Airbnb

I have been a loyal guest with Airbnb for over a decade, consistently receiving positive reviews across all my stays. My most recent booking was a significant disappointment. The property had several serious issues, including a missing blind, a dirty bathroom, and the presence of ****roaches. I left a factual review documenting these problems and submitted photo evidence to Airbnb. As a result, Airbnb issued me a refund, which I understand as confirmation that my complaint was valid. I specifically warned Airbnb that the host might respond maliciously and was assured that the host had been flagged. Despite this, the host did not respond to Airbnb’s message. Instead, the host’s partner contacted me directly off-platform via phone at 10pm on a weekend, an action I found highly inappropriate and unprofessional. Following this, the host left me a review that commented on my character rather than my actual stay. This appears to violate Airbnb’s review policies, which state that reviews should be based on the guest’s behaviour during the stay and not used retaliatorily. When I requested evidence from Airbnb regarding the host’s claim that I was “rude,” no specific incidents related to my stay were provided. I have an excellent track record with only positive reviews over many years of using the platform. This experience has been deeply disappointing, especially given Airbnb’s handling of the situation and apparent failure to enforce its own policies consistently. Unfortunately, this has led me to decide that I will no longer use Airbnb for future bookings. The platform’s inability to protect guests from retaliatory behavior and off-platform harassment undermines trust in the service.

Why the host’s retaliatory review was allowed to stand? No confirmation of any actions taken against the host for policy violations were provided.