and I'm a Superhost. The other guests snuck in extra people, brought four cases of beer, and started partying hardy until I put a stop to it. They seemed to be doing it deliberately to make me not want to host anymore based on their attitude (I'm already there so they needn't have bothered) - and stated they wouldn't leave me a review if I didn't leave them one. It all seemed well-planned to mess with me, and they left a day early when confronted. So both left after one night (no refund due to strict policy) and seemed to have planned it that way - zip into and out of town just to mess with me and my listing.

I realize this may sound paranoid, but I had a similar experience about six months ago. These two happened to occur almost back-to-back. Has anyone had a similar experience with possible friends of another host who is your competition booking a stay merely to lie and give you a bad review, or coming to break House Rules and mess with you? I suspect this is happening more often than we may think due to unscrupulous hosts wanting to hurt their competition. A tell-tale sign is that the guests are coming from somewhere fairly closeby.

I'm getting out of the hosting business as soon as my last pre-booked guests stay in early November. All other dates are blocked for the next two years to ensure no bookings while I prepare to sell this house and move to a small home in another state to live blissfully alone and invest the balance (a better way to earn income.) It's a darn shame the bad 1% of guests ruined what started out as a nice business for me, and possibly some unscrupulous competition. Would like to hear if others suspect something similar happening to them.

[Catherine232]

Bye Felicia!

[Michael3077]

I may be a naive newbie, but I’m also paranoid that this happened to me. My neighbor also has an AirBnB. I believe hers was booked so she had her friend rent mine and leave me all one stars. My friend who cleaned the place while I was working saw my AirBnB neighbor talking to my guest. I know I have no real proof  or recourse. I just hope it comes around on my neighbor at some point. Sorry you had to deal with this.

[Robin4]

@Sarah977 @Emilia42 @John1080 @Linda108

Well there you go, someone who knows it all, when others can't exactly put their hands up and say.."Yeah same happened to me" they get a barrage of sarcastic comment!

Local knowledge is always a fine thing to have where a problem is concerned and others may give answers that do not seem relative. That doesn't mean we are morons, trolls or naive newbies, we just want to offer alternate explanations. We all have better things to do in life than waste time here to be told we are idiots. 

All we ever want to do is help, and the way that correspondant went about her replies, her comment 'Bye' was the only one I got the slightest bit of satisfaction reading from her.....

Yes indeed.....Bye!!

Cheers......Rob

[Victoria567]

Hi @Roberta0

I doubt whether friends of your competition are doing this.

Even if such were possible, you as a host have the right to reply to such reviews in an honest justified manner.

May I respectfully suggest you use this right to reply otherwise it’s a case of ‘ put up’ or ‘ shut up’......please please DO use your right to reply to such guest reviews as by not answering you are seen by some readers of such poor guest reviews of there’s no smoke without fire.

[John1080]

All of us trolls should just shut up I guess because obviously, we lack the knowledge she's looking for. Shame on us for trying to help! @Robin4 @Sarah977 @Catherine232 @Victoria567 

[Clara116]

@Robin4 and everyone else But NOT Roberta - correct the listing tells the whole story for this very unsettled soul. There is so much help, assistance, knowledge on this CC and unfortunate to see how the paranoia can settle in and how someone only wants their side and those onboard IF on their side - the reviews and interactions we read on a listing can surely paint a picture of the host and this one was an amazing example of NOT SUITABLE FOR ABB HOSTING! just my thoughts.....so glad to be a happy senior host.

[Robin4]

@Clara116

Clara, I didn't want to bring that up, but obviously you have seen it. Guests, on your bike between 10-5 ....listing is out of bounds! Yes I did look at the listing. I am slightly sorry that she is so troubled by what she does.

We hosts do work in mysterious ways!

Cheers......Rob