Just encountered my first evil guest--beware ***

[Tracy-and-Steve0]

I have hosted over 21 groups now with 15 of them leaving reviews, 14 of them gave 5 stars on cleanliness.  Then this woman, ***, gives me a cleanliness score of 2 star and goes on to send me long emails of everything about the house that she didn't like, including my decor.  She had not one complaint while she was there, I even asked her via messages if everything was okay and if she needed anything to please let me know.  Now i get this terrible review of pettiness, "there was even an uncorked wine bottle in the fridge upon arrival".   She complains that I didn't have wine glasses or a serving tray.  I price my house at 89/night and my nearest competitor is at 159.  And I spend $70 for cleaning after each guests leaves.  The place is spotless. *** also  sends me nasty messages after she leaves, taking lots of time detailing what about my house she didn't like, "It wasn't tastefully decorated like other reviews said". I truly can't imagine what inspires a person to be so hateful, as I did not even get defensive, I only apoligized.  Overall I have had great experiences with guests, met lots of nice people, I guess there's always one demon in the crowd, I hope you all don't have to host her too.  

[Jennifer19]

Tracy, so sorry this happened to you. It is very upsetting.

[Ash-and-Dasha0]

Since we often share our houses on airbnb, it's hard to take criticism about it. Hosts are particularly sensitive to issues pointed out by guests and it's understandable. I don't know what had happened with you and that guest, but your story is not consistent with the fact that both of you gave each other wonderful reviews on first try and then bashed each other on the second reservation. I am sure there is more to the story than what you covered in your post.

Also I would be pretty unhappy with you as a host if you posted my full name on a public forum simply because a host disagreed with a guest pointing out trivial things like bedsheets that need to be upgraded and cleaning bathrooms better. It's just not cool. 

I think you should remove the full name of the guest from this forum. If it's too late, then the moderator should do it. 

[Ed-and-Hugh0]

@Tracy-and-Steve0 While it's difficult to get such a review, I think most potential guests will look at it in the context of other positive reviews, and recognize that this is an exception, rather than the rule. We all know one or two people who are not happy unless they are complaining.

[Gerry-And-Rashid0]

You can leave a public response to her comments, but think carefully about what you want to say. You want it to be clear that she is the one with the issues. 

[Andrea9]

@Tracy-and-Steve0

It goes under between all the great reviews, and your response is professional. As a potential guest I'd see it for what it is - a difficult guest expecting a 5-star lodging for a 3 or less star price!

[Aoi0]

HI, Tracy

So sorry to know you had bad experience.

But you need to remove the full name as soon as possible to protect yourself from the law issue.

You could said the guest D from Virginia, if any host needs to know the full name, they could message you privately.

I guess you are really mad and upset now, I can fully understand how you feel.

Why don't you remove this article and re-write it again, so we can carry one discussion.

Best regards,

Aoi

[Marilyn22]

Tracy,

We have all been encountering this with our guests. I am sure Air B&B takes into consideration the other reviews that you have recieved in addition to this persons pettiness. I guess we need to concentrate on our service that we are provided and not so much on the ratings that we recieve since we are dealing with the general public and so many different types off people.

[Mike77]

Just move on, don't worry about it.

Mike
AirBnB Treehouse for Rent
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7292887

[Betsy16]

Hi,

It all sounds very petty, but as a host I would never leave an uncorked wine bottle in fridge.  We are finding that when guest see they are paying for a cleaning service, they complain more.  I think you should just up your price and include the cleaning in with the nightly stay.

[Terri3]

I had a similiar experience from a woman who asked me at the last minute if she could bring her dog.  Apparently her dog sitter got sick.  I had to say no, since we do not accomodate pets and then she left a terrible review that was actually flatly a lot of lies.  For example, she said she had trouble finding the key in the master lock (which is 11 inche from the front door in plain site).  She also criticized the neighborhood and said it was loud...all ridiculous and not true.  Nonetheless, there was nothing that I could do about it.  I did participate in a survey that Airbnb conducted where I suggested that a host have the ability to "throw out" one out of every 50 or 100 reviews to account for the "evil" guest.  They said they would think about it....

[Nigel51]

Airbnb is the problem. Simple as