Review - star ratings

[Stephen1604]

There's a problem with the rating system. Most guests give me 5 stars*. But some give 3 as they assume (as I would ) that 3 out of five is average. For instance a guest had to cancel at short notice.He gave me 3 stars as that seemed to him the nearest to 'no comment". He might even have give zero or one on the basis he had no grounds to give any stars as he never came here. But AirBnB seem to regard 4 or 5 stars as meaning OK whereas 4 stars should mean better than average. There should be as many 4 star rating as 2 star ones. By definition everyone cannot be above average.

*(I should give myself 3 stars as I think I am pretty average. There's nothing to complain about but nor is there anything particularly special, except perhaps my personal welcoming. . But if one gets several 3 star ratings AirBnb scold one or even threaten to ban one. The system defies logic or reason. 

[Joelle43 · Accepted solution]

Hello @Stephen1604 

If this guest never set foot in your place and cancelled before his check in date, he should not be able to leave a comment.  You can contact CS and get this review removed.  That will at least get one 3 star review removed!

Unfortunately, Airbnb do not seek average, they seek excellence and extra-ordinary and they consider a 4* review as not good so if you are getting too many 3* then yes, you will get an automated message saying that you risk having your listing suspended.

Are there any areas in the review system that you could maybe improve upon, cleanliness, check-in procedure etc?  

All the best

Joëlle