Guest scam

[Alissa123]

I have a guest that booked for two weeks and left after check in. They claimed the Internet wasn’t working and that there was a rodent in the wall. Long story short, the Internet works just fine (Starlink). My husband and I just left the day of their check in without issue. Also, my Internet devices, such as ring camera, nest, thermostat, ambient weather station, and Schlage door lock all remained online. The guest is requesting a full refund. The guest has a review on their profile that they did this same thing to two other hosts. The guest is requesting $3600 payment for me. I contacted AIRBNB. They state guest has never contacted AIRBNB about any issues. The guest never talked to AIRBNB about leaving the reservation. However, the guest is requesting money to be refunded. I’m not sure what kind of scam this is. (I am assuming the guest will receive money for me if I agree and then also dispute the charges on their credit card and therefore end up with $3600 extra.)

24 hours later, I have not refunded the guest money and now she is stating that she will be leaving a poor review destroying my super host status. So now she’s extorting me. I have reported all this to AIRBNB, but they don’t seem to think much of it. So I’m very frustrated.

My home remains blocked as the guest has not canceled and refuses to cancel. But she has left the reservation and demanding money.

Has this happened to anyone before? What am I missing here?

thx.

six years super host 107 five star reviews.

[Joelle43]

Hello @Alissa123 

Airbnb are the ones who handle the money side of things so don't refund these guests yourself.  A request for a reimbursement by the guest should come via the platform but for that to happen guests have to go through the correct processing channels.  From what I've understood you haven't received a request for a refund from Airbnb, just the guest, is that right?

It could be that this guest may have had a change of plan, knew that they fell outside of your cancellation policy, arrived and made up a bogus excuse to extract a full refund directly to the host (not the way it's done)  Common scam amongst guests I'm afraid but they usually contact CS to put in a false claim.

The fact that you have written proof that they are threatening you with a bad review if you don't accept a refund is significant and is contrary to Airbnb's retaliatory policy (see link below) and in theory, means that any bad review should be removed.  

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

In practice, you have to have a lot of patience and have to insist with CS to enforce this policy.  Ask to speak to a supervisor.

So this guest hasn't cancelled so your calendar remains blocked for the duration of this 2 week stay with no hope of getting a last minute booking as a result, which prevents you from saying to the guest that you would consider refunding IF you were able to get any nights rebooked.  Catch 22

I would contact CS again and refer the guest to Airbnb who handle refunds.

Other hosts will surely chime in Alissa to give you their intake too but feel really sorry for you that you have been put in this position by a guest who seems to know how to work the system

Joëlle

[Alissa123]

Thank you for your reply. I have sent this to the guest this morning. 

Holly, 

Your reservation remains open and active, as no cancellation has been made. I have communicated with Airbnb multiple times regarding this matter, and they have confirmed that you have not reached out to them regarding your concerns or for a refund.

The issues you mentioned, such as poor internet and mice in the walls, have not been substantiated. I have sent a cleaner, handyman, and pest control to the property, which has incurred costs, but no problems have been identified. Additionally, all our internet devices, including Ring, Nest, Ambient Weather, and Schlage, have been functioning without any service disruptions. There has been no evidence to support the claims of internet failure or pest issues.

Airbnb takes threats of retaliatory reviews very seriously, and your suggestion that I might lose my Superhost status unless a refund is granted is against their policies.

As a Superhost, I value providing exceptional service to all my guests. While I’m understanding of situations where reservations need to be adjusted for valid reasons, we have found no basis for your claims. However, I am willing to extend an olive branch: your reservation remains active, and since you live nearby, the home is still available for you to use. Should you decide to cancel, I will refund any dates that are rebooked.

Sincerely,
Alissa

[Joelle43]

Hello @Alissa123 

This is an excellent reply - clear, calm and professional👏  Keep us updated on the outcome with this guest and really hope that CS give you the support that you deserve.

All the best
Joëlle

[Alissa123]

Airbnb refunded her and gave me the money for the reservation as well. I did not know that was a thing. She lied, threatened me twice and yesterday harassed me yesterday stating "Airbnb saw my side and refunded me the money. Might want to take care of those mice and make sure your internet works". Her first threat was that she was going to keep the reservation active until she got a refund. Second threat was that I was going to lose my super host status after she writes her review.  

I had sent proof and invoice of pest control finding no issues. Internet never failed. I have four devices on the wife that never lost interruption. 

I asked the ambassador last night to please cancel the reservation under her name so that I could block her from harassing me more. He did. I then also hit "report this profile" button and reported the threats and harassment.  

Thanks for reading. 

[Frances3408]

@Alissa123. As she lied about your place maybe she is also lying about getting a refund. It would be unusual for Airbnb to do this. You did everything right and good to hear Airbnb backed you.

[Alissa123]

I reached out to Airbnb when she stated this because she was also harassing me and they confirmed they refunded her too! I did not know this was a thing. **

**[Private conversation removed in line with the Community Center Guidelines]

[Helen3]

This sounds like an awful guest. @Alissa123 

1. Report to Airbnb that they've threatened a bad review if you don't refund this is against their review policy

2. Provide proof internet was working fine and no evidence of rodent in the walls 

3. say to the guest if they want to cancel this will be processed under the cancellation policy they booked under

4. however as a gesture of good will on your part once they cancel if you get a replacement booking you will look to refund any dates that get rebooked for the host fee element 

can I ask why you accepted the booking knowing in previous reviews they had twice done a last minute cancellation and demanded a refund??

[Alissa123]

I did not know that they had done this before until they did this to me. Once they started in with all the crazy complaints, I started looking into her profile. Unfortunately, even though hosts have negative things to say about guests, they still leave 5 star reviews for some reason. So, when they instant booked, I did see on her profile that she had 12 five star reviews and I thought nothing of it. Hindsight....

I sent this message to the guest this morning. Today is Day 3 of 14. 

Your reservation remains open and active, as no cancellation has been made. I have communicated with Airbnb multiple times regarding this matter, and they have confirmed that you have not reached out to them regarding your concerns or for a refund.

The issues you mentioned, such as poor internet and mice in the walls, have not been substantiated. I have sent a cleaner, handyman, and pest control to the property, which has incurred costs, but no problems have been identified. Additionally, all our internet devices, including Ring, Nest, Ambient Weather, and Schlage, have been functioning without any service disruptions. There has been no evidence to support the claims of internet failure or pest issues.

Airbnb takes threats of retaliatory reviews very seriously, and your suggestion that I might lose my Superhost status unless a refund is granted is against their policies.

As a Superhost, I value providing exceptional service to all my guests. While I’m understanding of situations where reservations need to be adjusted for valid reasons, we have found no basis for your claims. However, I am willing to extend an olive branch: your reservation remains active, and since you live nearby in Cornville, the home is still available for you to use. Should you decide to cancel, I will refund any dates that are rebooked.

Sincerely,
Alissa

Thanks for all the details in your response. I appreciate your time. 

- Alissa.