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Airbnb completely, and utterly broke my heart this time with so many, egregious miscarriages of justice, honor, authority. We were being victimized by a guest, and the person they set up in my home, so we asked Airbnb to intervene. Jim of Airbnb took the details down, and wrote back a comforting email that let me know he had heard. But he referred the info. to the Problem Resolution Department. Instantaneously I received a reply from Greg M. who never followed up with me, enquired, or investigated.
A man reserved with us, but then put his 20 year old homeless son in our home. The problem is the young man had no money, no food, no cellphone coverage.
We asked our guest- the father- to help his son; he did not, but insisted that we should feed the son, and give him privileges outside of the scope of his stay.
We asked airbnb to help get the young man food money, etc. from his dad (spoke with Henskae); they did not.
We asked airbnb to intervene to remove the person from our home because we felt victimized and did not feel safe in our home.
– Airbnb asked us to sit tight and take no action until they had spoken with the guest, and gotten back to us.
Greg M. a case manager from the Resolutions department never spoke with us, never investigated at all, but wrote one email falsely accusing me of having evicted the guest, and telling him he could not return. We NEVER did this, but honored Airbnb’s request to do nothing till we heard from them.In his email Greg M. also ridiculed and castigated me accusing me, punishing me, and executing swift, incisive judgement against us who were being victimized.
It’s been five days. No one would help for five days. No one got back to us; Greg M. ignored our requests, and no one will talk with us.
Greg M. should have asked us, “Did you evict your guest.” Instead he wrote You evicted your guest therefore…
I think he realizes he made a huge error, and is hiding from the reality of accountability.
I do not lie when I say I was in tears over this last week; and have sick headache now as I write.
I’m sure other forum members will have better advice, but just off the top of my head, I must say that you made a number of mistakes here and need to own some of it.
Firstly, you must never accept a guest who actually didn’t make the reservation himself. That’s against Air’s terms of service. If you had done that, you would have avoided all of it. When you say Air placed them, Air did not. YOU accepted them as your guest.
Was this a long term guest? If so, second mistake. If you accept a long term guest who is homeless, that person will become a tenant. That’s why I think the word eviction is being used? Not sure, as some of your description seems a little vague.
Also, Air can really do very little to physically get a guest to leave. Once they are in your home, you’ve given them permission to be there. You can cancel their stay, but after a certain length of stay, they become long term tenants with all the rights and due process that entails.
Next time, vet your guests better and you won’t have problems like this.
I agree with Kona on some points and am confused by why Airbnb reps would ridicule you. I don’t know what country you are in but the tenancy laws are different in every state and every nation.
I don’t think you should be an airbnb host if you are going to have an emotional attachment to airbnb. They are not your friend, they are a business.
You don’t say how long the reservation is but it must be a long one, probably longer than was prudent in any case. I don’t feel like I have the whole story here.
I think I would cancel the reservation and lock the fellow out of my house if I legally thought I could do so. You either need to call the police or an attorney.
Yes this host has made some mistakes, but I can appreciate their frustration and stress at what has happened. It appears the father has off-loaded their son onto a hapless host. Because the host broke BNB rules by accepting someone staying at their property who isn’t the person who booked - my understanding is they don’t have to help.
My advice
Cancellation the reservation - you can do this because the person staying is not the person who booked.
You are under no obligation to provide anything over and above what you agree to offer in your listing. Why do you feel BNB should help this young man access food and money from his family? This is between the young man and his family.
I don’t know how long the young man has been with you or the laws in your country. However if he refuses to leave your property and you have cancelled the booking you should be able to ask him to leave in some countries (the UK for example). I would agree that after cancelling the booking if he doesn’t leave then get legal advice/contact the police.
I’m really sorry to read about your situation, and especially angered to know of yet another case where Airbnb customer service has not only failed to help a host, but to instead castigate them, and to do it at the worst time, when that host needs help.
Airbnb’s own Terms of Service indicates that third-party bookings are not allowed, and I don’t understand why their (ahem) “service” department responded the way they did. It really seems to be a black-and-white issue, and it is worth contacting Airbnb again to remind them of their own damn policy.
I don’t know all the details of your situation, and based on my own experience in dealing with third-party bookings, you should be able to cancel that reservation without incurring a penalty. It is up to this kid’s irresponsible father to find him another place, so do not feel bad about putting him out. That is their problem, and it was really unfair of them (and of Airbnb) to put this on you. Remember that this is your home.
My only additional advice is that if you haven’t done so already, make it crystal clear in your house rules something like this: “We do not accept third party bookings. It is against Airbnb’s TOS. It is important that we know the identity of those who are staying in our home. This is for our security, and for that of other guests as well. If you arrive at our place and you are not the person who placed the booking, the reservation will be cancelled and you will need to find another place to stay.”
Best of luck to you, kandiMegahan. I hope that things work out, and that you keep us posted on the outcome.
Thank you those who actually understood something of what was going on, and might have actually read it through. We talked with Airbnb about canceling. They urged us to NOT cancel until they could find an alternative venue. My wife, out of consideration, forbore with their request. The guest left one morning, and AirBNB canceled, and refunded the money to the guest’s father - claiming that we had evicted the guest (which was a lie). When we let them know their error, they insisted on their decision, which means they are cheating us of our money - and that is where the insult was particularly added to the injury - because now the father who wanted to pawn his kid off on us gets away with it by getting his money back. Yes they’re a business, but that is really bad business.
This was in America - North Carolina. I don’t know where the Air ir-response team was located.
It’s pretty clear that you were victimized. Just take this as a learning opportunity. I’m guessing that you are a new host and didn’t even realize you shouldn’t let the guy in the door if he is not the one who booked. And though he got his money back you probably dodged a bullet in getting him out of your place as quick as you did. Plenty of people here will agree with you that airbnb is a “bad business” but you will help yourself out if you become familiar with their terms and policies before hosting, not after. Good luck in the future.
Also, spend some time reading the threads on this forum. You can learn a tremendous amount that will help you in the future.
Easy to look at your situation and voice an opinion… some of the veterans here know of what they speak … but some do n ot.
Air hasn’t broken my heart (yet?) but the trials and tribulations of being a new host on an incredible learning curve hurt my head, my heart and my faith in people.
Re: advice regarding seeing this as a learning/growth experience. Totally agree… but, let your heart heal. Cry, bitch at God, question if Air is for you… I did.
Ultimately, it’s a great opp. This Forum has saved my bacon on so many occasions and continues to do so.
The Air must go on (the show must go on!). Don’t let a couple of scamming bastards ruing your future.
Via con dios y Buena suerte - love from Costa Rica
To EVERYONE who reads my post; please read this whole POST: First of all, it amazes me that many of the replies refer to country of origin. I am an ESL English teacher so to me it is obvious that the post belongs to a native of the US. To everyone else I will state, I am a college educated, US citizen living in these US.
I thought about sharing a cut and paste of Greg’s first response to me. He has written a second time; a ver aggressive message about how he has spoken, and that settles the matter. but writing what I did just left me open to criticism and that’s not what I wanted. I’d hoped if anyone else had a similar experience that they would chime in.
Would you care to view the airbnb post this pertained to? It is a point of great criticism from Greg.
It’s called a Couch Surfer’s Experience and I describe that it’s similar to couch surfing in that I offer a shower, a clean, comfy bed, and access to my kitchen in the morning so that you can prep. food that you bring before heading out for the day.
The offer is not for a free stay, nor is it limited to just the couch. I imagined European travelers, or families with lotsa kids, and other budget conscious individuals etc.
I welcome any to read the listing/ post and let me know what you think about it. In particular, what do you think the post is offering? Thanks.
Yo, @kandiMegahan, not sure why you referred to me – I absolutely read the entire post (I’m sick tonight – watching the “debates”, which means I need something additional to keep me occupied). I am sorry this happened to you but since your details are somewhat lacking, I am curious as to exactly how Air-Greg worded his nasty responses.
PS::: The posts are from Kristian and Iselsharesse, aka:::: k and i… aka kandi.meg
I share the following to demonstrate/ exemplify the level of abuse that airbnb is willing to stoop to against hosts in good standing, with stellar reviews:
Greg M. has finally, after five days, responded to us with the following verbatim reply:
“Hi kandi.meg,
As a case manager, I’ve consulted with my team about your experience and requests. Upon review, we will uphold our decision as previously outlined, and we now respectfully consider this case closed.
Greg M.”
Also it s apparent that airbnb WITHHELD our pay from weekend reservations, even though each guest gave great reviews.
My POINT IN WRITING is Be aware; The company is probably very good, but they do not have oversight, and tyrants persists. We have been horribly cheated. May a just response be in the works and come to us. . -------- --But Y O U … BEWARE. This company has given authority to people who will use it against you, and every rep. will tell you they are not authorized to do anything to help you.
Thank you. Much of what you say is constructive, though critical, and I thank you for the wisdom you impart.
I always hurt in the face of injustice. Maybe because I am female; maybe because I have depths of compassion, and so anticipate it when others deal with me. I make NO APOLOGIES… still I thank you for wisdom imparted.
Hopefully, others will never feel the spear of a Greg M. or other reps. of airbnb.
PS. The latest reply from airbnb’s Greg M. appears below. He is a piece of work apparently… a tyrant… a bully… "Thus saith I, GregM and there is no room for any thing else… even truth.w
Helsi… there is a one word answer your questions: compassion. If you were in a similar situation you would want someone to shore it to you.
If being compassionate is a mistake… I am guilty. But this is no punishable offense.
In my opinion the registered guest, EXPLOITED the situation. You blame me; but did you note that he said I should feed his sone, even though my posts states no meals are offered.
Maybe you, Helsi, should work for airbnb. Because they cannot see what they did wrong; nor have they chosen to act justly (that is in a way that assures no one need be hurt; assures justice/ or right standing for others… Airbnb pays tyrants like Greg M. but they never look in to the documentation of a simply resolved case like mine, that calls the tyrant to allocute; and explain their egregiously wrong decisions.
Thank you. I hope that in part justice will be realized by my finding an airbnb alternative that honors it’s hosts /customers and treats all with respect
Am I missing something? This seems to be the only direct quote from Greg M. It is not abusive. It is simply not what you wanted to hear. My guess is that you are leaving out a whole lot of detail regarding your situation. Plus (again), I find it very odd that I can’t access your listing.
