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Could anyone refresh my memory which year AirBnB allowed us hosts to give star ratings to guests and when they became visible to hosts?
I’ve had a couple of guests request bookings lately with less than 5.0 for their star ratings but no narrative explanation in the written reviews. Puzzling. Is this a case of hosts being too polite to say why they are rating someone down, or guests who had a bad review removed?
(I was trying to remember when our ability to give stars to hosts was added to determine how recently these poor qualitative scores were assigned.)
Out of curiosity, in which way would that matter? What’s the difference if a guest received a 4 star rating last week or 10 years ago?
It’s always a bummer when hosts do not leave a comment so they only way to find out is to ask the guest directly if it is of importance to you. One would think that “normal” guests wouldn’t have an issue explaining why they received less than 5 stars if you explain to them that the host in question did not leave any specific comment.
Guests who get defensive when asked wouldn’t be our target audience.
I’m not sure anymore how the booking requests work, do you have the option to chat with the potential guest before approving?
If so, I would make sure to list each and every house rule or requirement that they need to agree with when making a reservation with you. There shouldn’t be any misunderstandings.
@Xena There have been star ratings for guests as long as I’ve been hosting, which was 2016.
But I think guests were only able to see their star ratings given by hosts a few years ago (maybe 3 years?) Same for non-IB hosts being able to see guest star ratings.
I would assume the most likely is that the hosts were the type to just say nice or generic things in the written review but mark down on stars. There are plenty of hosts who don’t participate in forums, until they have some major issue, then come running for help, so would be unaware of changes like guests now being able to see their star ratings.
And I wouldn’t have concern about a guest with a 4 star rating, especially if they had some 5s. Some hosts have unreasonable expectations. Below 4* would give me pause.
I think it might have changed from a few years ago. I remember at one point the option of just doing stars and no written comments. I wouldn’t worry if it’s four stars reviews because some hosts might penalize guests one star for leaving trash in the waste basket in the kitchen and not putting trash outside in the street bin or for leaving groceries behind in the pantry or fridge. I would worry if it’s three stars or less. In that case I would refuse the booking.
My current guest had a four-point-something average and a review stating he’d left behind a lot of trash. I asked him about it and he said the host had only provided a tiny trash receptacle and he left additional trash next to the bin. I decided to accept the booking anyways because it was 8 years ago and he all good written reviews.
I’m not quite sure how to bring lower reviews up with the inquiring guests who have all positive written reviews but a lower star rating. If guests can’t see their star reading, they have may have no idea why they were ranked down or even that they they were ranked down at all.
I have never travelled as a guest, but maybe some other hosts here can verify whether they can see their guest ratings or not.
I’ve really never put much stock in star ratings, they are so subjective. And to me, it also depends on the type of host who gives the star ratings- are they a remote host or property manager, who just gives all guests 5 stars and “Great guests!” reviews, are they hands-on hosts who deal with guests themselves and see the state of the place after the guests check out? Are they homeshare hosts?
For me, as a solo traveller homeshare host, reviews and ratings from other homeshare hosts are the most valuable to me. I’m not that interested in the guest’s rating given by a host who has an entire property that sleeps 10, where the booking guest may have been with a group of another 9 people, where someone other than the booker may have flushed a bunch of stuff down the toilet that backed up the plumbing, or someone else’s kid scribbled on the sofa.
