House Rules Leading to Retaliatory Reviews

[Janet1722]

Hi fellow hosts,

I’m reaching out because I’ve been dealing with a recurring issue that I’m sure many of you may have experienced, and I’d really value your insight.

I clearly state in my listing and house rules that no visitors or gatherings are allowed, and I also make sure guests explicitly acknowledge and accept these rules before check-in. Despite this, I’ve had multiple situations where guests disregard the rules, bring in unauthorized visitors, and essentially host gatherings.

When I address the situation during their stay politely but firmly enforcing the rules I often end up receiving retaliatory negative reviews.

What’s been especially frustrating is that when I escalate these cases to Airbnb, even with message and video evidence showing the guest violated the rules, the reviews are NEVER removed. It feels like there’s little protection for hosts who are simply enforcing their own clearly stated policies.

A recent situation (similar to one I had with a guest named Gladys) followed this exact pattern: rule violation, respectful enforcement, then a negative review as a result. It’s becoming a pattern that directly impacts my ratings and business.

I’m trying to understand:

• How are you all preventing these situations more effectively?

• Have you had success getting unfair reviews removed in similar cases?

• Are there specific wording strategies, deposits, or screening methods that have worked better for you?

At this point, it feels unfair that we are expected to uphold our house rules, yet penalized when we do. Any advice, strategies, or even shared experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you all in advance.

[Vivek143]

Hi @Janet1722 

This is unfortunately a common challenge, and you’re right — simply having house rules in place isn’t always enough to prevent these situations or protect against reviews.

A few things that have worked well in practice:

1. Pre-booking clarity (very important)

Before accepting, I send a short confirmation message asking guests to reconfirm key rules (no visitors, no gatherings, max occupancy). This creates a second layer of acknowledgment beyond the listing.

2. Position rules as “building/security policy”

Instead of just “my rules,” I frame it as: “As per building guidelines and security, outside visitors or gatherings aren’t permitted.”

Guests tend to take this more seriously.

3. Early intervention (tone matters)

At the first sign of violation, I send a calm, non-confrontational message via Airbnb:

“Just a quick reminder of the house rules you agreed to — no visitors are permitted. I’d appreciate your cooperation.”

Keeping everything documented on-platform is key.

4. Use Airbnb support early, not after

If guests don’t comply, I contact Airbnb during the stay, not after checkout. This creates a record and sometimes allows intervention or cancellation support.

5. Security deposit / consequences (clearly stated)

Even if not enforced directly, mentioning that violations may lead to penalties or termination of stay helps deter behavior.

6. Review strategy (important for retaliation cases)

Keep your public review of the guest factual and neutral, for example:

“Guest did not fully adhere to house rules regarding visitors.”

This helps if you later request review removal.

About review removal (reality check)

Airbnb usually removes reviews only if they clearly violate policy (hate speech, irrelevant content, etc.).

Rule violations alone don’t always qualify — unless you can show the review is directly retaliatory and unrelated to the stay experience.

What helps reduce this long-term:

Slightly screening guests through conversation (purpose of stay, number of guests)

Avoiding bookings where guests seem vague about plans

Keeping rules short, visible, and repeated in key places (listing + messages)

You’re doing the right things — the gap is usually in prevention + documentation timing, not effort. Once you tighten those, these cases reduce significantly.

Hope this helps —would like to hear your thoughts on this as well ? 👍🏻💯

[Janet1722]

Thank you for your response. I truly appreciate you taking the time to share your suggestions.

I want to clarify that I have implemented all of these steps very carefully—my house rules are clearly stated in the listing, reiterated in my messages, and guests are required to acknowledge and agree to them before check-in.

Despite this, I am still encountering situations where guests knowingly break the rules. It often feels like some guests believe that because they are paying for their stay, they are entitled to disregard the policies altogether.

I have been very consistent in following these processes exactly as recommended, which is why this continues to be so frustrating. I’m really trying to understand what more can realistically be done on the host side to prevent these situations.

It’s very disappointing and discouraging as a host to not be backed up with you know you have done it all and you are correct. 

[Greystone0]

Hi @Janet1722  - I totally feel your frustration. This is a tough one and we deal with this for our STR.

And generally speaking over-occupancy is a common pain point around here - happens a lot and is a very tricky issue, as you have found out. You are not alone.

- I would keep refining your messaging and the content in your listing. There is no escaping this need now-a-days.

- if you aren't already, ask guest to re-confirm their reserved occupancy at booking - "we see you reserved for "2 adults, no children, no dog" is this accurate?" On our end, about 75% of our reservations have the WRONG occupancy for a variety of reasons: guest just left the default, guest didn't think it mattered that much, guest was doing multiple searches and didn't realize that they had it wrong, and on and on.

-If you aren't already, add some sort of message that says "your reserved occupancy is 4 adults, no children, no dog, has this changed? As per our insurance/permit we are required to manage this accurately (or some such thing).   

- Just asking them about the house rules isn't enough, respectfully. On our end we include reference to the occupancy in every message we send so it is highly visible what the expectation is.

- if you don't already, add in your listing "additional occupancy for day use/over ight use beyond what is reserved will incur a $XX charge. Generally speaking, more rules is to be avoided, but you have to take control here  - and you can always remove once you feel like things are better.

- AIRBNB can't really do anything about over-occupancy. There is no occupancy police. They can just nod and say whatever, but the guest just keeps doing the thing you don't want.

- you will see this recommendation repeated around here : to just rely on this platform for reservations and payment - the rest is on your shoulders. This is good advice. 

- review removal is almost impossible now-a-days. Guests are savvy and no one likes being tattled on (watched and told they are breaking the rules) so for them to feel poorly about their stay is an accurate thing. I do not agree with all of this but that is the reality.  Said with much respect here.

- And respectfully, what are we talking about here? 15 extra guests or 1 extra guest? On our end we pick our battles carefully and then re-group after to try and see how we could have avoided the guest or situation altogether. You are obligated to keep your property safe but if the guest group with an extra guest (or some small number here?) is not causing harm then you run the risk of causing your listing more harm. It is an unfair result but the reality.

- AIRBNB does a terrible job at setting guest expectations on occupancy- they really should do more but until then it is on your shoulders.

- other platforms allow for a lease and a security deposit (you can't do either here) so you should consider adding other sales resource to your marketing mix. We have more respectful guests and less issues when using a lease.

- and you can do all of these things and still have issues - it is infuriating. But you are not alone!!!

Hopefully that gives you some food for thought! Good luck!

[Elaine701]

@Janet1722 

You'll get nowhere "escalating" it to Airbnb. In fact, it can seriously backfire, and in the worst cases, result in suspension or even delisting. In any case, it will result in a scathing review, possibly with a demand for refund for imaginary atrocities you committed (in retaliation). 

I wouldn't say anything and act as if I didn't know. Thank them, wish them well on their way, and accept the 5 star review they write out of guilt. And then write about it in my review of the guest. That will make it really difficult for them to book Airbnbs in the future. And frankly, it's your only practical recourse. 

Sorry, but it's just the nature of the beast. Focus on attracting a better quality of guest. The payoff is better. 

[Janet1722]

Thanks for your response.

It’s so unfair... So after so much sweat, tears, and money I should let the guests destroy and bring as many people as the want? I don’t think that’s right. 

Maybe I am not in the right business.