A simpler way to dispute retaliatory reviews

Hosts often want to know a guest's track record on Airbnb before accepting a booking request and are also concerned about the possibility of retaliatory reviews. We’re upgrading the review system to enable you to learn about other Hosts’ reviews of guests and to dispute any retaliatory reviews.

We are adding the ability for Hosts to leave more details in reviews of guests, which other Hosts will be able to read. Along with finding a guest’s overall rating, you’ll know how other Hosts rated them on cleanliness, communication and following house rules. Your reviews will also help enforce ground rules for guests and allow you to report any guest who doesn’t follow them.

The same process applies to the reviews guests leave for you. Guests will still choose one to five stars for their overall stay. Now, they can also add a star rating – and specify what went well or could have gone better – in several categories.

For example, if your place is super clean, a guest might choose five stars and 'squeaky-clean bathroom'. The star ratings and feedback in specific categories will not affect Superhost status.

You should feel comfortable hosting guests without worrying about the possibility of receiving a retaliatory review.

You can dispute a retaliatory review – regardless of when it was posted – from guests who commit a serious violation of policies, such as:

• Damaging your property (new in November 2022)
• Overstaying their reservation (new in November 2022)
• Violating your house rules (new in November 2022)
• Having an unauthorised party or event at your place (in place since April 2021)

If you requested removal of a review before 16 November 2022, you’ll need to start a new request under the updated policy.

Disputing a review does not guarantee it’ll be removed. When you dispute a review, we’ll ask you to provide evidence, such as photos or message threads with guests. These will need to demonstrate a serious policy violation and that your enforcement of a policy led to the retaliatory review.

Get more info about our reviews policy

So how does the updated policy work? Let’s say a guest smokes in your home, against your house rules. You inform your guest that you found cigarette butts in the living room and submit a reimbursement request for deep cleaning. In response, your guest refuses to pay and leaves an angry review. You’ll now be able to dispute this review and we’ll investigate to determine if it qualifies for removal.

In early 2023, we’ll introduce a chatbot to make it easier for you to dispute a review without having to contact Community Support.

Get details about the Airbnb 2022 Winter Release

Information contained in this article may have changed since publication.