1 Star Review on HomeAway. Help!!

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bluebell
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1 Star Review on HomeAway. Help!!

Post by bluebell »

Hello all. I am a very infrequent "poster" here but over the past years have found fellow owners comments extremely useful. I do hope that someone can offer some advice on a particularly upsetting complaint and review from a guest that stayed at my house a few weeks ago.

I do not live near to my rental home and within an hour of the guest's arrival I received an email complaining that the Wi-Fi was not working. As it was working 4 hours previously with other guests I advised her that perhaps she had not read the password correctly which is written on top of the modem.

Our guests get keys to the villa via a key security box and my housekeeper pops in later to see that all is ok. The email from the guest also complained that it was unacceptable that the A/C had not been left on and that the house was unbearably hot. She then requested that we should ensure that the next day, when they returned from their sightseeing tour, the temperature of the villa should be 70 degrees farenheit! I sent an explanatory email as to why this was not possible. I asked if it would be possible for the someone to come into the villa for 5 minutes to check a damaged canopy from our previous week's guests and she declined the request.

My follow up email, advising that the housekeeper had called 4 times but found no-one in, was ignored. My housekeeper did find a paper napkin in the house with the Wi-Fi password written on it incorrectly ( as we suspected).

Anyway, the guest ( American)has now sent a formal complaint to HomeAway saying that the bathrooms were inadequate and not as described on the site and that she wants a 50% refund. She has also left a 1 star review on the site which could kill my business for next year. She never made any such complaint during her and her friends stay.

They left the villa in a very bad condition - both the kitchen and bathrooms required A LOT of cleaning.

As a final and very important point, the guests that stayed after her ( coming from HomeAway) left a review saying that they loved it and that they plan to return next year.

How do I tackle both the review and the formal complaint?

So sorry for my waffling! Any advice very gratefully received.

Many thanks
Sara
gardenboy
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Post by gardenboy »

Oh dear a 1 star, i have a 1 star but 34 x 5 star reviews. New guests always comment and i find it q funny, in my case the guest was q unrealistic and expected hotel type facilities in a villa.

Ha will publish it unless it can be priced to be false. Just be positive in the response. The odd bad review is ok it makes the process look genuine.
AndrewH
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Post by AndrewH »

My god, the guest from hell! No one needs to leave air conditioning switched on in an empty villa in anticipation that someone, at some time not exactly known, will arrive to enjoy it. It has been very hot here in Greece, I know, but it takes just a few minutes for rooms to cool down once the air con. has been switched on.

I would not worry about the complaint sent to HomeAway. HA's usual response (if they ever get round to it) is to tell the complainer that it has nothing to do with them, because they are just an advertising portal and that such a complaint should be made to the villa owner direct.

If you respond to the bad review make the response, as gardenboy says, positive and not accusatory, and you do not need to be apologetic. If the review is based on what you describe, I think savvy travellers will see right through it.

When I advertised through the HA Group, HA often asked me to review the guests so as to assist other owners in the future. I never did, but this could be your opportunity. :D
COYS
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Post by COYS »

Ouch! We all get one of ‘em sooner or later.
As above, make your response formal & courteous & most people will see right through what appears to be a simple refund grab. Re: air con, simply state that you take your environmental responsibilities seriously. You'll survive the one star, no problem.
This time next year Rodney, we'll be millionaires.
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cleanforum
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Post by cleanforum »

The Villa looks very nice and reasonably priced, looks like you just got unlucky there with your guests. Maybe, fix any real bathroom issue and answer as such to the review if you still can.
On another note, I find it puzzling that you point guests directly to your personal site from the HA first paragraph, I am not sure if you are subscription or pay to advertise. If the former then that's not exactly playing the game, is it?
AndrewH
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Post by AndrewH »

cleanforum wrote:On another note, I find it puzzling that you point guests directly to your personal site from the HA first paragraph, I am not sure if you are subscription or pay to advertise. If the former then that's not exactly playing the game, is it?
I think you would find that bluebell is playing the game. Bluebell is a "Premier Partner" which is an honour not lightly handed out by HomeAway. Outwardly it says bluebell is considered upright and honest and not taking bookings on the side. More accurately it means that bluebell is providing HomeAway with a wealth of guests' Service Fees to stuff in their overfilled wallet and, if on pay per booking, guests' commissions as well.
e-richard
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Post by e-richard »

First point: I suggest that other LMH readers tick the "was this review helpful: NO" box. I just did ;-)

Second point: This 1 star review sticks out like a sore thumb and even without any owner response looks like a blackmail attempt for a refund. So, in your (VERY SHORT) response you could simply state that "this guest would like a refund, so wrote a poor review. Unfortunately for her, everybody else who has stayed there thoroughly enjoyed it so she will not be getting a refund". OR words like that.

Nobody wins if you try to argue the specifics of her complaints. Remember that you are writing the response for FUTURE guests and not for this guest who will never come back anyway.
** Richard
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They say we learn from our mistakes. That makes me a genius !
zebedee
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Post by zebedee »

“No” ticked
AndrewH
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Post by AndrewH »

"No" ticked. I like the second point as well.
mmg
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Post by mmg »

No ticked.
Sandra J
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Post by Sandra J »

“No”ticked as well.
bluebell
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Post by bluebell »

Thank you SO much for your comments. At first I was convinced that either I had a made a mistake with my description of the bathrooms facilities OR my housekeeper has not been keeping a close enough eye on things. I only get to the property once a year. But it seems that on both thoughts I was incorrect. All is fine. Yes, the one shower room is very small but I have never had a comment about it.

Thank you also to all those who ticked the "no" box on the review - very much appreciated.

Re the comment by "cleanforum"..... I do guide viewers to my FB page as many of my photos are not of a high enough quality for HomeAway. There are many more photos of the area there that can be very helpful to potential renters.I rarely get bookings via FB but.... am grateful if I do!

Re the comment by "e-richard"..... thanks so much for the advice in how to answer the review. I have been trying to think of what to say for two days now and that is a great help.

So now I will sit and answer HomeAway about the 50% refund request.

Next job is a long overdue one.... upload a copy of my rental contract onto HomeAway. That is something I should have done 2 years ago when I started to accept bookings online but just never got round to finding the right template. My personal rental contract isn't correct for HomeAway bookings. Is that a subject that has been addressed on this forum?
jafa
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Post by jafa »

Im sorry, but I cant see where the link to your HA page is? Am I being thick or something?
Jafa
limousin-cottage
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Post by limousin-cottage »

Funny, before I got to the part where you state the guest was American, I thought they sounded very familiar, after having my cottage left in a terrible state earlier in the year. Just sounded like her. It took me ages also to thoroughly clean the kitchen and bathroom after she left.
bluebell
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Post by bluebell »

Hi Jafa.... you just press the www link...... I think!
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