"Plus" host refused to provide cleaning materials & expect me to wait 8 hours for a repair

[Netta5]

I'm using Airbnb nonstop and I love it. Recently I encounter an uncomfortable experience and I would like to hear your opinion please. Just to note, it's Airbnb plus and I assumed it should be better, but I was wrong. Unfortunately, I booked this place for one month so I can't leave 😞

I arrived at the Airbnb, there were some dysfunctions, I took pictures of them but I thought that I can handle with them, just for the worst-case scenario, and told the host about some of them.

On the first night, I planned to use the dishwasher after I cooked and I noticed that the door cannot be closed because there's an accumulation of calcium beneath (I guess because of the time of the quarantine there were no guests here). In the morning after I send a message to the host, he responded after 6 hours that he'll invite a repairman for the day after that will come between 10:00-14:00. 

I was uncomfortable with that because the host itself told me he didn't come to welcome me because of the COVID-9 issues, and anyway all the time he sent his friend to check things because he's not in the city (So he lied apparently).

On the day after I ruined my plans for the morning and I was waiting. At 13:00 while I was waiting he wrote to me that the repairman canceled so he wants to invite him for the day after in the afternoon (also with a time-frame of 4 hours). He told me that I don't have to be in the apartment but I told him that I don't feel comfortable with that because I want to make sure that his friend and the repairman are using masks and also there's no place here to lock my stuff so I'm a bit concern. 

Anyway, the host wasn't nice at all, he all the time repeated that it's not his fault and when he sent me the message at 13:00 he wrote me "at least you were waiting only 3 hours, and not 4" like he has no respect to my time at all. All the time I tried to contact Airbnb and they replayed after 2 days and were not responsive and feel like they don't care at all. But I wanted to have a dishwasher so I wanted to give it another chance maybe, but then I realized that there is not even one cleaning material in the apartment and thought that of course there's a chance that the repairman or his friend would like to use the toilet and it won't be humane not to let them. So I asked the "Plus" host and he told me that "honestly" he gave me a monthly discount so he doesn't think he should provide me any cleaning materials. I tried to explain to him that it's also for his good to maintain the apartment but he refused. Besides, he sent me a message and wrote that he thinks that it was a "mystery" what happened to the dishwasher because the cleaning team told him they cleaned it but luckily I had a pic I took 1.5 hours after I arrived showed clearly that the door of the dishwasher is open and that there's an accumulation of salt beneath. 

In all my last Airbnbs there were cleaning materials even if it was not written in the amenities. I was surprised that he refused to provide me and more surprised that Airbnb told me that he shouldn't provide me because it wasn't written in the amenities. I saw articles of Airbnb where they wrote clearly that the host should provide cleaning materials because of the COVID-9 situation.

In the meanwhile, I wash the dishes by hand and count my days until check out 😞

I'm doing all I can to be a polite & clean guest, the only reason I want cleaning materials is that I care for the place I stay in and I want to keep it nice & clean.

I'm very disappointed with Airbnb that they don't try to help to find another place. The behavior of the host makes me feel uncomfortable staying here. I understand that people can have financial problems but I don't think that I ask something that isn't basic. I really want to leave 😞

Thanks,

Netta

[Anonymous]

@Netta5  My apologies if it came across that I was judging your entire character. Not my intention. I can only say from the host perspective:  when you complain that an appliance isn't working right, and the host makes every reasonable effort to get that problem fixed (as well as effort to accommodate your own scheduling issues), I can't blame him for being miffed that you still saw fit to complain further about your waiting time and expect an apology. There are definitely ways I would have handled this differently from him, but I think any host would prefer a tenant who responds with cooperation and understanding over one who keeps complaining.

I don't know whether you or Airbnb relayed to the host that you were looking to get out of your contract and relocate, but this is undoubtedly a dysfunctional relationship at this point. If you are resigned to remaining in the home, you and the host would both benefit from clearing the air and repairing the communication as much as possible. A truly professional host would endeavor to initiate this process, but Airbnb doesn't really have standards for professionalism - at the end of the day, this is a peer-to-peer transaction, and as such it works better if you negotiate as peers.

[Netta5]

Hey @Anonymous ,

I don't think that telling your host that something is broken or missing is called "complaining".

The host said for example that the apartment is 3d floor which is not (there is no elevator). It's like a European building so there an open square in the middle so on one side there are 4 floors and in the other 3 while one floor is at the height of 2 floors. I don't wear heels and I go to the gym every day so I don't really care. For me to point at this thing should be called "complaint". Or that I don't like the neighbors smoking to the windows of the apartment (because my windows are on the corridor of the open square). These are "complaints" and I would never share it with the host or neighbors. And I'm not even sure to review him when I leave because if he can't provide cleaning materials, even that in my opinion is nonsense, maybe is in a really difficult financial situation. Telling your host something about the property is much better because if not he'll think I am the one to blame for the dysfunction.

And yes, I'm not British, I'm Middle Eastern (Israeli) and 25% African. And I love to learn about cultures and everywhere I go I try to learn from it. So I wasn't being taught to be stoic and not to react but I don't think it's something bad. It's just a different mentality and that's the beauty of traveling - to be exposed to different people & cultures 🙂

[Ann72]

**[Inappropriate content removed - Community Center Guidelines]

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Ann72 

You guessed wrong.

You'll find all my reviews are 5* and I'm the one meeting and greeting guests in person and they want for nothing.

**

**[Inappropriate content removed - Community Center Guidelines]

[Helen350]

LOL! @Ann72 

- We're British!  (But, yes, I guess I WAS raised never to ask for anything!) 

[Ann72]

@Helen350 🤣🤣🤣

I was raised the same way and to be honest always fear the Dickensian reaction when I do ask for something!  😂  Also - maybe we supply everything so guests don't ask, because we really don't like it when they ask - it's as if they're saying we're not doing enough.  This host was clearly annoyed at being asked.  That was the bigger issue in my mind.  Dude, just suck it up and be polite.

[Ann72]

**[Inappropriate content removed - Community Center Guidelines]

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

**[Inappropriate content removed - Community Center Guidelines]

[Ann72]

**[Inappropriate content removed - Community Center Guidelines]

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Huma0 

PLUS was gone since May 29th. Airbnb PLUS has been all but abandoned as support and product teams were all re-assigned then or laid off, this was starting to happen months before Covid hit.

Guests can still book Airbnb Plus listings but there is next-to-no support for Plus, In addition, hosts seeking to sign on to Airbnb Plus can't access information - as you found - or are being informed the program is on hold.

The existing pages are legacy Airbnb PLUS until they know what will be happening with it. Brian Chesky's "back to roots" hosting never included PLUS listings and hosts involved with it were reticent to take them on in the first place due to their exclusivity contract, this not allowing them to list on other platforms. Having secured those contracts, I suppose keeping them would be in Airbnb's best interest?

PLUS is still being advertised because Airbnb still make fees on the bookings, and with the bookings consisting of higher rated properties, so too are higher fees obtained.

[Anonymous]

My understanding from some analyses I've read (which may not be fully correct - I can't independently verify them) is that the Plus program was run through a non-Airbnb contractor. Airbnb fed them the checklist of points to verify, and this company subcontracted gig-workers to inspect the properties in person. Hosts who fell short of certain standards would be asked to make adjustments to the homes at their own expense before being granted enrollment in the scheme. But I'm not aware of any system in place to do regular check-ups of the properties after being enrolled. 

In May it was heavily publicized that Airbnb dumped 25% of its official workforce, but a lesser-known detail is that it also severed ties with many contractors running parts of its operations - apparently, including customer service. They were upfront about terminating the "Luxe" program, but some "Plus" hosts with applications in progress have reported that this program has also been relieved of its staff. So while the Plus label still appears on these listings, there might not be anyone currently overseeing ongoing maintenance checks on the standards. 

Once again, I may have some of this wrong, so if anyone has better info please correct me for the record here. But I do think Ian is right that Airbnb is not currently dedicating resources to Plus listings - and guests should therefore apply the same scrutiny they would to conventional listings.

[Huma0]

@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0 @Anonymous 

Thanks for the info. So clearly I am out of the loop as I was off the CC for a while and this seems to be the only place to actually find out info on Airbnb policies and practices.

Well, that sounds like a right royal mess to me, so honesty, it's no wonder that guests like @Netta5 are feeling disappointed. They book expected something 'plus' as Airbnb still promises them on the website/in the marketing, but the host no longer feels the need to provide that something 'plus' (as they are probably feeling royally shafted anyway).

It's a lose, lose situation.

Sorry for the repeated use of the word 'royal', but I am British after all...

[Anonymous]

@Huma0  last year, I remember a couple of newly-enrolled Plus hosts raising concerns about the excessive amount of money it was costing them to fulfill some arbitrary requirements - like making the type of art they had on the walls or the style of interior design more in line with chain hotel standards. Airbnb promised them a huge upgrade to their status in the booking hierarchy if they invested their own cash in yuppifying their homes. All for an experimental program that was about to get phased out anyway.

There's a lesson in there to any host who trusts his/her listing service to have his/her interests at heart when it tries to exert material control over his/her inventory. Don't do it! This company is so fickle, I don't think there's a week that goes by without a fundamental change to the policies and user interface.

[Huma0]

@Anonymous 

I am afraid you are right. When I first heard about Plus, I thought my listings fit the bill and was really disappointed that they didn't qualify (due to not having private bathrooms for each room). That wasn't because I was desperate to be labelled Plus, but that it was being so heavily promoted on the website and I imagined would impact my position in the search results and bookings.

However, after reading more about the programme over the following days, I realised that it was too much time and trouble and investment. Then, the more and more I heard on the CC from disgruntled hosts who had signed up, the more it sounded like a disaster.

I am so glad now that I didn't qualify! I never noticed any dip in bookings after the programme was launched and I actually forgot all about it until I read this thread. I do feel sorry for those hosts who were persuaded to join.

Yes, I wish Airbnb would stop wasting so much money on all these hairbrained schemes, fiddling constantly with the interface etc. and just focus on sorting out existing problems and glitches, but I doubt that will ever happen.

[Netta5]

* I don't understand why the website can't post the message, I hope won't be duplicates

Hey @Anonymous ,

I don't think that telling your host that something is broken or missing is called "complaining".

The host said for example that the apartment is 3d floor which is not (there is no elevator). It's like a European building so there an open square in the middle so on one side there are 4 floors and in the other 3 while one floor is at the height of 2 floors. I don't wear heels and I go to the gym every day so I don't really care. For me to point at this thing should be called "complaint". Or that I don't like the neighbors smoking to the windows of the apartment (because my windows are on the corridor of the open square). These are "complaints" and I would never share it with the host or neighbors. And I'm not even sure to review him when I leave because if he can't provide cleaning materials, even that in my opinion is nonsense, maybe is in a really difficult financial situation. Telling your host something about the property is much better because if not he'll think I am the one to blame for the dysfunction.

And yes, I'm not British, I'm Middle Eastern (Israeli) and 25% African. And I love to learn about cultures and everywhere I go I try to learn from it. So I wasn't being taught to be stoic and not to react but I don't think it's something bad. It's just a different mentality and that's the beauty of traveling - to be exposed to different people & cultures 🙂