Here are the facts. I have the messages and video proof to back it up.
At 12:49pm on August 1st, 2022, Amy messaged and I QUOTE:
"Hi Adam - we have an engineer coming round in 30 minutes to check on the dishwasher.
Will you be in at all?"
We were not in. We had our phones turned down during our visit with my fiancé's family. When we got in at roughly 4pm, we found a completion card from a local repair company, indicating that Amy had let a repairman into the flat, where our ID, passports, and valuables were, to repair the dishwasher without our express consent. This is heavily against Airbnb, or really any reputable hospitality policies.
It was only after I voiced my anger and frustration at her actions that she responded with an extremely defensive, invalidating message. I have screenshots of the message, but the general tone was to entirely invalidate my experience and feelings, and that she can do whatever she wants because, "this isn't a hotel", and, "I can assure you I don't require your 'permission'". She called the message I sent "agressive and condescending". This would absolutely have been true, had I sent it already knowing the issue was an emergency! We did not know. We did not know because it was only in her highly condescending response message that we were informed that it was an emergency, and that the dishwasher was leaking into the restaurant below. She even threatened to leave a bad review for me should I attempt to review based on these facts I'm writing to you now. Absolutely ridiculous.
Convenient, considering that's almost literally the only reason a host is allowed to re-enter the space during an active reservation. We talked to the restaurant, they said they were there serving lunch at the time we received the email, and did not call about an emergency leak from above. If the restaurant did not call, this means that in literally every other scenario, Amy knew about the repair beforehand and neglected to tell us, and when we did not like her actions, she lied to avoid taking responsibility for improperly intruding on our space.
The reality is that even in an emergency, guests are to be informed that this is the reason for the re-entry. If she had indicated an emergency in her initial message as she should have done, it would be unlikely that we get this frustrated. However, The initial message sent to us made absolutely zero indication of any emergency. This is unacceptable. As a result of her extreme lack of proper communication, we were frantically looking through our belongings, trying to ensure nothing was removed. I was up all night anxious about the intrusion.
If you've made it this far, the flat itself isn't too bad. It's Covent Garden in the thick of London, so be prepared for noise. Directions to the flat were pretty straightforward. Decent value for the money. Nice furniture and TV, darkened curtains. Coffee machine had pods this time so that's nice. Dishwasher recently repaired! Not very much attention to detail, just the basics.
Be advised that between August 1st and now, Amy has not contacted us or attempted to make this situation right, and we are currently engaged in an investigation with Airbnb. We have asked for either proof of an emergency, which we have not yet received as of the 7th of August, or a refund.
The good reviews for her are good. The bad ones all have a pattern of her not taking accountability in one way or another. I advise against trusting this host.