That moment when you realize your scammer guest is frustrated that their scam failed

So when I first started my airbnb - I had a guest try the “ cockroaches “ everywhere complaint ( now give me a massive discount scam ) without any credible evidence. Long story short - courtesy of your advice here - I was able to do a last minute review - but they didn’t get a chance to review me. Well I randomly browsed my old messages, looked at their profile and saw their response to my review of them.

Not only did they now embellish further - claiming the infestation was even worse than their complaint , but fabricated new complaints in their response. I know it’s petty but I know they are upset that their profile now has this negative host comment - and they have no way of putting their complaints on our listing . Plus Airbnb denied their absurd demand for a refund. I’m chuckling inside because as someone who puts blood sweat and tears into making sure our place was spotless - it was a total gut punch to see someone try to tear you down and take money out of my pocket!

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And their response appears on their review page, not yours, which they probably didn’t realize when they submitted it, so they’ve now made themselves even more unwelcome to book with other hosts. :rofl:

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Exactly !

But they deserve it. They straight lied through the entire endeavor and probably had no idea we photograph everything before check in - and after

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This post sums up what I just went through a few days ago, with a similar jubilant conclusion.

Airbnb reached out to me after I sent a message to Support Help (a preemptive counterattack, of sorts). The Airbnb rep reviewed a pre-check-in video I sent and said it was a great thing for me to have done as he could plainly see the level of cleanliness would belie any potential complaint from my guest about a “roach infestation.”

He said taking a pre-check-in video is a “host best practice” against fraudulent accusations. He also said my future videos should also include me turning down the bedspread a bit, exposing the sheets. He said fraudulent claims of bed bugs are very common and once made, hard to defend without video or photos.

I used to take dozens of pictures of my listings to ‘prove’ what condition it was before guest came. Now I just take a two- or three-minute video as I slowly walk throughout each area, filming while I basically spin around slowly in circles.

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I too was preemptive. The moment I realized the guest was being weird - I reached out to Customer service and said I felt they were setting themselves up to demand a refund .
And yep - that’s exactly what they tried!

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That is a great idea. I don’t think I’ll do this every time, but there are certain guests that are suspect from the very start.

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Part of my cleaners’ process is to take almost 50 pics of the place as proof that the clean was done. So I always have updated pics

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This is just an idea for new hosts who might be reading this. We are in a very buggy area and have a monthly visit from exterminators who are under contract.

If any guest ever complained about cockroaches or any other insect the monthly statement for the exterminators would show to the guests (and to Airbnb if necessary) exactly when the last treatment took place and that it was done by professionals. Works a treat. :slight_smile:

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Very good idea ! I actually have those statements

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It also helps to have statements in your House Rules about bugs so that palmetto bugs won’t be labeled cockroaches, and many reminders about why doors and unscreened windows shouldn’t be left open. Same goes about warning about ants if you leave food out.

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So I’ve always wondered this - my understanding is that palmetto bugs are just another name for large brown cockroaches. Different from the smaller German ones but still just cockroaches.

Our pest control definitely covers prevention of them too

You are correct. What people refer to as palmetto bugs are actually American cockroaches. Where I’m from we call them tree roaches.

No, palmetto bugs fly around. Cockroaches have wings but you don’t see them flying, they just scurry around. Palmetto bugs aren’t found in kitchen cupboards or in damp places like the crawling roaches. Cockroaches are bigger than the palmettos.

There are both cockroaches and palmettos where I live, they are equally disgusting, but I can assure you they aren’t the same.

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Just like Americans to change our cockroach’s name to something that sounds cuteish like Palmetto Bug while the German cockroach is the bad one.

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LMGTFY:

Difference Between Palmetto Bugs and Cockroaches - PestWorld.

We also call them flying roaches. Same bugs.

I think Palmetto is what they call them in Florida and the deep south.

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I was going to say something similar - any quick googling through any pest control site - they all say - they are just a fancy name for a big cockroach

I don’t know the difference between different types of cockroaches, or what type of cockroaches there are here where I live in Mexico, but for sure the ones I have to use cockroach gel for occasionally in the kitchen don’t fly. And they aren’t found outside, don’t hang out in trees. And they are bigger than the ones that fly that I know as palmettos.

The flying ones I’ll once in awhile find upstairs in the bedrooms, the crawling ones never.

:rofl::rofl::rofl:
Oh how I love this forum

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So here’s the kick - my cleaner set this process in place - I didn’t ask for it. But she says it guarantees that I have proof of her teams work and it gives me the documentation I hopefully will never need. So who am I to complain :slight_smile:

The finer technical points of palmetto bugs as compared with cockroaches. In Australia we have flying huge cockroaches. Not near where my air bnb is, thankfully.
I have a lot of ants in the backyard and their bites do sting for a long time.