This is just for background research at the moment, but if those who know about this issue wouldn’t mind talking to me about their experience, I would be very grateful. You can drop me an email on emma.slater@itv.com. I think this bait and switch con needs looking into.

Thank you,
Emma.

You’ve allowed many of us to feel comfortable venting our experiences. Thank you for your kindness and sincere desire to help prevent other travelers from this awful person.

Hi Janice, I couldn’t agree with you more. The beautiful city is being ruined by experiences such as both of ours. So sorry that you suffered similarly to us. As you say, the way that Airbnb HIDE negative reviews which could warn people off the scammers means that people continue to suffer again and again. They protect them in the hope that in doing so they protect the reputation of their business – whilst simply allowing it to repeat again and again. As stated, this guy cancelled 45+ people, but if you look on his site page today, he gets 4.93/5 stars and only positive reviews remain – amazingly!! https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/21807218?source_impression_id=p3_1573389044_%2FTWtX7EguWE8misp

Anyway, sending you love, sorry for your experience with Airbnb and thanks for contributing x H

Well, funny that you say that Jon, I just received an email yesterday from Airbnb, advising of its ‘New Terms & Conditions’ of business. I guess they are worried about this and have closed any and all loopholes with just that (class action suit) in mind, i.e. its not me, its you…. 🙁

Hi Angela, thanks for posting. I could just about understand and accept what happened to us, only he had done it THIRTY times before in the preceding year. Being from an older generation, I had not realised that this sort of thing exists and just trusted Airbnb to do their own checks and ‘housekeeping’ effectively. The worst thing that I have taken out of this is not what happened to us, but what happened AFTER us, ie TEN further people suffered at his hands in the two months since I reported it to Airbnb. SEVEN of those were ON THE DAY cancellations, when they had arrived in Florence from countries around the world. This, I cannot accept. All Airbnb had to do was react to what happened to us effectively and these ten new situations would have been avoided, but instead, they were allowed to happen. This for me, and as you also conclude, is a shocking and disgraceful response. Yes, there are bad apples out there in every barrel as you point out, but to not only fail to remove them but to COVER THEM UP (as in the case of the bad reviews being removed) and allow it to happen again. That is unacceptable and says much about the ‘Underbelly’ of Airbnb allowed to and being encouraged even, to prosper, unfortunately. This is what they need to be accountable for and I intend to publicise this, as it is very real and continues to harm people unaware that this is how they operate. Anyway, best of luck to you and thanks for comments x H

Thank you so much for your kind thoughts and for posting Sylvie. Two 70th Birthdays and a long-saved-for and awaited holiday was ruined….. and it never existed in the first place! I feel just as sorry for the TEN familes who suffered AFTER we did and we complained…. Just incredible to think that Airbnb did nothing and 7 MORE families were stranded on the streets of Florence with nowhere to go too! I am sorry that you have suffered at their hands too !! Love x H

Hi TW – Thanks for your interesting appraisal of the situation from a Host’s perspective. I can 100% assure you that this happened and was genuine. We booked in January and flew in June and he did it on the day, offering us a run down shack with fewer bedrooms miles outside Florence “As a favour”. Our double 70th birthday holiday was ruined and it was spent struggling and getting taxis all over the city owing to the physically debilitated condition of 2 of our party, 1 with very serious multiple sclerosis. In truth, the worst thing was as you say HOW they allowed him to do it again and again TEN TIMES in the following 2 months AFTER my complaint, and the conclusion I have drawn is either MONEY (he had still made them a lot of money during the preceding years) and simple inefficiency owing to their size. ie no one DID anything….. But those comments are all 100% genuine. I whipped them off the Hosts page before suddenly they were GONE and only positive reviews remain. (4.93/5 stars!!!!) meaning it is going to happen again and again and again, distressingly! Anyway, like you say, trying out different platforms sounds like a plan. I or any of my friends will never use Airbnb ever again. Thanks for posting anyway, good luck!

Thanks for your comments Mike sounds like a plan…..!!! Ill come with you!! They really only care about money, at other peoples suffering and misery. The business is full of con artists who take a cut of the illicit gains and then have their treachery covered up by Airbnb before going on to the next victim. What was worse, was after we brought it to their attention, they did nothing, and ANOTHER TEN people fell victim to him over the next 2 months, flying 1000s of miles – only to discover they were ‘Cancelled”.. … Despicable!!

I had a similar experience in Florence this past May. It left me like you with horribly unwelcoming feelings from a city I’ve loved and been to 5 times. It’s amazing what a bad experience Caused by a host’s awful treatment can tarnish what was a beautiful destination. I am going back next summer but with extreme caution. I’ve seen and experienced a change in short term rentals in a tourist invaded city like Florence due to desire to exploit the tourist industry. It’s a shame that the greedy, scam artists have infiltrated Airbnb because they haven’t been vetted properly. I spent a year planning my trip and even cross referencing this apartment from other rental agencies. They were still able to fool me with their super host status, elegant photos and flawless reviews. In defense, none of my photos, documentation, videos and recordings of demolition noises and unsanitary conditions due to the “balcony” being used as a pigeon roost as well as broken, decrepit furniture, exposed wires and overloaded sockets etc. were actually referred to or used by Airbnb when I tried to get a refund. Long story short, Airbnb’s days are limited.

If I ever cancel on a guest, I get heavily penalized. Now I read this story. How this guy could do it over and over makes no sense.

I have come to the conclusion that I need to host on other platforms as well and not depend on them.

Airbnb’s review system sucks, plain and simple.

They have made me some money, but they could do so much better. I’m trying out Hostaway now.