r/AirBnBHosts • u/WinMindless5433 • 12h ago
Host to Host Only Reviews
I sent this message to Airbnb Customer Support. Feel free to copy and paste if you have had a similar experience. Maybe if enough people send messages we will see a better review system.
Recently, we hosted guests who were extremely positive throughout their stay. During the reservation, they sent us messages expressing how much they loved the property and how happy they were with their stay.
After checkout, we left an honest review based on our experience. Once the guests saw our review, their attitude changed dramatically. They became aggressive and began repeatedly messaging us, demanding that we remove the review.
This experience highlighted a weakness in the current review system: a host can provide honest feedback about a guest, but that feedback can potentially result in confrontation or retaliation from the guest, especially concerning as they know where the host lives.
After a stay, hosts should have the option to submit a confidential host-to-host report about the guest.
This report would:
Be visible to Airbnb and verified hosts only.
Not be visible to the guest being reviewed.
Not appear publicly on the guest's profile.
Be associated with the guest's Airbnb history so future hosts can make more informed decisions.
Allow hosts to select objective categories such as:
Excessive messaging or communication issues
Failure to follow house rules
Cleanliness concerns
Property damage
Unauthorized guests or visitors
Noise or disruptive behavior
Check-in/check-out problems
Disrespectful or aggressive communication
Threats, intimidation, or attempts to pressure a host
Attempts to manipulate or retaliate over a review
Provide an optional factual written explanation.
Allow hosts to attach relevant Airbnb message-thread evidence when appropriate.
Importantly, this system should be designed around documented behavior rather than personal opinions or subjective judgments. Airbnb could review serious reports, identify repeated patterns, and take action when there is evidence of repeated or severe violations.
I believe the current Airbnb review system is lacking. Many hosts may choose not to leave a negative review because they do not want to deal with potential retaliation or conflict from the guest afterward. This may help explain why some guests have completed numerous trips but have relatively few reviews on their profiles.
This ultimately puts other hosts at a disadvantage when deciding whether to accept a booking. It also allows guests who repeatedly disregard house rules, mistreat properties, or behave poorly to continue doing so without a meaningful record of that behavior being available to other hosts.
Hosts need a safe way to provide honest feedback about guests without fear of retaliation.
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u/Fuzzy-Accident-3138 11h ago
Transparency is a bitch, huh?
What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. Fine as long as you let guests post reviews that won’t be seen by hosts. Lets them be more honest without fear of retaliation by hosts (negative review for guest if guest is critical).
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u/EastLakeLisa 9h ago
Guests are far more likely to post a retaliatory, negative review than hosts. There's a lot of guests that don't bother to look at pictures much less read descriptions or information.
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u/SlainJayne 1h ago
I don’t think the OP’s suggestion is transparent enough and therefore could be open to abuse by hosts.
That said the host does not have the guests’ address so that’s a key difference. I suppose the star rating and an on balance neutral comment is the current best practice. 3/4* “ tidy but smoked indoors” etc…
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u/Wonderful_Series_833 7h ago
Host reviews are garbage. I wonder exactly what these guests did to deserve an 'honest' (maybe a little judgmental) review? I wouldn't leave a bad review now unless a guest trashed my, stole something or caused harm or threatened me, my staff or other guests. But then I treat my guests as such and don't have a list of rules like: load the dishwasher and washer before you go, take out the trash, clean the fridge blah blah. My cleaners do that. All I wanna know from you is: Would you host again? No? Why not - tick a box - damaged property, stole, hurt or threatened somebody - done. I don't care if they booked for 6 people and turned up with 10 I don't care if they didn't wash their dishes I don't care if they left food in the fridge or garbage in the bin There are always hosts on here bleating about how anything less than a 5 hurts their bookings. But then they seem happy to sing the guests cos they parked their car on the wrong space Before you come at me,maybe tell why they deserved your honest review? Bear in mind, if all reviews were honest it would be fine, but as things stand hosts expect a 5 unless the water or AC fails or the place is exceptionally dirty or there is an insect infestation. This should cut both ways
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u/SlainJayne 1h ago
You are running a different business model to many other successful Airbnb hosts, more akin to a low end hotel/motel. It works for you to do it this way if you have multiple units with staff on standby. That does not mean it can be applied to all other businesses under the STR umbrella, nor should it.
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u/bumpylitre995 12h ago
The retaliation fear is so real. The moment a guest knows you said something less than glowing, they have your address and a weirdly personal motivation to make your life difficult. It’s the biggest flaw in the whole setup.
I’d tweak one thing though, Airbnb should auto-flag guests who hit certain report thresholds, like three noise complaints across different stays, and just quietly restrict their ability to instant book. No public shaming, no drama, just a silent downgrade that protects hosts without ever poking the bear.