Review removal request don't serve its purpose.

[Jason1367]

Hello everyone! 

Just wanted to share my experience (frustrations) with you guys as I know many of you have been going through the same situation as me. 

I am a superhost in London, been working hard to give my guests a very satisfying experience and I've been very successful all these 8 years hosting. Lately, I've been hosting very difficult people, some of the have broken my house rules and when I tried to enforce them, I get a 1 star review where I have been openly accused of enforcing my own rules. I have documented all of these and I have challenged these reviews knowing 100% that the airbnb review policy is on my side. It is utterly frustrating that no matter how much you can prove again and again that the guests have broken my house rules and the guests retaliate when I have attempted to make them to comply. 

The most obvious case, I hosted a lady that brought a visitor with her when this is not allowed, then she used my towels and bed linen to remove her make-up. I have made it very clear that guests cannot use my towels to remove make up and guests are not allowed to bring visitors during their stay. I documented everything, approached the guest, showed the photos of towels and pillowcases being all covered with think make up and for my surprise, this lady told me that these items where already stained when she checked in. There are dishonest people out there, some act without a single inch of shame. Three or four days later I get a 1-star review where the guest mentioned not only that I tried to charge her for the items that were already stained but, that I was charging her 100usd, this was a solid lie. 

I actioned the aircover policy,  presented all my evidence and got compensated. I also challenged this particular review twice, even escalated the case with a senior case manager which expressed his frustrations with this method airbnb is using to remove reviews that clearly do not stick with their reviews policies. Second attempt was unsuccessful, the reply was the same,

"Thanks for bringing your concerns about xxxxxx review to our attention.

After reviewing the details, we found that xxxxxx review follows our review policy This means that it won’t be removed from the Airbnb platform."

The intriguing thing is that it took them only a matter of 10 to 15 minutes after submitting the form for them to reply. 

A previous 1-star review I had a lady mad at me cos she decided to leave my listing earlier cos she found somewhere else to stay for free and wanted a full refund even for the nights she stayed in. I obviously refused to it, she didn't even cancelled the reservation on her end and create a whole dramatic situation about a clock I have at home in order to get a full refund. I had proven with solid evidence that her arguments were completely nonsense and that she was only seeking a full refund when she didn't even cancelled her 7 day reservation. She gave me a quite ill review where she even disclosed sensitive information about myself and build a pack of lies onto it. Airbnb dedicated team for review removal decided that her review followed the review content policy.  That review was 100% retaliatory, sensitive information was disclosed, it was completely misleading, and dishonest. All I can do is bring this to you, feeling demotivated and immensely disappointed. 

Thanks for reading this folks, cheerio! 

[Debbie284]

I feel your pain. Airbnb sucks most of the time

[Jason1367]

Yes, I don't quite know why Airbnb is becoming hostile against hosts. They keep praising you for being a superhost but, when something goes wrong and we the superhost need some assistance, they make you feel as if you are completely on your own. 

For the health of the business, I hope they change that approach.  

[Tara0]

@Debbie284 I disagree. Most of the time it's the best platform there is, but resolution of issues fairly, has, I agree, has dropped off a cliff. But issues are rare. 

[Tara0]

@Jason1367 I'm also a UK superhost, have been for 11 years. Customer service is not going to get any better, many suspect that a lot of it is now AI. But Airbnb is still the best platform of its kind by far.

I had a good look at your room listings and reviews (I sorted by lowest rating first!). Your listings look very well presented, especially at your low price point. But when you're dirt cheap and accepting 1-night bookings, you're inevitably going to get some dissatisfied customers. You have a fair number of poor reviews, not just the ones you mention - as I say, some dissatisfaction and/or dishonest guests is inevitable given the high turnover etc. Granted, it's a low number percentage-wise, which is how you've so far avoided having your listings suspended. (Be aware that there's a tipping point). 

You need to change your approach, I think, when you can't rely on retaliatory reviews being removed or the support of customer services when guests lie.

I notice you reply at length to the negative reviews. Firstly, some of the criticism seems valid - for example, the non-locking sliding doors to the single room. You need to make it clear in your listing that this is the set-up. It's not clear, and I wouldn't be happy with it, especially a single woman in a man's flat. Better still, take on board the comments and add a lock or bolt to the sliding doors.

Secondly, - lengthy, defensive host replies to negative reviews never come across well. As a guest, I avoid any listing which has host replies like yours to bad reviews. I suggest you take on board some of the comments - it's quite possible a lot more guests found the clock chimes intrusive or didn't like the lack of a lock, but said nothing because they couldn't be bothered just for a 1-night booking.

With the woman who stained the towels/linen with make-up, - suck it up. Say nothing. Do not issue a demand for compensation. The 1-star review is not worth the few quid you received, is it?

With the woman who wanted to leave early and cancel and get a refund. Let her cancel and refund! Suck it up. But make her or Airbnb do the cancelling, obviously (as hosts are penalised heavily for cancelling). 

These two 1-star reviews you got are much, much bigger bruises than the financial cost. 

Overall, you come across as a bit controlling of guests - I can understand in the context of it's rooms in your own home, but at the same time this is a commercial business and some of it's not always fun and you have to make concessions.