bad review when the guest cancelled

[Vera556]

I had a guest who booked for 3 nights, she stayed in the apartment for just  10 minutes and sent me a message that she was leaving because the flat was too small for her

First, I'm a super host and all my reviews are amazing, maybe for her standards the flat is small ( flat is 70 sqm) 

She insisted in having a bigger amount of the refund. The refund was made according to my cancellation policy, she got around £200 

First all, I don't understand why Airbnb allowed her to do a review if she didn't stay in the property. I called  Airbnb and they couldn't do anything. Every time I call AIRBNB customer service, the only thing they say is I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry etc.......

The guest was so insistent on a full refund.

She then contacted AirBnB and requested a refund, twice, adding that she would write a negative review of my place, which she did (1 star, etc.).   

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Vera556 if you have her review threat in writing on the Airbnb platform then you should be able to get the review removed as retaliatory.

Failing the above then perhaps consider leaving a reply to her review. Target it at future guests NOT the guest who left the review. For those who know the London market a 70sqm flat is actually a palace especially as yours seems to be to the centre.

[Paula]

Hello @Vera556, I am sorry about this situation.

Have you had the opportunity to read our experienced Host Mike's suggestion? Here is an article that provides further details: How to Dispute Retaliatory Reviews?

Regards,

[Zheng49]

Seeing as the guest that booked is also a host, i think he/she probably made the threats while in person/over the phone, which will indeed make getting rid of this retaliatory review very hard if not impossible

i glanced over the review she left. there isn't anything wrong with the review itself, it's actually well written, and has some good info there. 

Cases like this is why I do actually tend to give full refunds in cases like this, especially if I can rebook the first night. However keep in mind I'm on a flexible cancellation policy, where the guest can get a big refund without me doing anything. 

The damage a 1* review does to my listing(s) is immense (especially when elaborated on such as this one), way more than what I would lose from 1-2 night's booking fee.