Post by High Priestess on Jan 29, 2016 17:03:17 GMT
See this post about London hosts having their listings de-listed by Airbnb:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/De-Listing-without-explanation/m-p/24099#U24099
De-Listing without explanation ?
Received an automated email that my property will be delisted on a certain date because of hospitality standards and/or terms and conditions.
I made an enquiry to understand what this was all about, and an email came through to me 2 days later merely saying that checks have been done and that the delisting cannot be undone.
Important to note that every single review ( I now have 20 ) has had 4.5 stars and above, and not a single guest has made a complaint to me nor airbnb. I know this as airbnb customer services have confirmed this to me.
QUESITON: has anyone else experienced this bizarre and unjust encounter
Martin
Are you absolutely sure that Airbnb did this? My listing was hacked last year but the hacker did not delist irt but changed the property, prices and all the photos . I had over 400 enquiries as a result of the prices being the equivalent of £15ish pn.
Thomas
Yes the same just happened to me, I'm just below superhost qualification, so it's not about quality. Airbnb confirmed as much via their customer service - the guy I spoke to said he knew this strange culling was going on but didn't understand why. Clearly it seems to be some legal thing. Is it people with over 90 nights per year (a London thing)? Or is it about high turnover in terms of cash?
Karim
Me too ... no explanation, just the same email talking about hospitality standards.
I have more than 40 reviews and a 5 stars rating
I can't understand this unfair decision.
Maybe we're not good enough for them.
Because of their overgrowing success they can now afford to lose some of their hosts and sort out who should remain on their top listings.
K.
Peter
I wonder if Airbnb is now moving to meet the authorities' concerns and to delist what it believes are illegal listings. It would not surprise me if they have categorised those who are being delisted as breaking the regulations and are taking them down. They have publicly said they are doing this in New York. So if it is a whole home you don't live in, I suggest that might be the reason that Airbnb has discovered the situation and won't service it as a listing any longer. I really hope that Airbnb will remain a home SHARING site.
Thomas
Is that what it is about, home sharing versus renting out a whole house?
The thing is, I DO live in the house, on the floor below. I have it listed as "whole flat", just because they can use my kitchen and bath, but then in the description I explain that I live there too.
Does anyone else know if home sharing versus renting out entirely is what this is all about?
Cassandra
This just happened to me, too. First, with one property ony (yesterday) and then today I got another one with all of my others that are in London, even ones that were deleated over two years ago. I have three total listings now that I list as whole properties, all have great reviews. I called Airbnb Europe and they couldn't tell me anything. But today I called the US number and they said they think its a hoax and are forwarding it on to trust and safety. Though now that I have found this thread, I suspect it isn't a hoax after all. I just want to know what's going on. Weird they aren't telling us the reason, right?
Milu
In my town we've just received news that an ordinance was passed making this type of short term rentals illegal. So now we know, and I will adjust my business to conform to the law. As is being said here, Airbnb has declared that they will uphold the laws, so that's what they are doing in London, and probably will start doing in my neck of the woods if hosts don't voluntarily comply. This is a huge blow to my business, but I knew the risks and took them, now I have to come up with a new plan. So I am bothered by all of this, but accept it.
What I am not accepting is that Airbnb doesn't have a clear way to deal with this other then the disingenuous sounding email about "hospitality standards" if they are not saying exactly what standards are not being met. Why don't they simply say "You are listing three entire space units which is not allowed under local law and you didn't shut them down so we are shutting them down for you". Be black and white about it, then let your Customer Support department know what is going on and let them also reply in clear terms. It seems like part of the issue is the intential confusion that Airbnb is causing, and then compounding it by not having the support team know what's going on, so they are thinking, is it a hoax, is it a spam letter, is it a mistake?
I think that they have every right to shut down certain listings but they should be clear about what they are doing and give the hosts that have made them lots of money and allowed them to become a billion dollar industry the benefit of an honest answer.
Martin
So, Peter, if the limit is 90 days/nights per year, when does the year start? If Jan 1st, does Airbnb wait until the 91st night is booked and then de-list for the rest of the year? What if local councils (London) are not sticking to the letter or the spirit and are quite happy to let self-contained properties be let for more than 90? And, is Airbnb's action, if that is what it is, contrary to individuals' freedoms? The fact that Airbnb/CS seem to be less than knowledgable and less than open about what is going on makes me think that this is a scam. Airbnb seems to be a regular target for hackers in my experience.
Maxine
This is really worrying. It appears not to be a hacker/spam but Airbnb genuinely de-listing without being transparent about why. Instead emails suggest that the host is no suitable to the 'guest experience sought' irrespective of those hosts - some with superhost status - having 4 and 5 star reviews and happy guests, no complaints reported.
It has caused mass confusion.
Airbnb need to give a clear communication to all hosts - What is considered to be an illegal listing - e.g is it
1. Entire apartment / house where host doesn't live there as their primary residence
2. Hosts that rent a room or own home or 2nd home on airbnb for more than 90 days -
3. Hosts in Cities / towns where their Councils set the rules and prohibit homeowners from renting their properties when they are not present, such as going on holiday and renting out whilst away
4. Hosts with more than one property listing
5. Commercial hosts with rental property portfolios
6. Commercial single BnB's
7. Realtor Estate Agents
8. Homes that do not meet health and safety rules (smoke alarms etc)
9. Homes and rooms rented in towns and Cities that require them to have a license
10. Anything else
Whatever the reasos are Hosts worldwide need to know
The obtuse emails being sent to hosts telling them they are being de-listed as they do not meet the standards expected by guests and then refusing to offer any real explanation or means to overturn the delisting decision by advising the host what the resason is and how they can make changes - is just unfair, distressing and disrespectful to hosts
I rely on my airbnb income and whilst this has not happened to me, I would be horrified if it did, particularly if I didn't know why and they wouldn't tell me.
I do own my own home and have a floor I rent out on airbnb with it's own street entrance, set up as an entire self-contained apartment but it remains part of the main house via an interconnecting staircase and door, where I live on the upper two floors.
I had a very busy year (until we hit Dec/Jan) and may well have had total bookings nudging or just exceeding 90 days - does that put me over the limit? When was this 90 day limit set and where can I find communication that details that limit? Is it a 90 day April to 6th April tax year limit or a January to 31st December limit.
Fiona
My thought is that Airbnb cannot say 'we have deleted you because your listing is illegal' because their lawyers have told them that if they do is, they could be sued themselves for promoting illegal listings.
It seems to be a London thing, although a similar thing seems to have happened in Barcelona in November.
I'm in Bournemouth, Maxine, where everyone rents out rooms to foreign students and holiday makers. The council is very keen to keep the tourists coming, and has even refused planning permission to people wanting to turn rundown hotels into flats. So I'm hoping they won't come for us seasiders, although I guess if the hotels complain that the Airbnb-ers are putting them out of business, it might come to that.
Pietro and His Friends
maxine
many thanks for your answer, at least I know I'm not totally talking alone!
The problem seems to be not only in London but at least in Rome, Barcelona and Amsterdam at least.
It's not related to law-adherence as me, personally, spent a lot of money to get proper licenses and to be fully compliant with the local law.
It seems to be due to a big mistake on Airbnb's systems, but if not properly managed by hosts listings are effectively disabled.
Beside pushing hard on customer care (CX dept), who will inoltrate the communication to the "Marketing and Quality department" it seems that there isn't so much to do.
The "Marketing and Quality department" is not answering at all.
No solutions found yet. Just keep pushing and moving my LinkedIn contacts looking for people working in this department and try to have a personal contact.
If other hosts will have this issue can try write directly to quality@airbnb.com, but do not expect a fast / proper response.
99% of their answers are not personal (e.g. template only) and will not answer to your personal inquiry.
Another horrible way I'm following is advising ALL of my future guests and asking them to push on Airbnb too. And it's working, as only today I received 4 calls from CX department. But it has not (yet) fixed the problem. I wish I will reach the critical mass soon. But this should not be the way to follow, but it seems the only one feasible right now.
Yup!
Maxine
fiona - I'm in Brighton which like Bournemouth is a University City attracting students and a seaside City attracting tourists. Our Council have not become involved in any airbnb issues as they are very pro any activities that encourage tourism as well as pro residents earning income and contributing to the good name of the City, supporting retailers etc, and creating jobs.
Airbnb may have caused traditional bnbs to up their game - which is no bad thing, likewise hotels - none of whom have raised any issues with locals offering airbnb rooms or apartments. Prospective hotel/trad bnb/ ABB Guests choose by own preference, which is not always price driven as airbnb spaces are often higher price than a hostel or mediocre bnb.
I have not heard about the 90 day limit rule - perhaps that is a City Council by City Council thing which neither Brighton nor Bournemouth have imposed.
Fingers crossed we'll both remain safe from red tape brigade
Maxine
@pietro And His Friends! - I can't imagine it could be a technical glitch as airbnb are instigating the emails to hosts advising them they are to be de-listed and airbnb are confirming they have instigated the emails stating that 'the host property does not meet the expected guest experience'.
So the element I think you could well be right about, is that airbnb do not wish to state 'illegal listings' in their communication for the reason you state. Instead the message is ' airbnb brand is focused on the shared economy and guests sharing their home with strangers who become friends'. Home owners can generate additional income which supports the local economy and contributes further to retail and tourism but does not displace local businesses nor affordable housing, as owners properties are not full time rentals.
Thereby culling properties that are full time rentals, with host not present, that potentially or definately displace (due to price) local businesses or housing, is a response to the criticism airbnb has been attracting around the world from Councils, businesses and law enforcers.
It may also be why airbnb have been focused on pushing prices down - noted the pricing tool many hosts have said is nonsense as they proposed pricing is often far less than what the host is charging and guests are paying.
Airbnb just need to be more transparent with the hosts affected
Monica
Yes, I can see that full time rentals are not really what Airbnb wants to promote as a "sharing experience". Hosts who live in their listings can offer a better experience to guests by showing them how locals live, giving advice, and maybe participate in meals. Full time rentals, like mine, are not as personal. I give the door code, a quick tour on check-in if the guest wants, an tour of the dairy farm if the guest is interested, but that is all.
That being said, there are many listings like mine on VBRO, Homeaway, Flipkey, and others that are established full time, commerical listings. Perhaps it is not a bad thing to do a "purge" so that Airbnb is back to having the image it wants to promote. Hence their statement that says something like "providing the experience our guests expect"....in the notices of termination of lisitngs.
It probably is better for guests as well to know that if they book with Airbnb they get a personal experience and interact with the host, and if they book with the others it is a commerical endeavor and they will have privacy.
Kim
This is insane!
The exact same thing happened to me, no explanation. I have been chasing 'JULIAN' the representative who wrote to me who is based in the States, and despite them saying he will "call me back" he obviously is not.
Please see my post. I intend to create a large petition for all these unjust deactivation and complain to the headquarters and whatever other bodies that are there to protect our rights !
ka435@cam.ac.uk
Lizzie
Online Community Manager
Hello @kim,
Lovely to meet you. I am really sorry to say, but for safety reasons I would not recommend you post personal details such as your email address here, as this is publically visible. I have therefore removed this from your post. I hope you understand my reason for having to remove this.
Thank you, Lizzie
Evelyn
They have done a few rounds of de-listing in NY. In 2014 when the Attorney General asked for the hosts information and now in 2016 when there was a meeting with the NY City Council.
I imagine Airbnb's lawyers are dictating the matter of what to say to hosts. Have you not heard of Brian's Chesky's compliance blog post?
Our Commitment to Cities blog.airbnb.com/our-commitment-to-communities-around-the-world/
Denise
can any of you who were de listed tell me if you were paying taxes, doing tot reports and had a business licesence?? thanks Denise
Stefania
Same experience here, i received an email in January giving notice for delisting of one of my 2 flats and i immediately contacted airbnb customer service. They told me it was a scam and put it in writing. Early February both flats have been delisted with no reason, I am short of becoming a superhost and have great reviews.
It is now a daily follow up that i have with a case manager who apparently escalated the matter with the american quality team. I am told that there have been a number of delisting and that within few days the quality team has come back to previous enquiry. I read from other posts that they have not.
Airbnb should not respond of the legal position of the hosts in front of their local authorities but as others have noted this is just speculation till someone clarifies what is happening.
I started to look on the internet as this does not sound promising and there are other short rental platforms.
At least till they reply there is a plan B
Lucille & Alan
I notice that most of you who are seeing this are in the UK. I suspect it has something to do with a bylaw. I agree you dese
Andy:
I too was de-listed and I am a SUPER HOST in NYC with amazing review, 185 all excellent. The worst part is No one in the airbnb company, my business partner, can explain why or will even call me back. My De-listing happened back in November 2015. ITs now March 4th 2016. I stil have empty promises of "someone getting back to me" from the company.
I have bookings until Late Auguest 2016 and now what do I do? Guests can't find their listings and think NYC is shutting down which I am beginning to think they may be correct. This is not looking good .. Pleaese any info anyone can answer would be very helpful
Cheers
I had the same Experience idedntical ..
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See this post too on the same issue:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/LISTING-REMOVAL-DE-LISTED-Please-help-Thank-you/m-p/23717#M6068
LISTING REMOVAL / DE LISTED Please help Thank you. [ New ]
I am in complete shock and disbelieve...Today after hosting hundreds of guests for more than 3 years on Airbnb
and having all 4, 4.5 and 5 stars...I received the following emails ie the first email at 9am in the morning with
the following content..
Dear Patrick,
Airbnb guests enjoy staying in local homes and enjoying authentic and unique travel experiences. Unfortunately, our systems have shown that the listing mentioned below is not delivering the kind of local hospitality experience guests are looking for. In line with our Terms of Service,
* LUXURY CHELSEA 24HR. CONCIERGE *
will be removed from our platform on 9 February 2016.
Please understand that this determination was not made due to a single attribute, but an overall combination of various criteria.
You may continue to manage all of your bookings via our site until 9 February 2016. These bookings must be managed in accordance with our Hospitality Standards and Terms of Service.
After 9 February 2016, you will no longer be able to accept reservations for this specific listing and your listing will no longer appear in our search results. After 9 February 2016, you will still be able to use our site to manage your existing reservations as long as you comply with our Terms of Service.
You will not be able to relist this particular space on our platform. We regret to inform you about this. It is in the best interest of our community to uphold the standards and local and genuine experience they expect.
Best regards,
Airbnb Ireland
After calling the customer care team..how told me this is probably a phising email or a hack..and they will let the relevant team know,
several hours later I received the following email..
No reason explenation..or anything given...after 3 years and 4 - 5 star reviews..Who can help here or let me know what is happening and
why?? Any feeback and information re who do I have to contact to clarify this situation would be greatly appreciated.
Airbnb Customer Experience
Airbnb Quality Team, Jan 27, 07:12:
Dear Patrick,
We have received your message regarding your account. Our mission is to allow Airbnb guests to connect with hosts who provide local and authentic experiences that make the city a better place to live, work and visit. We routinely carry out initiatives for quality purposes and adherence to this mission. The outcome cannot be changed.
Regards,
Julian
Airbnb Quality Team
www.airbnb.com/help
Thank you for your help and support.
Patrick
Marit Anne
Looks like it is happening all over London.
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/Is-this-spam-Got-email-saying-my-listed-property-quo...
Gritta
Hi @patrick,
I'm sorry to hear this. I hope for you its spam, but I guess its not.
I would recommend to read this:
publicpolicy.airbnb.com/compact/
and than this:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/LISTING-REMOVED/m-p/4646#M706
Andrea
This has been happening to several hosts here in Amsterdam too.
Superhosts even.
No explanation, nothing, just the same lame reason you got.
It's quite alarming actually, because with no explanation or reason others can't learn what not to do and improve.
Really sounding like mafiosi tactics
y
Jac
I'm a superhost and I received an email saying they will remove two listings. I share your shock and disbelief. For 3 years, I have hundreds of perfect reviews and even stopped using other sites because I thought airbnb could be relied upon. It's utterly disappointing and it doesn't seem to be a very commercial move!
Robin
@jac @patrick My god, what is happening....Airbnb is falling apart at the seams! They are in the process of deleting an entire communication platform with sms messaging! Many posts now complain that they cannot receive support for their problems and are told to consult the forum page and now this....I can't believe this is happening. I think I will go into snooze for a few months until some sort of rational logical behaviour returns....
Hey Jac....that profile piccie could only be the public bar at the Icebergs in Bondi....when were you there? cheers....Rob
Jac
Hey Rob, It is indeed! Well spotted. I am an aussie
It's mental isn't it? what is happening with sms messaging?? best, Jac
Jason
Patrick, I have received the exact same emails as you.
I had also had 4.5 star reviews over 3 years, a not a single complaint. i also to not know what to do.
have you had any update?
Thomas
Definitely call their customer servive and ask for an explanation. I did, twice. The guy knew a lot of people were getting this, it seemed for real, it wasn't a quality issue, and beyond that he didn't know. He forwarded it to another person.
If you're UK based call this number and see if you can piece together more. I wonder if it is their biggest players (in terms of days or turnover) who are getting the axe. Given London's updated legislation.
+44 203 318 1111
Robin
@jac Well Jac, as Gough Whitlam once said, "You may well ask"!......Two weeks ago I just happened to come across this little snippet of information that I am re-pasting...
……This is an excerpt I just came across from another post purportedly from a member of Airbnb staff! “Customer Support: I have reached out to my colleague who is working with this system change to get more information. It sounds like we are working to phase out this method of notification, which is why this change has been coming about. For now, it sounds like it should be able to be switched back on through the app on your phone. You can do this by going to Settings > Notifications and turning on the Text Message Notifications. You may need to switch it off and then back on again"....
Jac, tell me they are kidding!!!! Their not. All over the world there are complaints coming in about lost bookings with exactly the same bottom line.....no notification! Some have lost up to half a dozen bookings!
I lost a booking because it sat on my dashboard for 16 hours and I never knew it was there. Jac, cracks are appearing in the system.......and as I have said in other posts there are going to be some problem times ahead. I phoned Sydney and spoke to a very pleasant lady who said she had 're-activated' my sms messages, but I have had three messages since then on my listing page that I haven't been notified of. In fact, since last week my mobile phone has been utterly silent as far as Airbnb is concerned!
The thing that hurts most is Jac they haven't had the guts to release a statement to their hosting community that sms (or more particularly Cellular) level of contact was about to cease....we have had to find it out in dribs and drabs on a forum site and nobody actually connected with Airbnb will give us a difinitive statement....all they are saying is 'it's a glitch in the system'!!!
This is a big deal, fairly obviously cellular contact is costing Airbnb and enormous amount of money....every txt costs, and it looks like the 'backroom boys' have hit on this solution (which works fine in NY, Miami, Paris, London, in fact anywhere there is a Wifi hot spot) but in the less heavily saturated internet areas we depend on cellular....even a personal WiFi is still a cellular service.
The one thing these 'backroom boys' haven't taken into account...an sms costs, what, 20c. A lost booking to another site will cost them $20-$30-$50 or more, either in a guest going elsewhere or a host! Does that make good mathematical sense??
Jac, we are being screwed to that God of economies! Airbnb knows full well there will be a lot of flack and a considerable amount of fallout from this but, it looks very much like it's a numbers game.....the decision has been made to discontinue cellular notifications and that is all there is to it. You will get some soothing talk...(There you go Robin, I have reset your notifications) ....but I am afraid, it's all cobblers!
Strap yourself in possum, we are in for a rough time and you know, the worst part about it is? After following Airbnb's advice to the letter you are going to be pinged for not responding to enquiries....as though it's all your fault, not theirs.....jeeezzzuuuuussss!!!!.... cheers.....Rob”
Thanks but I'm not sure how this is connected to the problem being dicussed, which is about being de-listed?
Robin
@thomas It is connected to this thread because it is part of a whole raft of issues that are creeping into the platform, and I was specifically asked by another post on this thread...."It's mental isn't it? what is happening with sms messaging??" Cheers...Rob
Patrick
Thanks Thomas.
I just received another one this morning informing me that my second property will now also be removed ie the account closed, all this after 3 years and no explenation given .
I am completely shocked and confused at this is certainly not a quality issue of the listings as they are in Prime Chelsea and I can only imagine that it has to do with the large number of guests turnover and back to back bookings it is going to well so I can not "deliver the real exoerience guest are looking for as they put it"...??!!
Feeback from customer support is "sorry nothing we can do nothing to do with us its the quality experience team"..
So this is it..amazing!!
Robin
@patrick Yeah Patrick, I am puting my listing into 'snooze' for a few months until I can assess just what is happening with Airbnb. I don't know if this site has been the subject of a major concerted hacking campaign! Everyone who seems to be associated with Airbnb denies that there are any real problems, just a glitch or two here or there!! But, there are just too many really bad issues involving this platform, and the lack of support for hosts is absolutely breathtaking. There appears to be no end to the ways they are trying to upset and make hosts, and I mean good hosts, even 'Superhosts' life difficult.
You know there is an old expresion....."be aware of the toes you tread on on the way up, because they may very well be connected to that arse that you have kiss on the way down"! This is something that Airbnb are going to have to really learn the hard way.
If they don't sort this nonsence out quickly and start to re-assure hosts that they will be supported, the mass exodus from Airbnb will be...as I said...Breathtaking!!!....cheers....Rob
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ANd here is yet another post on a similar topic:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/Is-this-spam-Got-email-saying-my-listed-property-quot-will-be/m-p/23542#U23542
Is this spam? Got email saying my listed property "will be removed from our platform" [ New ]
I got an email from "automated@e.airbnb.com" with message below. Is this spam? When I log into Airbnb, I don't see any such warning; and my last 3 reviews have been 5 stars.
I'm confused - thanks for the help!
Dear Thomas,
Airbnb guests enjoy staying in local homes and enjoying authentic and unique travel experiences. Unfortunately, our systems have shown that the listing mentioned below is not delivering the kind of local hospitality experience guests are looking for. In line with our Terms of Service,
[my property title]
will be removed from our platform on 9 February 2016.
Please understand that this determination was not made due to a single attribute, but an overall combination of various criteria.
You may continue to manage all of your bookings via our site until 9 February 2016. These bookings must be managed in accordance with our Hospitality Standards and Terms of Service.
After 9 February 2016, you will no longer be able to accept reservations for this specific listing and your listing will no longer appear in our search results. After 9 February 2016, you will still be able to use our site to manage your existing reservations as long as you comply with our Terms of Service.
You will not be able to relist this particular space on our platform. We regret to inform you about this. It is in the best interest of our community to uphold the standards and local and genuine experience they expect.
Best regards,
Airbnb Ireland
Stanley
Hi Thomas,
I'm a superhost & I received the same email (with the same 9th Feb date) I really do hope its Spam!
I havent received any further info from air b n b via the website.
Let me know if you find anything out.
Thanks
Stan
Marit Anne
@thomas @stanley
There is a loooong thread on the subject here
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/LISTING-REMOVED/m-p/4646#M706
Could it be something about laws and regulations for short term in London ?
Thomas
Thanks Stan and Marit, I read the other thread and it does seem like spam. No one seems to have any property actually taken down as far as I know. And the source of the email e.airbnb I think -- seems weird. I'll wait it out and see what happens.
Stanley
Hi Thomas,
I wanted to think it was spam too. But when you read through the thread, Poor Peter in Barcelona had his listing deactivated. Thats on the the third page. It's also notweworthy that this happend to other hosts in Amsterdam etc as government cracked down on regulations. Thomas if you want to have a coffee and discuss how we proceed Im happy to do that. And if any other host's or super hosts have received the same email then please read the thread kindly posted and contact us on here. It seems very arbitary to cancel a successful listing at short notice with no genuine explanation.
Also Thomas on the e.airbnb email address I thought the same thing but again if you read the thread in detail it appears to be an official email.
Best
Stan
Joey And David
Hi Thomas
Reading through your listing your one House Rule is 'no overnight guests'. In the Terms of Service it says:
""Guest" means a Member who requests from a Host a booking of an Accommodation via the Site, Application or Services, or a Member who stays at an Accommodation and is not the Host for such Accommodation."
I'm just wondering if the system has picked up your use of the word 'guest' and is presuming that no booked in guests are allowed to stay overnight? It may be worth changing this to 'no extra visitors are allowed to stay over night...' or some such thing.
Kind regards Joey
Clare
Hi @thomas, @joey And David, @stanley, @marit Anne, unfortunately this is a real Airbnb email address.
www.airbnb.com/help/article/971/how-do-i-know-if-an-email-is-really-from-airbnb
Stanley
Im finding it strange I havent received any notifcation about this in the dashboard, only via an email (which is listed as an email) and seems to be automated / generic.
Ive been trying to contact air b n b to confirm but struggling to get through to anyone.
Any help much appreciated.
Thanks
Stan
Clare
@stanley Fastest way to contact is on twitter: @airbnbhelp
Stanley
Thanks Clare. Ive messaged them and they got straight back to me 'We can confirm that this email was sent from our team. We will forward your inquiry to the right department and we will follow up with you as soon as possible. Thanks'
@thomas I'd advise you to do the same by direct messaging on twitter.
Hopefully I wont have to leave this lovely community. Where else could I find such quick, easy and friendly help on the only issue I've ever had with Air b n b.
Thanks @marit Anne clare @joey And David for all your help.
All the best in the future.
Stan
@stanley Well, here's hoping they give you an explanation, but usually they don't. Many hosts in Amsterdam, Barcelona and even a Super Host in Thailand had their listings removed. Have you possibly run afoul of any local laws re short term stays?
Jac
I'm a superhost I've received the same email but about two listings which together have nearly 150 reviews almost all 5 stars for nearly 3 years. The phone customer service has confirmed it's real and that the decision is final. I can't comprehend why they would want to get rid of good hosts! Anyone who has any information please let us know!
Clare
@jac Nobody seems to know why Airbnb does these purges of listings. A few months ago listings, including Super Host listings, were deactivated in Amsterdam and Barcelona. Doesn't look like your reviews are what did the damage. Did you ever accept payment outside the Airbnb payment system? Have you had unauthorised logins on your account? Have you disobeyed any city ordinances?
The most famous Super Host whose listing was deactivated is Kelly Kampen in Thailand. Here's an interesting link to read about his story:
techcrunch.com/2015/08/26/airbnb-removes-top-host-in-asia-from-its-service-with-no-explanatio...
techcrunch.com/2015/08/26/airbnb-removes-top-host-in-asia-from-its-service-with-no-explanation/
I learned later that his account had been compromised by unauthorised logins that he didn't pay attention to.
I'm sorry that this isn't much consolation, but at least now you know you aren't the only one.
Jac
Thanks Clare. Nothing that I am aware of! How very disappointing and so uncommercial to remove listings after so many years of hard work.
Thomas
Hi Stan,
I spoke to customer service and it does look real. The guy said he din't know why it was happening, but it was happening a lot, and it doesn't seem to be a quality thing. He said he "would forward it".
The same thing happened to you? I wonder if there are common themes between us which we might find to untangle the reason.
Happy to spek.
Monica
My own gut feeling is there there have been complaints in these cities that there is not enough housing for rent. Since airbnb has had to tread very carefully to be able to continue to have listings in theses cities they have had to buckle under and remove a certain percentage of listings. In order to be fair they would have had to remove them no matter if they were new ones or established listings with good reviews.
Cassandra
In the same boat. Definitely happy to meet and / or discuss. I was told by an airbnb customer servcie rep that it was probably a hoax, but I'm guessing it isn't.
Clare
@cassandra I see that you have 3 listings. Do you own the properties or are you subletting? Are there any local laws that prohibit your type of listing? No one seems to know why Airbnb does these kinds of purges of listings, but they do happen. Recently in Amsterdam and Barcelona. I know Barcelona has very strict rules about short term rentals.
Cassandra
clare I think the issue here is that they are taking the listings down at random, and then not providing an honest explaination as to why. If they are concerned that we are not abiding by local laws then they could at least give us the opportunity to demonstrate that we are. But my guess is its worth pissing off a few hosts and keeping the local authorities from shutting them down then actually standing behind us. Makes sense as a business decision but just a little dissapointing for those of us who were early adopters of Airbnb and have been supporting the site and community since the early days. Still, I can't see any excuse for not being honest and transparent about their reasoning. Telling super hosts that their hospitality isn't up to scratch is pretty low.
Thomas
This current approach is reminiscent of the most ghastly police state stasi tactics: "You are guilty of various violations of the general code. Explanations will not be forthcoming. You will not know of what you are accused, nor can your appeals be considered. This is final."
Maxine:
This is really worrying. It appears not to be a hacker/spam but Airbnb genuinely de-listing without being transparent about why. Instead emails suggest that the host is no suitable to the 'guest experience sought' irrespective of those hosts - some with superhost status - having 4 and 5 star reviews and happy guests, no complaints reported.
It has caused mass confusion.
Airbnb need to give a clear communication to all hosts - What is considered to be an illegal listing - e.g is it
1. Entire apartment / house where host doesn't live there as their primary residence
2. Hosts that rent a room or own home or 2nd home on airbnb for more than 90 days -
3. Hosts in Cities / towns where their Councils set the rules and prohibit homeowners from renting their properties when they are not present, such as going on holiday and renting out whilst away
4. Hosts with more than one property listing
5. Commercial hosts with rental property portfolios
6. Commercial single BnB's
7. Realtor Estate Agents
8. Homes that do not meet health and safety rules (smoke alarms etc)
9. Homes and rooms rented in towns and Cities that require them to have a license
10. Anything else
Whatever the reasos are Hosts worldwide need to know
The obtuse emails being sent to hosts telling them they are being de-listed as they do not meet the standards expected by guests and then refusing to offer any real explanation or means to overturn the delisting decision by advising the host what the resason is and how they can make changes - is just unfair, distressing and disrespectful to hosts
I rely on my airbnb income and whilst this has not happened to me, I would be horrified if it did, particularly if I didn't know why and they wouldn't tell me.
I do own my own home and have a floor I rent out on airbnb with it's own street entrance, set up as an entire self-contained apartment but it remains part of the main house via an interconnecting staircase and door, where I live on the upper two floors.
I had a very busy year (until we hit Dec/Jan) and may well have had total bookings nudging or just exceeding 90 days - does that put me over the limit? When was this 90 day limit set and where can I find communication that details that limit? Is it a 90 day April to 6th April tax year limit or a January to 31st December limit.
Where is lizzie the UK Airbnb Community Manager - we need an explanation and assurances urgently.
Posted 4 hours ago
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Thomas
Thomas
Level 2
London, United Kingdom
Agreed, lizzie your input would be hugely appreciated :-)
Shocking and appalling, I can't think of any business ever so flagrantly betraying the modern norms of enterprise civility. This really needs to be written up in the mainstream press.
My two cents: this email from Airbnb that one is being de-listed because of "hospitality issues" is similar to what hosts in Amsterdam and Barcelona were getting, when they were de-listed. The de-listing is not due to hospitality issues but MIGHT be due to hosts apparently having illegal listings, which violate their local ordinances. However, some of these hosts were clearly not violating local ordinances and the de-listing appears to be in error, but tragically there is no way of appealing the decision. (on one of these posts, at least one host states that she was registered with her city as an official B&B, yet she was still de-listed by Airbnb!!) I find this all quite discouraging, as I feel that Airbnb should not be engaging in law enforcement, but should be leaving that to local authorities. I also feel that Airbnb should be honest with hosts about why they are being de-listed.
See these posts too about the same issue:
globalhosting.freeforums.net/thread/1218/hosts-listings-removed-understand-why
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/De-Listing-without-explanation/m-p/24099#U24099
De-Listing without explanation ?
Received an automated email that my property will be delisted on a certain date because of hospitality standards and/or terms and conditions.
I made an enquiry to understand what this was all about, and an email came through to me 2 days later merely saying that checks have been done and that the delisting cannot be undone.
Important to note that every single review ( I now have 20 ) has had 4.5 stars and above, and not a single guest has made a complaint to me nor airbnb. I know this as airbnb customer services have confirmed this to me.
QUESITON: has anyone else experienced this bizarre and unjust encounter
Martin
Are you absolutely sure that Airbnb did this? My listing was hacked last year but the hacker did not delist irt but changed the property, prices and all the photos . I had over 400 enquiries as a result of the prices being the equivalent of £15ish pn.
Thomas
Yes the same just happened to me, I'm just below superhost qualification, so it's not about quality. Airbnb confirmed as much via their customer service - the guy I spoke to said he knew this strange culling was going on but didn't understand why. Clearly it seems to be some legal thing. Is it people with over 90 nights per year (a London thing)? Or is it about high turnover in terms of cash?
Karim
Me too ... no explanation, just the same email talking about hospitality standards.
I have more than 40 reviews and a 5 stars rating
I can't understand this unfair decision.
Maybe we're not good enough for them.
Because of their overgrowing success they can now afford to lose some of their hosts and sort out who should remain on their top listings.
K.
Peter
I wonder if Airbnb is now moving to meet the authorities' concerns and to delist what it believes are illegal listings. It would not surprise me if they have categorised those who are being delisted as breaking the regulations and are taking them down. They have publicly said they are doing this in New York. So if it is a whole home you don't live in, I suggest that might be the reason that Airbnb has discovered the situation and won't service it as a listing any longer. I really hope that Airbnb will remain a home SHARING site.
Thomas
Is that what it is about, home sharing versus renting out a whole house?
The thing is, I DO live in the house, on the floor below. I have it listed as "whole flat", just because they can use my kitchen and bath, but then in the description I explain that I live there too.
Does anyone else know if home sharing versus renting out entirely is what this is all about?
Cassandra
This just happened to me, too. First, with one property ony (yesterday) and then today I got another one with all of my others that are in London, even ones that were deleated over two years ago. I have three total listings now that I list as whole properties, all have great reviews. I called Airbnb Europe and they couldn't tell me anything. But today I called the US number and they said they think its a hoax and are forwarding it on to trust and safety. Though now that I have found this thread, I suspect it isn't a hoax after all. I just want to know what's going on. Weird they aren't telling us the reason, right?
Milu
In my town we've just received news that an ordinance was passed making this type of short term rentals illegal. So now we know, and I will adjust my business to conform to the law. As is being said here, Airbnb has declared that they will uphold the laws, so that's what they are doing in London, and probably will start doing in my neck of the woods if hosts don't voluntarily comply. This is a huge blow to my business, but I knew the risks and took them, now I have to come up with a new plan. So I am bothered by all of this, but accept it.
What I am not accepting is that Airbnb doesn't have a clear way to deal with this other then the disingenuous sounding email about "hospitality standards" if they are not saying exactly what standards are not being met. Why don't they simply say "You are listing three entire space units which is not allowed under local law and you didn't shut them down so we are shutting them down for you". Be black and white about it, then let your Customer Support department know what is going on and let them also reply in clear terms. It seems like part of the issue is the intential confusion that Airbnb is causing, and then compounding it by not having the support team know what's going on, so they are thinking, is it a hoax, is it a spam letter, is it a mistake?
I think that they have every right to shut down certain listings but they should be clear about what they are doing and give the hosts that have made them lots of money and allowed them to become a billion dollar industry the benefit of an honest answer.
Martin
So, Peter, if the limit is 90 days/nights per year, when does the year start? If Jan 1st, does Airbnb wait until the 91st night is booked and then de-list for the rest of the year? What if local councils (London) are not sticking to the letter or the spirit and are quite happy to let self-contained properties be let for more than 90? And, is Airbnb's action, if that is what it is, contrary to individuals' freedoms? The fact that Airbnb/CS seem to be less than knowledgable and less than open about what is going on makes me think that this is a scam. Airbnb seems to be a regular target for hackers in my experience.
Maxine
This is really worrying. It appears not to be a hacker/spam but Airbnb genuinely de-listing without being transparent about why. Instead emails suggest that the host is no suitable to the 'guest experience sought' irrespective of those hosts - some with superhost status - having 4 and 5 star reviews and happy guests, no complaints reported.
It has caused mass confusion.
Airbnb need to give a clear communication to all hosts - What is considered to be an illegal listing - e.g is it
1. Entire apartment / house where host doesn't live there as their primary residence
2. Hosts that rent a room or own home or 2nd home on airbnb for more than 90 days -
3. Hosts in Cities / towns where their Councils set the rules and prohibit homeowners from renting their properties when they are not present, such as going on holiday and renting out whilst away
4. Hosts with more than one property listing
5. Commercial hosts with rental property portfolios
6. Commercial single BnB's
7. Realtor Estate Agents
8. Homes that do not meet health and safety rules (smoke alarms etc)
9. Homes and rooms rented in towns and Cities that require them to have a license
10. Anything else
Whatever the reasos are Hosts worldwide need to know
The obtuse emails being sent to hosts telling them they are being de-listed as they do not meet the standards expected by guests and then refusing to offer any real explanation or means to overturn the delisting decision by advising the host what the resason is and how they can make changes - is just unfair, distressing and disrespectful to hosts
I rely on my airbnb income and whilst this has not happened to me, I would be horrified if it did, particularly if I didn't know why and they wouldn't tell me.
I do own my own home and have a floor I rent out on airbnb with it's own street entrance, set up as an entire self-contained apartment but it remains part of the main house via an interconnecting staircase and door, where I live on the upper two floors.
I had a very busy year (until we hit Dec/Jan) and may well have had total bookings nudging or just exceeding 90 days - does that put me over the limit? When was this 90 day limit set and where can I find communication that details that limit? Is it a 90 day April to 6th April tax year limit or a January to 31st December limit.
Fiona
My thought is that Airbnb cannot say 'we have deleted you because your listing is illegal' because their lawyers have told them that if they do is, they could be sued themselves for promoting illegal listings.
It seems to be a London thing, although a similar thing seems to have happened in Barcelona in November.
I'm in Bournemouth, Maxine, where everyone rents out rooms to foreign students and holiday makers. The council is very keen to keep the tourists coming, and has even refused planning permission to people wanting to turn rundown hotels into flats. So I'm hoping they won't come for us seasiders, although I guess if the hotels complain that the Airbnb-ers are putting them out of business, it might come to that.
Pietro and His Friends
maxine
many thanks for your answer, at least I know I'm not totally talking alone!
The problem seems to be not only in London but at least in Rome, Barcelona and Amsterdam at least.
It's not related to law-adherence as me, personally, spent a lot of money to get proper licenses and to be fully compliant with the local law.
It seems to be due to a big mistake on Airbnb's systems, but if not properly managed by hosts listings are effectively disabled.
Beside pushing hard on customer care (CX dept), who will inoltrate the communication to the "Marketing and Quality department" it seems that there isn't so much to do.
The "Marketing and Quality department" is not answering at all.
No solutions found yet. Just keep pushing and moving my LinkedIn contacts looking for people working in this department and try to have a personal contact.
If other hosts will have this issue can try write directly to quality@airbnb.com, but do not expect a fast / proper response.
99% of their answers are not personal (e.g. template only) and will not answer to your personal inquiry.
Another horrible way I'm following is advising ALL of my future guests and asking them to push on Airbnb too. And it's working, as only today I received 4 calls from CX department. But it has not (yet) fixed the problem. I wish I will reach the critical mass soon. But this should not be the way to follow, but it seems the only one feasible right now.
Yup!
Maxine
fiona - I'm in Brighton which like Bournemouth is a University City attracting students and a seaside City attracting tourists. Our Council have not become involved in any airbnb issues as they are very pro any activities that encourage tourism as well as pro residents earning income and contributing to the good name of the City, supporting retailers etc, and creating jobs.
Airbnb may have caused traditional bnbs to up their game - which is no bad thing, likewise hotels - none of whom have raised any issues with locals offering airbnb rooms or apartments. Prospective hotel/trad bnb/ ABB Guests choose by own preference, which is not always price driven as airbnb spaces are often higher price than a hostel or mediocre bnb.
I have not heard about the 90 day limit rule - perhaps that is a City Council by City Council thing which neither Brighton nor Bournemouth have imposed.
Fingers crossed we'll both remain safe from red tape brigade
Maxine
@pietro And His Friends! - I can't imagine it could be a technical glitch as airbnb are instigating the emails to hosts advising them they are to be de-listed and airbnb are confirming they have instigated the emails stating that 'the host property does not meet the expected guest experience'.
So the element I think you could well be right about, is that airbnb do not wish to state 'illegal listings' in their communication for the reason you state. Instead the message is ' airbnb brand is focused on the shared economy and guests sharing their home with strangers who become friends'. Home owners can generate additional income which supports the local economy and contributes further to retail and tourism but does not displace local businesses nor affordable housing, as owners properties are not full time rentals.
Thereby culling properties that are full time rentals, with host not present, that potentially or definately displace (due to price) local businesses or housing, is a response to the criticism airbnb has been attracting around the world from Councils, businesses and law enforcers.
It may also be why airbnb have been focused on pushing prices down - noted the pricing tool many hosts have said is nonsense as they proposed pricing is often far less than what the host is charging and guests are paying.
Airbnb just need to be more transparent with the hosts affected
Monica
Yes, I can see that full time rentals are not really what Airbnb wants to promote as a "sharing experience". Hosts who live in their listings can offer a better experience to guests by showing them how locals live, giving advice, and maybe participate in meals. Full time rentals, like mine, are not as personal. I give the door code, a quick tour on check-in if the guest wants, an tour of the dairy farm if the guest is interested, but that is all.
That being said, there are many listings like mine on VBRO, Homeaway, Flipkey, and others that are established full time, commerical listings. Perhaps it is not a bad thing to do a "purge" so that Airbnb is back to having the image it wants to promote. Hence their statement that says something like "providing the experience our guests expect"....in the notices of termination of lisitngs.
It probably is better for guests as well to know that if they book with Airbnb they get a personal experience and interact with the host, and if they book with the others it is a commerical endeavor and they will have privacy.
Kim
This is insane!
The exact same thing happened to me, no explanation. I have been chasing 'JULIAN' the representative who wrote to me who is based in the States, and despite them saying he will "call me back" he obviously is not.
Please see my post. I intend to create a large petition for all these unjust deactivation and complain to the headquarters and whatever other bodies that are there to protect our rights !
ka435@cam.ac.uk
Lizzie
Online Community Manager
Hello @kim,
Lovely to meet you. I am really sorry to say, but for safety reasons I would not recommend you post personal details such as your email address here, as this is publically visible. I have therefore removed this from your post. I hope you understand my reason for having to remove this.
Thank you, Lizzie
Evelyn
They have done a few rounds of de-listing in NY. In 2014 when the Attorney General asked for the hosts information and now in 2016 when there was a meeting with the NY City Council.
I imagine Airbnb's lawyers are dictating the matter of what to say to hosts. Have you not heard of Brian's Chesky's compliance blog post?
Our Commitment to Cities blog.airbnb.com/our-commitment-to-communities-around-the-world/
Denise
can any of you who were de listed tell me if you were paying taxes, doing tot reports and had a business licesence?? thanks Denise
Stefania
Same experience here, i received an email in January giving notice for delisting of one of my 2 flats and i immediately contacted airbnb customer service. They told me it was a scam and put it in writing. Early February both flats have been delisted with no reason, I am short of becoming a superhost and have great reviews.
It is now a daily follow up that i have with a case manager who apparently escalated the matter with the american quality team. I am told that there have been a number of delisting and that within few days the quality team has come back to previous enquiry. I read from other posts that they have not.
Airbnb should not respond of the legal position of the hosts in front of their local authorities but as others have noted this is just speculation till someone clarifies what is happening.
I started to look on the internet as this does not sound promising and there are other short rental platforms.
At least till they reply there is a plan B
Lucille & Alan
I notice that most of you who are seeing this are in the UK. I suspect it has something to do with a bylaw. I agree you dese
Andy:
I too was de-listed and I am a SUPER HOST in NYC with amazing review, 185 all excellent. The worst part is No one in the airbnb company, my business partner, can explain why or will even call me back. My De-listing happened back in November 2015. ITs now March 4th 2016. I stil have empty promises of "someone getting back to me" from the company.
I have bookings until Late Auguest 2016 and now what do I do? Guests can't find their listings and think NYC is shutting down which I am beginning to think they may be correct. This is not looking good .. Pleaese any info anyone can answer would be very helpful
Cheers
I had the same Experience idedntical ..
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
See this post too on the same issue:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/LISTING-REMOVAL-DE-LISTED-Please-help-Thank-you/m-p/23717#M6068
LISTING REMOVAL / DE LISTED Please help Thank you. [ New ]
I am in complete shock and disbelieve...Today after hosting hundreds of guests for more than 3 years on Airbnb
and having all 4, 4.5 and 5 stars...I received the following emails ie the first email at 9am in the morning with
the following content..
Dear Patrick,
Airbnb guests enjoy staying in local homes and enjoying authentic and unique travel experiences. Unfortunately, our systems have shown that the listing mentioned below is not delivering the kind of local hospitality experience guests are looking for. In line with our Terms of Service,
* LUXURY CHELSEA 24HR. CONCIERGE *
will be removed from our platform on 9 February 2016.
Please understand that this determination was not made due to a single attribute, but an overall combination of various criteria.
You may continue to manage all of your bookings via our site until 9 February 2016. These bookings must be managed in accordance with our Hospitality Standards and Terms of Service.
After 9 February 2016, you will no longer be able to accept reservations for this specific listing and your listing will no longer appear in our search results. After 9 February 2016, you will still be able to use our site to manage your existing reservations as long as you comply with our Terms of Service.
You will not be able to relist this particular space on our platform. We regret to inform you about this. It is in the best interest of our community to uphold the standards and local and genuine experience they expect.
Best regards,
Airbnb Ireland
After calling the customer care team..how told me this is probably a phising email or a hack..and they will let the relevant team know,
several hours later I received the following email..
No reason explenation..or anything given...after 3 years and 4 - 5 star reviews..Who can help here or let me know what is happening and
why?? Any feeback and information re who do I have to contact to clarify this situation would be greatly appreciated.
Airbnb Customer Experience
Airbnb Quality Team, Jan 27, 07:12:
Dear Patrick,
We have received your message regarding your account. Our mission is to allow Airbnb guests to connect with hosts who provide local and authentic experiences that make the city a better place to live, work and visit. We routinely carry out initiatives for quality purposes and adherence to this mission. The outcome cannot be changed.
Regards,
Julian
Airbnb Quality Team
www.airbnb.com/help
Thank you for your help and support.
Patrick
Marit Anne
Looks like it is happening all over London.
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/Is-this-spam-Got-email-saying-my-listed-property-quo...
Gritta
Hi @patrick,
I'm sorry to hear this. I hope for you its spam, but I guess its not.
I would recommend to read this:
publicpolicy.airbnb.com/compact/
and than this:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/LISTING-REMOVED/m-p/4646#M706
Andrea
This has been happening to several hosts here in Amsterdam too.
Superhosts even.
No explanation, nothing, just the same lame reason you got.
It's quite alarming actually, because with no explanation or reason others can't learn what not to do and improve.
Really sounding like mafiosi tactics
y
Jac
I'm a superhost and I received an email saying they will remove two listings. I share your shock and disbelief. For 3 years, I have hundreds of perfect reviews and even stopped using other sites because I thought airbnb could be relied upon. It's utterly disappointing and it doesn't seem to be a very commercial move!
Robin
@jac @patrick My god, what is happening....Airbnb is falling apart at the seams! They are in the process of deleting an entire communication platform with sms messaging! Many posts now complain that they cannot receive support for their problems and are told to consult the forum page and now this....I can't believe this is happening. I think I will go into snooze for a few months until some sort of rational logical behaviour returns....
Hey Jac....that profile piccie could only be the public bar at the Icebergs in Bondi....when were you there? cheers....Rob
Jac
Hey Rob, It is indeed! Well spotted. I am an aussie
It's mental isn't it? what is happening with sms messaging?? best, Jac
Jason
Patrick, I have received the exact same emails as you.
I had also had 4.5 star reviews over 3 years, a not a single complaint. i also to not know what to do.
have you had any update?
Thomas
Definitely call their customer servive and ask for an explanation. I did, twice. The guy knew a lot of people were getting this, it seemed for real, it wasn't a quality issue, and beyond that he didn't know. He forwarded it to another person.
If you're UK based call this number and see if you can piece together more. I wonder if it is their biggest players (in terms of days or turnover) who are getting the axe. Given London's updated legislation.
+44 203 318 1111
Robin
@jac Well Jac, as Gough Whitlam once said, "You may well ask"!......Two weeks ago I just happened to come across this little snippet of information that I am re-pasting...
……This is an excerpt I just came across from another post purportedly from a member of Airbnb staff! “Customer Support: I have reached out to my colleague who is working with this system change to get more information. It sounds like we are working to phase out this method of notification, which is why this change has been coming about. For now, it sounds like it should be able to be switched back on through the app on your phone. You can do this by going to Settings > Notifications and turning on the Text Message Notifications. You may need to switch it off and then back on again"....
Jac, tell me they are kidding!!!! Their not. All over the world there are complaints coming in about lost bookings with exactly the same bottom line.....no notification! Some have lost up to half a dozen bookings!
I lost a booking because it sat on my dashboard for 16 hours and I never knew it was there. Jac, cracks are appearing in the system.......and as I have said in other posts there are going to be some problem times ahead. I phoned Sydney and spoke to a very pleasant lady who said she had 're-activated' my sms messages, but I have had three messages since then on my listing page that I haven't been notified of. In fact, since last week my mobile phone has been utterly silent as far as Airbnb is concerned!
The thing that hurts most is Jac they haven't had the guts to release a statement to their hosting community that sms (or more particularly Cellular) level of contact was about to cease....we have had to find it out in dribs and drabs on a forum site and nobody actually connected with Airbnb will give us a difinitive statement....all they are saying is 'it's a glitch in the system'!!!
This is a big deal, fairly obviously cellular contact is costing Airbnb and enormous amount of money....every txt costs, and it looks like the 'backroom boys' have hit on this solution (which works fine in NY, Miami, Paris, London, in fact anywhere there is a Wifi hot spot) but in the less heavily saturated internet areas we depend on cellular....even a personal WiFi is still a cellular service.
The one thing these 'backroom boys' haven't taken into account...an sms costs, what, 20c. A lost booking to another site will cost them $20-$30-$50 or more, either in a guest going elsewhere or a host! Does that make good mathematical sense??
Jac, we are being screwed to that God of economies! Airbnb knows full well there will be a lot of flack and a considerable amount of fallout from this but, it looks very much like it's a numbers game.....the decision has been made to discontinue cellular notifications and that is all there is to it. You will get some soothing talk...(There you go Robin, I have reset your notifications) ....but I am afraid, it's all cobblers!
Strap yourself in possum, we are in for a rough time and you know, the worst part about it is? After following Airbnb's advice to the letter you are going to be pinged for not responding to enquiries....as though it's all your fault, not theirs.....jeeezzzuuuuussss!!!!.... cheers.....Rob”
Thanks but I'm not sure how this is connected to the problem being dicussed, which is about being de-listed?
Robin
@thomas It is connected to this thread because it is part of a whole raft of issues that are creeping into the platform, and I was specifically asked by another post on this thread...."It's mental isn't it? what is happening with sms messaging??" Cheers...Rob
Patrick
Thanks Thomas.
I just received another one this morning informing me that my second property will now also be removed ie the account closed, all this after 3 years and no explenation given .
I am completely shocked and confused at this is certainly not a quality issue of the listings as they are in Prime Chelsea and I can only imagine that it has to do with the large number of guests turnover and back to back bookings it is going to well so I can not "deliver the real exoerience guest are looking for as they put it"...??!!
Feeback from customer support is "sorry nothing we can do nothing to do with us its the quality experience team"..
So this is it..amazing!!
Robin
@patrick Yeah Patrick, I am puting my listing into 'snooze' for a few months until I can assess just what is happening with Airbnb. I don't know if this site has been the subject of a major concerted hacking campaign! Everyone who seems to be associated with Airbnb denies that there are any real problems, just a glitch or two here or there!! But, there are just too many really bad issues involving this platform, and the lack of support for hosts is absolutely breathtaking. There appears to be no end to the ways they are trying to upset and make hosts, and I mean good hosts, even 'Superhosts' life difficult.
You know there is an old expresion....."be aware of the toes you tread on on the way up, because they may very well be connected to that arse that you have kiss on the way down"! This is something that Airbnb are going to have to really learn the hard way.
If they don't sort this nonsence out quickly and start to re-assure hosts that they will be supported, the mass exodus from Airbnb will be...as I said...Breathtaking!!!....cheers....Rob
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANd here is yet another post on a similar topic:
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/Is-this-spam-Got-email-saying-my-listed-property-quot-will-be/m-p/23542#U23542
Is this spam? Got email saying my listed property "will be removed from our platform" [ New ]
I got an email from "automated@e.airbnb.com" with message below. Is this spam? When I log into Airbnb, I don't see any such warning; and my last 3 reviews have been 5 stars.
I'm confused - thanks for the help!
Dear Thomas,
Airbnb guests enjoy staying in local homes and enjoying authentic and unique travel experiences. Unfortunately, our systems have shown that the listing mentioned below is not delivering the kind of local hospitality experience guests are looking for. In line with our Terms of Service,
[my property title]
will be removed from our platform on 9 February 2016.
Please understand that this determination was not made due to a single attribute, but an overall combination of various criteria.
You may continue to manage all of your bookings via our site until 9 February 2016. These bookings must be managed in accordance with our Hospitality Standards and Terms of Service.
After 9 February 2016, you will no longer be able to accept reservations for this specific listing and your listing will no longer appear in our search results. After 9 February 2016, you will still be able to use our site to manage your existing reservations as long as you comply with our Terms of Service.
You will not be able to relist this particular space on our platform. We regret to inform you about this. It is in the best interest of our community to uphold the standards and local and genuine experience they expect.
Best regards,
Airbnb Ireland
Stanley
Hi Thomas,
I'm a superhost & I received the same email (with the same 9th Feb date) I really do hope its Spam!
I havent received any further info from air b n b via the website.
Let me know if you find anything out.
Thanks
Stan
Marit Anne
@thomas @stanley
There is a loooong thread on the subject here
community.airbnb.com/t5/General-Hosting/LISTING-REMOVED/m-p/4646#M706
Could it be something about laws and regulations for short term in London ?
Thomas
Thanks Stan and Marit, I read the other thread and it does seem like spam. No one seems to have any property actually taken down as far as I know. And the source of the email e.airbnb I think -- seems weird. I'll wait it out and see what happens.
Stanley
Hi Thomas,
I wanted to think it was spam too. But when you read through the thread, Poor Peter in Barcelona had his listing deactivated. Thats on the the third page. It's also notweworthy that this happend to other hosts in Amsterdam etc as government cracked down on regulations. Thomas if you want to have a coffee and discuss how we proceed Im happy to do that. And if any other host's or super hosts have received the same email then please read the thread kindly posted and contact us on here. It seems very arbitary to cancel a successful listing at short notice with no genuine explanation.
Also Thomas on the e.airbnb email address I thought the same thing but again if you read the thread in detail it appears to be an official email.
Best
Stan
Joey And David
Hi Thomas
Reading through your listing your one House Rule is 'no overnight guests'. In the Terms of Service it says:
""Guest" means a Member who requests from a Host a booking of an Accommodation via the Site, Application or Services, or a Member who stays at an Accommodation and is not the Host for such Accommodation."
I'm just wondering if the system has picked up your use of the word 'guest' and is presuming that no booked in guests are allowed to stay overnight? It may be worth changing this to 'no extra visitors are allowed to stay over night...' or some such thing.
Kind regards Joey
Clare
Hi @thomas, @joey And David, @stanley, @marit Anne, unfortunately this is a real Airbnb email address.
www.airbnb.com/help/article/971/how-do-i-know-if-an-email-is-really-from-airbnb
Stanley
Im finding it strange I havent received any notifcation about this in the dashboard, only via an email (which is listed as an email) and seems to be automated / generic.
Ive been trying to contact air b n b to confirm but struggling to get through to anyone.
Any help much appreciated.
Thanks
Stan
Clare
@stanley Fastest way to contact is on twitter: @airbnbhelp
Stanley
Thanks Clare. Ive messaged them and they got straight back to me 'We can confirm that this email was sent from our team. We will forward your inquiry to the right department and we will follow up with you as soon as possible. Thanks'
@thomas I'd advise you to do the same by direct messaging on twitter.
Hopefully I wont have to leave this lovely community. Where else could I find such quick, easy and friendly help on the only issue I've ever had with Air b n b.
Thanks @marit Anne clare @joey And David for all your help.
All the best in the future.
Stan
@stanley Well, here's hoping they give you an explanation, but usually they don't. Many hosts in Amsterdam, Barcelona and even a Super Host in Thailand had their listings removed. Have you possibly run afoul of any local laws re short term stays?
Jac
I'm a superhost I've received the same email but about two listings which together have nearly 150 reviews almost all 5 stars for nearly 3 years. The phone customer service has confirmed it's real and that the decision is final. I can't comprehend why they would want to get rid of good hosts! Anyone who has any information please let us know!
Clare
@jac Nobody seems to know why Airbnb does these purges of listings. A few months ago listings, including Super Host listings, were deactivated in Amsterdam and Barcelona. Doesn't look like your reviews are what did the damage. Did you ever accept payment outside the Airbnb payment system? Have you had unauthorised logins on your account? Have you disobeyed any city ordinances?
The most famous Super Host whose listing was deactivated is Kelly Kampen in Thailand. Here's an interesting link to read about his story:
techcrunch.com/2015/08/26/airbnb-removes-top-host-in-asia-from-its-service-with-no-explanatio...
techcrunch.com/2015/08/26/airbnb-removes-top-host-in-asia-from-its-service-with-no-explanation/
I learned later that his account had been compromised by unauthorised logins that he didn't pay attention to.
I'm sorry that this isn't much consolation, but at least now you know you aren't the only one.
Jac
Thanks Clare. Nothing that I am aware of! How very disappointing and so uncommercial to remove listings after so many years of hard work.
Thomas
Hi Stan,
I spoke to customer service and it does look real. The guy said he din't know why it was happening, but it was happening a lot, and it doesn't seem to be a quality thing. He said he "would forward it".
The same thing happened to you? I wonder if there are common themes between us which we might find to untangle the reason.
Happy to spek.
Monica
My own gut feeling is there there have been complaints in these cities that there is not enough housing for rent. Since airbnb has had to tread very carefully to be able to continue to have listings in theses cities they have had to buckle under and remove a certain percentage of listings. In order to be fair they would have had to remove them no matter if they were new ones or established listings with good reviews.
Cassandra
In the same boat. Definitely happy to meet and / or discuss. I was told by an airbnb customer servcie rep that it was probably a hoax, but I'm guessing it isn't.
Clare
@cassandra I see that you have 3 listings. Do you own the properties or are you subletting? Are there any local laws that prohibit your type of listing? No one seems to know why Airbnb does these kinds of purges of listings, but they do happen. Recently in Amsterdam and Barcelona. I know Barcelona has very strict rules about short term rentals.
Cassandra
clare I think the issue here is that they are taking the listings down at random, and then not providing an honest explaination as to why. If they are concerned that we are not abiding by local laws then they could at least give us the opportunity to demonstrate that we are. But my guess is its worth pissing off a few hosts and keeping the local authorities from shutting them down then actually standing behind us. Makes sense as a business decision but just a little dissapointing for those of us who were early adopters of Airbnb and have been supporting the site and community since the early days. Still, I can't see any excuse for not being honest and transparent about their reasoning. Telling super hosts that their hospitality isn't up to scratch is pretty low.
Thomas
This current approach is reminiscent of the most ghastly police state stasi tactics: "You are guilty of various violations of the general code. Explanations will not be forthcoming. You will not know of what you are accused, nor can your appeals be considered. This is final."
Maxine:
This is really worrying. It appears not to be a hacker/spam but Airbnb genuinely de-listing without being transparent about why. Instead emails suggest that the host is no suitable to the 'guest experience sought' irrespective of those hosts - some with superhost status - having 4 and 5 star reviews and happy guests, no complaints reported.
It has caused mass confusion.
Airbnb need to give a clear communication to all hosts - What is considered to be an illegal listing - e.g is it
1. Entire apartment / house where host doesn't live there as their primary residence
2. Hosts that rent a room or own home or 2nd home on airbnb for more than 90 days -
3. Hosts in Cities / towns where their Councils set the rules and prohibit homeowners from renting their properties when they are not present, such as going on holiday and renting out whilst away
4. Hosts with more than one property listing
5. Commercial hosts with rental property portfolios
6. Commercial single BnB's
7. Realtor Estate Agents
8. Homes that do not meet health and safety rules (smoke alarms etc)
9. Homes and rooms rented in towns and Cities that require them to have a license
10. Anything else
Whatever the reasos are Hosts worldwide need to know
The obtuse emails being sent to hosts telling them they are being de-listed as they do not meet the standards expected by guests and then refusing to offer any real explanation or means to overturn the delisting decision by advising the host what the resason is and how they can make changes - is just unfair, distressing and disrespectful to hosts
I rely on my airbnb income and whilst this has not happened to me, I would be horrified if it did, particularly if I didn't know why and they wouldn't tell me.
I do own my own home and have a floor I rent out on airbnb with it's own street entrance, set up as an entire self-contained apartment but it remains part of the main house via an interconnecting staircase and door, where I live on the upper two floors.
I had a very busy year (until we hit Dec/Jan) and may well have had total bookings nudging or just exceeding 90 days - does that put me over the limit? When was this 90 day limit set and where can I find communication that details that limit? Is it a 90 day April to 6th April tax year limit or a January to 31st December limit.
Where is lizzie the UK Airbnb Community Manager - we need an explanation and assurances urgently.
Posted 4 hours ago
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Thomas
Thomas
Level 2
London, United Kingdom
Agreed, lizzie your input would be hugely appreciated :-)
Shocking and appalling, I can't think of any business ever so flagrantly betraying the modern norms of enterprise civility. This really needs to be written up in the mainstream press.
My two cents: this email from Airbnb that one is being de-listed because of "hospitality issues" is similar to what hosts in Amsterdam and Barcelona were getting, when they were de-listed. The de-listing is not due to hospitality issues but MIGHT be due to hosts apparently having illegal listings, which violate their local ordinances. However, some of these hosts were clearly not violating local ordinances and the de-listing appears to be in error, but tragically there is no way of appealing the decision. (on one of these posts, at least one host states that she was registered with her city as an official B&B, yet she was still de-listed by Airbnb!!) I find this all quite discouraging, as I feel that Airbnb should not be engaging in law enforcement, but should be leaving that to local authorities. I also feel that Airbnb should be honest with hosts about why they are being de-listed.
See these posts too about the same issue:
globalhosting.freeforums.net/thread/1218/hosts-listings-removed-understand-why