Vindictive guest - review removal rejected

[Isla993]

I have just had the worst guests and need some advice. I’ve been a super host for four years and this last guest has been so awful I am considering removing my property from Airbnb. 

The American couple were very nice prior to arriving and I went above and beyond sending them helpful information, historical facts etc and twice staying in to receive packages of camping equipment they had delivered and storing it. 

Upon arrival they were horrific. Rude, unresponsive, sarcastic. I believe he didn’t read the listing which clearly states there are stairs. It was also a heatwave in London which made the news with record temperatures which I understand can fray tempers. I have a portable AC which he didn’t read instructions for and I had to attend to put it on for them but only five days into stay because he didn’t tell me there was an issue. 

He complained about amenities that I don’t claim to have but he wanted. Didn’t read the house manual, didn’t read or respond to messages for many days and when he did respond he was rude. I was always polite but had to ask him to communicate with me respectfully. 

One valid frustration during their stay was unexpected engineering work on the internet network which resulted in slower speeds and intermittent connection. I spent hours on the phone and online with internet company but there was no quick fix and completely out of my control. I sent screen shots to guests and Airbnb. I sent them flowers and offered to get a data package but the network engineering impacted roaming as well. 

I offered free cleaning and laundry prior to stay. This was refused. They said they would manage. I offered assistance with operating washer and dryer.. No response. They left 16 used towels in the bathtub upon check out causing extra time for cleaning. 

I asked advice from Airbnb during their stay and they read all communication and I was assured I was doing everything right and they could observe from the messages the unreasonable behaviour of the guests. They even opened a case anticipating a negative review. 

The review was worse than I could have imagined. My property is high-end, on a very desirable street in London with expensive designer furniture. He called it an abomination, accused me of lying about the internet engineering work, lied saying I have a garbage depot below my property and that there were rats. Called the area gritty despite high end restaurants including a Michelin star, wholefoods and Gail’s bakery on the doorstep. The street has featured in magazines as a desired area. He has been defamatory and untruthful and the “opinionated” parts of review are wholly unfair. 

As advised I appealed. I also phoned support and by the time I ended call there was an email saying the appeal was rejected. There was not enough time for a support worker to have read the appeal or evidence. I called again and told to do another appeal. I did and submitted more evidence. FIVE minutes after submission it was rejected despite the review being in breach of the Airbnb policy. Again it would be impossible for a human to read the appeal and evidence in that time. I had the full backing of Airbnb support during the stay of the problem guests. They acknowledged my  above and beyond efforts and the unreasonable behaviour of guests and yet are not removing a defamatory and vindictive review full of untruths. I have submitted documents and photos to prove everything as well as the communication which was all in writing with guests. 

I have asked for an investigation and I am awaiting a response. I feel so let down. In summary this is a case of a nasty man who probably had an upset wife because he didn’t realise the property is over two floors and there’s no en-suite as clearly shown in listing and he took out his anger on me. It is not right for one awful person to destroy someone’s potential for income. I did write a very measured rebuttal but we know that’s not the solution. I have never written a bad review of a guest until now. I wanted to warn other hosts of the potential stress and upset that awaits. 

[Tara330]

Hi Isla, I found your comments because I'm searching for inspiration on how to respond to and review a scammy and aggressive  guest looking for a refund.

I like the way you responded and described how sarcastic and unpleasant the guests were.  There is so much talk about being strictly factual in reviews, but I find some guests are borderline abusive and bullying which shouldn't be tolerated!

Your listing looks gorgeous BTW!

[John5097]

@Isla993 

I also looked over your listing and have a few observations. 

1) You mentioned that guest took issue with the bedroom being up a flight of stairs. You claim they didn't read the listing but I didn't see stairs mentioned. 

The listing description does say "Set over two and a half floors, the open plan main floor with designer corner couch is the perfect place to relax. The kitchen opens out on to the roof terrace. The bedrooms are extremely comfortable with new Emma mattresses, luxurious designer bedding and towels."

But I couldn't find any mention of the bedroom being up a flight of stairs. So think you are right and that the guest took issue with this. They are also retired age and likely had some mobility issues. Your listing also doesn't mention the location of the bathrooms, which the guest also pointed out, that its down flights of stairs.

So would suggest updating this to be more transparent about the stairs. 

2) Your listing states there is air-conditioning in the living room. So if this is not accurate then you could update it. Sometimes we as host miss things?  




You might also want to mention that it's a historical dwelling with lots of charm but can get a bit warm during heat waves. 

3) I don't think guest should have mentioned rats that he saw outside.  But if the trash area needs better attention to trash bins than I suppose it's accurate as he does say it was outside below a deck.

4) You should mention the bathrooms are down a flight of stairs from the bedroom as this could be an issue for guest with mobility issues.

5) The cover photo appears to be a park. I think this is disingenuous when host post a picture of a local attraction as a cover photo. When I first looked at your listing I was amazed, it looked nicer than Buckingham Palace, and was amazed a house in London would have such a vast yard. Are there any pictures on the outside of the listing? 

 6) The guest did say you were very responsive and gave great suggestions or something postitive to that effect. 

7) I tried to look at the other reviews but this listing had 8 reviews and the rest of your reviews (over 100) were from a different listings. Was this on the same property? A few mentioned guest "should be good on foot" which I suppose it the proper polite way to say the bedroom is up two flights of stairs? There were some other 3 star reviews but they didn't mention anything and said it was a lovely place or lovely host. Those may have been before guest star ratings were visible so they sent a private message perhaps with some suggestions? 

I also don't mean to generalize and this is very subjective but in general American guest ( and 99% of all guest) are very good but have zero tolerance for anything they might consider inaccurate or misleading. I think that's a plus, but they also might not appreciate some of the characteristics of a historic or historical dwelling? 

I also agree with your assessment that these guest (retired age) took issue with the flights of stairs to the bedroom and  bathroom on the ground level and think that's why they were a bit snarky or didn't immediately respond to every message. 

* I thought your listing was lovely though and you seem like a great host! 

[Isla993]

A maisonette is by definition a property over multiple floors. It is in the title. There are photos of the main floor showing the stairs. I say in line two “set over two and a half floors”. 

I have not selected my property as being suitable for people with access issues. There was no discussion about age or retirement. They are “world travellers” and reasonable that they are fit enough to embark on foreign travel. London properties do not have elevators. Also there is no en-suite listed.

There is no garbage depot. There is twice daily collection of rubbish on the Main Street and no rubbish sits on the street as there are time slots for collection. It’s untrue and misleading to suggest I have rats on my property. Perhaps they saw one on the street but that’s not related to my property.

London had a heatwave which made the news. It’s rare you need AC and the unit is portable and can be put in any location but have found guests prefer it in the bedroom as the main floor doesn’t have direct sun. I wrote to them prior to arrival to warn them of the extreme temperatures and I also bought an extra fan specifically. I offered assistance to operate it and no reply for many days. It is unfair to criticise a property for an extreme weather event and the guest not reading instructions or asking me for help . 

I have not shared his communication out of privacy but Airbnb staff read through it all and agreed it was unreasonable, rude and sarcastic. I responded politely and endeavoured to do everything I could to ensure they had a good stay. They claim

their family are hosts and yet they didn’t read or respond to messages with important information. 

The photo of the park is selected by automated preference and is obviously the park and clearly shown in the guidebook and listing as a local attraction. A two bed maisonette cannot be confused for a mansion. 

Abomination by dictionary definition means “a thing that causes disgust or loathing”. What kind of person describes a property in this way? That’s description could only be attributed to an uninhabitable slum. 

I have also proven with multiple documentation provided to guest and Airbnb that there was unexpected engineering work on internet network and he has accused me of lying. I could do nothing about this and even checked with a business two doors along who confirmed same issue. You cannot change provider with no notice or without breaching a contract. 

I welcome fair comment. It should be a transparent process. But when a guest goes out of their way to write defamatory and damaging comments, it’s is unacceptable knowing the outcome for the host.

your issue about the reviews. I have it listed on other sites and I’ve not had a single negative review. Only positive. London properties are only allowed 90 days total per year as a holiday let which also limits possibility for more reviews. 

[Joan2709]

@Isla993 

So sorry this happened...

If you have been hosting long enough, you will get guests that blame you for things they should have known if they had read the listing. 

That said, please understand that GUESTS DON'T READ - they should but they don't. That is the reality. So, since we know that guests don't read, it's best to prevent issues before they even arrive at the listing. Prevention is the name of the game now, especially since Airbnb doesn't arbitrate whether a review is truthful, or if the guest failed to read the listing details:

- It is a bit unusual to have no bathrooms on the same level as the bedrooms and guests have to walk down stairs to access. 

- As @John5097 says you shouldn't show AC as an amenity on the bedroom photo(s) as it is a portable AC. You could write in the caption on the photo that portable AC is available.  You can attach videos to scheduled messages now, so I suggest creating a video on how to use the portable AC unit and attach it to your check-in message. (videos have to be 1min or less).

Add more info to Other Details

I would add something to Other Details about the stairs, bathroom, portable AC, and street noise unavoidable since in the heart of all the action.

You Don't Need to Accept Airbnb's Selection of Cover Photo

I agree with @John5097  that since your location is not in the park (street location), I wouldn't make the park photo your cover photo. You can change your cover photo at any time. I would add captions to ALL photos.

Perhaps change to one of these?

Create a Quick Reply Before Accepting Bookings

That said, we know that Guests don't read, so I would create a Quick Reply and mention the above in message to the guest before accepting a booking (if using Instant Book - put this in your pre-booking message in Optional Settings):

Hi [Guest First Name]

We would love to host you!  

We want you to have the best experience possible, so please take a moment to read through all the listing details — like the amenities, location map, photos and house rules. This will help make sure everything goes smoothly and there are no surprises. 

Please note: 

- The unit does not have central AC—we provide portable air conditioning units instead

- There are stairs inside the unit, so it may not be ideal for anyone with mobility issues

- Bathroom is located downstairs - bedrooms upstairs

- We're located just steps away from great restaurants, cafés, and shops, so it's super convenient for exploring the neighborhood. That said, there can be street noise, especially during busy hours. If you're a very light sleeper, this might not be the ideal fit for you.

We currently show XX guests on your reservation request. Please let us know if any other guests will be traveling with and if you have any further questions.

Looking forward to hearing from you! 😊

[Isla993]

Thank you Joan and you are correct, they don’t read the listings and I did write prior to their stay to clarify the AC is portable even though it says that in the listing. If anyone books with children or elderly I immediately write to them and point out it’s a two and a half level property even though it’s in line two of the description. I have had challenging guests before but this man was deliberately unkind. He claims to be from a family of hosts and yet doesn’t read or reply having previously been responsive. This whole experience is inspiring me to come off Airbnb. They say one thing on the phone and seem supportive then an automated generic rejection of an appeal which they can’t possibly have read in five minutes or look at the irrefutable evidence. 

I appreciate your input. I feel sick. I go to such effort to be a good host and one bad apple ruins the whole cart. 

[Joan2709]

@Isla993 

Yup...it's clear you went out of your way and are a great host. I don't think you know the age of adult guests when they book, or if they have mobility issues, unless the guest tells you that. Best to mention it in your Reply to a booking request as mentioned above.

I have no doubt this guest was unreasonable, rude and blamed you for their lack of care. He did say "they made a bad decision" in the review, but didn't take responsibility for the bad decision - typical. 😠 Just curious? What review rating did you give this guest?

Please know that Airbnb CS will say they will "support you", but since review disputes have been turned over to AI, there is no "human support" in the review dispute process now. The reality is you have to cover all your bases and do everything you can to prevent these types of guests from staying at your property.

I do suggest you make some changes to the listing as mentioned and create the video on how to use the portable AC unit. 

You have done all you can and your review response was a good one. Take a deep breath, make some changes to the listing and move on. It is up to you whether you want to continue listing on Airbnb, but every platform you list on has "issues". The only way to completely avoid them is to only have a direct booking website.

[John5097]

@Joan2709  

While I agree that a lot of guest don't read the listing this guest could have and still not been aware of some of the challenges. The listing does state that its multi level but doesn't state the location of the bedrooms or bathroom. 

The way I read the review is that the guest was claiming some responsibility for being too trustworthy.  In general Americans idolize Europeans, (its hard not to when you meet them in person), and thought the host would have mentioned if both of the bedrooms were up two flights of stairs, which the bathroom on the first floor. (I think guest assumed one of the bedrooms would hav been on the ground floor) And even someone with no problems with stairs would have been concerned about having to navigate two flights of stairs to use the restroom at night, and someone retired this would have been a safety issue.

I can really sympathize with the host of a historic dwelling like this with both the heat wave and flights of stairs, as things like indoor plumbing and bathrooms weren't even around when it was built. But it's a balance between having a living accurate and not getting as many bookings or risking lower reviews.

  

[Joan2709]

@John5097 

I agree the bathroom/bedroom situation should be spelled out for sure.

That said...this guest didn't communicate when they had issues (portable AC) and admits they didn't read the listing. Can't really comment on the Wifi as who knows? The location should be clear from the map on the listing, but having the park photo as the cover photo is not a good idea.

I do think using an Quick Reply to spell out the "quirks" is a good idea and will possible prevent future issues. 

[John5097]

@Joan2709 

Where did the guest say they didn't read the listing? I didn't see that anywhere and looked again. They did say this. 



They only said there was only a window unit AC in the bedroom. 

"AC, just in 1-bedroom; unbearable heat rest of flat"

Maybe they only reached out when it got to be "unbearable" as heat waves tend to have worse days than others? But the review only stated facts: there was only one window AC in the bedroom.  

 

[Isla993]

Just to clarify, there aren’t two flights of stairs to the bathroom. It’s on the main floor and the bedrooms are the floor above. The property has its own entrance and hallway on the ground floor and then there are stairs to the main floor then up again to the bedrooms. It’s a completely modernised building with contemporary bathroom with a walk in shower, roll top bath etc. The whole property has been significantly renovated.