Guest Demanded Money to Remove Bad Review — Airbnb Did Nothing

[Maria-Eduarda15]

Hi everyone,

I’m writing this post because I want Airbnb to acknowledge a serious issue that is being overlooked — and I believe many other hosts may encounter the same.

Recently, I had a guest who completed their stay without raising a single concern during or after their visit. I left them a positive review, as my cleaning team reported no issues and everything seemed smooth. But shortly after, I received a text message from their registered phone number explicitly asking for money in exchange for removing a bad review they had just posted. This is clear review manipulation and bribery, a direct violation of Airbnb’s review policy.

What’s worse is that their review falsely claimed I had offered them a discount for a 5-star review — an accusation that’s completely fabricated. I immediately reported this to Airbnb and provided full screenshots of the message, expecting the review to be removed under Airbnb’s extortion and review fraud policy. Instead, I received a vague denial, with no real explanation, only that “the decision was made by the review team” and could not be appealed. I spent hours on chat and phone support, and every response felt automated, dismissive, and frustrating.

This raises an important question:
Why have review policies if Airbnb won’t enforce them — even when evidence is undeniable?

I have dealt with this type of behavior before and in a previous case, Airbnb did remove the review after significant back and forth. But this time, I’ve hit a wall.

I take pride in running a clean, professional, and honest Airbnb. I do not offer discounts for reviews, and I do not tolerate being falsely accused of such practices. False claims like this hurt our credibility and discourage good hosts from continuing on the platform.

Airbnb, please do better. Enforce your own policies. Protect your hosts from guests who attempt to manipulate the review system for personal gain.

Fellow hosts — have you experienced this before? If so, were you able to get support? I would love to hear your thoughts or advice.

Thank you,
Maria

[Joan2709]

@Maria-Eduarda15 

It looks like you gave this guest a good review???  I would contact Airbnb and have them at least remove your review as you can't edit it now.

Remove Your Own Review

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/3582

Also, you say the listing clearly shows how far it is from Orlando and Disney? It actually only says in the Description:

"conveniently situated near Universal/Disney parks"

In the Space it says

25miles?

The guest says its 1.5hours away?

To be on the safe side, I suggest you list the actual mileage and drive time to all the attractions in bullet form, so there is no confusion about distances and drive times for future guests. Drive time varies and typical traffic on I-5 during busy times of day may be closer to the 1.5hrs the guest mentioned.

True, the guest can see the actual address after booking, but may not have checked Google Maps to determine mileage and drive time and of course that depends on the usual traffic.

The guest has 72hrs to report a problem to Airbnb. Did the guest do that (flies & cleanliness issues)? If not, then the might be another reason to have the review removed:

72 Hours to Report a Problem

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/248

We cannot see the content of your messages with the guest, so can't comment if the guest tried to get a refund in exchange for a good review. If they did, that is a valid reason to remove the review and you should continue to pursue that with Airbnb.

[Maria-Eduarda15]

Hi Joan, thank you so much for taking the time to reply — I really appreciate your feedback.

Yes, I did leave the guest a good review at first because honestly, everything seemed fine. They never reached out to me with any concerns, and my cleaning team reported the house was left in ok condition (my pool guy once went to the outdoor area around the pool and found a lot of water balloons stick to the ground, but I didn't even mention anything to airbnb).

Then out of nowhere, I got a text from their registered number asking for money in exchange for removing a bad review they left afterward. I was shocked. I immediately reported it to Airbnb and shared screenshots of the message, expecting it to be taken seriously since it clearly violates their review policy. But despite all that, my request was denied with no real explanation — just the standard “this is the decision of the review team” message. It’s been really frustrating.

You’re totally right about the location description, too. I went back and reviewed it after reading your comment. I’ve now updated the listing to include clear distance, thank you for pointing it out.

The guest didn’t report any issues to Airbnb during the stay or within the 72-hour window, I didn't mention this on my review removal request though.. I was not sure how helpful this would be as I already had a much more serious situation going on (bribery).

I hadn’t thought about trying to have my review of the guest removed, but that actually makes sense — I’m going to try that next. But it's not only what I want out of this. It really frustrates me is the fact that Airbnb only responded with pre made answers on my review removal request, even on the phone they didn't know why it was not removed and this all situation is affecting my listing and image. They just couldn't provide any information and I'm stuck in this. I need airbnb to resolve promptly as I am not able to request the removal a 3rd time. Thanks again for all the helpful suggestions and links. It really means a lot to have support from other hosts who understand what this feels like.

– Maria

[Maria-Eduarda15]

Adding here the review policy:

"Members of the Airbnb community may not coerce, intimidate, extort, threaten, incentivize or manipulate another person in an attempt to influence a review, like promising compensation in exchange for a positive review or threatening consequences in the event of a negative review. "

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2673

[Joan2709]

@Maria-Eduarda15 

Exactly...I would take screen shots of what the guest said and then quote the article above to Airbnb when trying to get the review removed.

[Marie8425]

@Maria-Eduarda15 

Try this focus on the one thing "offered a discount for a 5 star review".  Do not mention the other irritations focus on the one thing that either the guest has proof or doesn't if does please share if doesn't please remove.

Don't get lost in the weeds, really doesn't matter if other lies.  This is a hostile accusation and a review is not for public attacks of the host with serious accusations unless the guest can offer some proof that you abused her.

[Marie8425]

@Maria-Eduarda15 

Maybe presented to Airbnb this way.  As a Host I am legally committed to adhere to the TOC I agreed to with Airbnb.

The statement "offered discount for good review" is a public statement that I as a Host performed an illegal activity I broke my legal contract with Airbnb.  The Guest is making a public accusation of criminal activity by me.

[Maria-Eduarda15]

Marie, Thank you so much for taking the time on answering to my post. I feels good to see that I can have support from the community as Airbnb hesitates on giving explanations. I am trying to focus on the text message and hopefully I will get an answer soon. Will update the post as soon as I hear from Airbnb.

[Joan2709]

@Maria-Eduarda15 

One more thing to keep in mind for future reference. This Host texted you instead of messaging you on the platform about demanding a refund in exchange for a good review. That seems to be intentional to me, as she didn't want this statement on the platform messaging.

Do NOT respond to a guest via text. Take a screen shot of the message. Then go to Airbnb and send a message to the guest and attach the image of their comment to the message. Then just say, I received this message from you via text. "Are you asking me to provide a refund in exchange for a good review?" This keeps everything on platform for Airbnb to see.

Do not respond to any messages from the guest via text. 

[Maria-Eduarda15]

Joan, thank you so much for all the help on this situation.. I have not slept well the past days because this case has not been resolved yet and they are still "investigating". I am providing all screenshot and support docs for Airbnb to process. Again, I am finding out that I just need to be direct with Airbnb support and focus on the refund requested in exchange for a good review.

[Maria-Eduarda15]

Hi everyone, I need urgent support.

Things escalated quickly with the guest, and I'm still in shock from the level of hostility and discrimination I experienced. I run a professionally renovated, modern 5-bedroom home—and because I keep my pricing competitive, I’ve had a mix of guest types. But this is the first time in my life I’ve been treated with such outright disrespect and discrimination.

After I reached out to the guest privately to express how hurtful and inappropriate their behavior was, they responded with aggressive, racist, and misogynistic language, including calling me a “dumb non-English speaking bitch” and telling me to “go to hell.” I’m attaching screenshots to this post so you can see for yourself.

The worst part? Airbnb still approved a refund for this guest. It feels like I was punished for standing up for myself and protecting my home and business.

To those who’ve dealt with similar situations—how did you handle it?

Again, Airbnb won’t remove my review as they claim the review of this person doesn’t go against their policy.