Last mintute cancellation

[Melvin114]

Hello Everyone!

I am really new to hosting and I am having a situation with a guest that cancelled the day of his reservation. I never heard back at all with reasoning with his cancellation. Two weeks later the guest messages me requesting full refund. I then explained that unfortunately our cancellation policy did take effect not allowing any refunds on cancellations 24 hours before check in. He mentioned that his car broke down the day of. Which I understand situations like these can happen at any time. However he never communicated anything with us at all. Therefore I decided not to provide a review since he technically did not complete his stay I am now being threaten with a negative review. Any advice would be helpful please. 

Thank you!

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Melvin114 Has the guest threatened a negative review on the Airbnb messaging system? If yes then you should be able to get the review removed as retaliatory. If he can review you then you can still review him

[Melvin114]

Hello he did message through Airbnb messaging. Am I able to see when he provides me a review? 

[Ruth413]

@Melvin114   There is normally a time limit for submitting reviews of 14 days.  You will get a notification if the guest writes a review.  

You should also be getting reminders yourself to write a review of the guest, these normally say " you have 2 days left to review xxxxx" for example

So as you have said that the guest contacted you 2 weeks later to ask for a refund, hopefully the 14 days has passed. 

[Alicia753 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Melvin114 navigating a situation with an Airbnb guest who is threatening a negative review due to your cancellation policy can be challenging. I recommend reiterate your cancellation policy to the guest and explain why it's in place. It's important to remain calm and professional in your communication, even if the guest is upset.

Remind the guest that your cancellation policy is in line with Airbnb's guidelines. Encourage them to contact Airbnb support if they have any concerns.

If the guest continues to threaten a negative review or you feel the situation is escalating, reach out to Airbnb's support team for assistance. They can mediate and help resolve conflicts.

Also, if a reservation is canceled before the check-in date, neither the host nor the guest can leave a review. This policy is based on the understanding that since the stay did not occur, neither party can comment on the experience.

But in cases where a guest does not show up but does not cancel the reservation, Airbnb may post an automated review indicating that the guest did not stay at the property. This helps future hosts understand the guest's reliability. I highly recommend reaching our to Airbnb for further assistance. Hope this helps!