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Post by hiflyer on Feb 25, 2016 14:00:28 GMT
Hi there I've been hosting on Airbnb for a couple of years now in the UK.I had a booking for a week, Sun - Sun. She is apparently working in the area. On the day of checkin, the guest contacted me to say her aunt had died and as she was the only relative around, she needed to go to Europe to organise the funeral. She said she didn't know how long it would be but would let me know. I replied saying that if she needed to cancel due to extenuating circumstances she should contact Airbnb as they deal with that. She did nothing and the reservation was still held. I didn't know if she was going to contact me to say she now needed the room; it was cleaned and all ready for her. I received Airbnb advice of payment 24 hours after checkin date. She finally contacted me again on Wed saying she was back in UK and would now like to transfer the reservation to next week, Sun-Sun. I explained that the booking for this week was still being held, and therefore the days past could not be refunded. I explained that if she cancelled the remaining 3 days, as a goodwill gesture I would credit those towards next week. She has now contacted Airbnb who are dealing with the matter. She has however started sending me threatening & abusive messages saying she will write a terrible review "all over the Internet". I have advised Airbnb who say she won't get the opportunity to write a review however if she provides documentation on the bereavement they will refund her! Surely she cannot be refunded for holding my room for four nights, with me anticipating her wanting to turn up at any time? And as Airbnb have already paid me, will they deduct this from a future payment? Also I have my own website & FB page and I'm concerned she will find them and write reviews on there. Any advice please? Thanks
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Post by andrew on Feb 25, 2016 14:27:17 GMT
Yikes! Well, the silver lining is that you dodged a bullet by not actually having to host this horrible person. My first suggestion is that you immediately cease all correspondence with the guest. From here on out, it is solely Airbnb that you need to deal with.
Now, the best solution to this problem would require a time machine. It would take you back to the check-in date, when the guest notified you that she would need to cancel. That would have been the optimal time to contact Airbnb and have them cancel the booking from the back-end to open up your calendar, with the assumption that the Extenuating Circumstances clause would deny you a payout.
But it's not your fault that the guest chose not to follow your instructions and cancel her reservation. And fortunately, you have the documentation that you took all reasonable steps here. Airbnb *should* recognize that it wasn't possible for you to re-book the room due to the dates being held for the guest, and compensate you for at least the 4 nights that have passed. Make sure that they also take note of the abusive messages - this should be grounds for the guest's account to be terminated altogether. What you need to do is get Airbnb on the phone, and have them read through your correspondence with the guest. The agents who answer emails are total idiots who don't even comprehend your basic questions, let alone take a thorough look at your account.
If the guest harasses you on social media, there's not really anything Airbnb can do. The best response would be a screenshot of your correspondence with her, showing what kind of person she really is. 99% of the time, threats like hers are all a bunch of hot air in the heat of the moment. The internet is much more interested in stories about houses getting trashed and guests getting raped than about people not getting refunded for a room they didn't show up to (which happens thousands of times a day). So even if this woman tries to post something nasty about you, it won't go viral.
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Post by High Priestess on Feb 25, 2016 15:54:46 GMT
In addition to Andrew's advice, I'd point out that it's in violation of Airbnb terms and conditions, for guests to engage in extortion -- meaning, guests cannot threaten to write a bad review if you dont' refund them. Many guests do this, and if you have evidence of this, you can use that evidence to try to get any review removed that the guest has written. See the AIrbnb policy on extortion here: globalhosting.freeforums.net/thread/858/airbnbs-extortion-policyAny time a guest harasses a host, it's best to cease all communication with that person. Arguing with them or communicating at all will simply encourage them, or exacerbate the situation. YOu can also flag for AIrbnb any inappropriate messages you get on the AIrbnb site, by clicking on the flag on the message box.
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Post by hiflyer on Feb 26, 2016 11:25:09 GMT
Thanks for the replies Andrew & Deborah.
I did think about contacting Airbnb but then realised it had to be her doing the cancellation so as not to affect my stats. I didn't want them thinking I was in anyway involved in the cancellation, as I wasn't. They really need a "no-show" button on the reservation so we can alert them. However in her initial email she said she didn't know how long it would take & would contact me as soon as she did. I was therefore anticipating her contacting me & possibly needing the room on a daily basis.
Deborah I can't see the flag on the messages? I have notified Airbnb and am not contacting her at all. What's annoyed me now is Airbnb have shown the money as a - (minus) in my account. I have written and said to them that I need to be paid for Sun-Wed as the room was never cancelled and was cleaned, ready and waiting for her. If she does provide bereavement docs, will they still permit the refund? This seems grossly unfair and has affected my Feb income a lot having a whole week blocked off and then no payment?
I do find this extenuating circumstances refund a bit strange. I work in tourism and it is always the case that the traveller will claim off their insurance for these sort of things. I have done it myself! I also understand that Airbnb doesn't refund their service charge?! Seems very unfair that we the hosts have to bear the brunt orchid refund, especially when we have paid out for cleaners, breakfasts, etc ready for the guests arrival.
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Post by High Priestess on Feb 26, 2016 11:34:31 GMT
Hi Hiflyer --
Yes, it does seem unfair that someone should get a full refund when they didn't cancel right away. It often is the case with Airbnb CX (customer service) that in order to get a satisfactory response, you need to keep at them and insist on something. Calling is better than emailing them.
Flagging the messages -- you need to be on the PC (desktop) in order to see the flag. The mobile app doesn't have it. We get many questions from hosts about how to find things on the app which aren't on the app -- get used to using the site on your PC and don't look for something on the app if you dont' first know where it is on the PC -- is the best approach. THe flag on the messages on the message thread on the PC is unmistakable -- it is easy to see.
It's true AIrbnb doesn't refund their service charge, for which reason I find it a little hypocritical that they require host to provide a 100% refund in these situations.
Because I believe there is room for abuse in the extenuating circumstances policy (guest can claim death in family even if there wasn't one, etc) I do not ever refer guest to that policy. If guest finds it on their own so be it, but I will not help a guest get more of a refund than the cancellation policy itself would provide.
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Post by leny on Feb 26, 2016 13:21:53 GMT
HI Hiflyer,
sadly but it's true, airbnb takes your money when Extenuating Circumstances happen. It's surelly a some kind of big problem for guest but on other side it's not hosts problem. I had a girl comming from Budapast and she didn't come. Her ride share went sick. I was saying that it's just transport problem as she could come next morning with bus. But Airbnb support forced me in deducting 50% of reservation stating that if she doesn't accept that and brings medical documentation give her back whole amount. How could she bring medical documentation from unknown and unrelated person!? However I decided to be nice (once again) and do allow it. I lost some money but also guest did pay something.
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Post by High Priestess on Feb 26, 2016 15:29:25 GMT
Leny -- that really wasn't fair of Airbnb to do in that case. It almost sounded like they were prompting the guest to find a way to use (or abuse) the system to get money back when clearly no money back was due. Having a ride share go sick is not an extenuating circumstance -- see here the extenuating circumstance policy: www.airbnb.com/help/article/934/what-extenuating-circumstances-are-eligible-for-a-refundAirbnb does have a tendency to pressure hosts to refund more than is due under the cancellation policy -- which I think is not right. If the guest is upset about not getting money back, hosts can expect to hear from Airbnb pressuring them to refund the guest. You need not agree to do so -- though it really feels like pressuring or even forcing host to give a refund, I have heard in several situations where hosts very clearly and firmly say no and then AIrbnb and guest leave them alone. In many ways guests are not doing their due diligence when booking, not reading the information, not getting travel insurance, having buyer's remorse and then Airbnb tries to solve the problem on the host's back by not giving a refund themselves, but expecting host to refund the guest. But if you dont' think it is fair to you to refund the guest, just say so. One way of resolving this is to say you will issue a refund to the guest if you are able to rebook the dates in question. That's a way to resolve it and keep everyone happy.
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Post by lambada on Feb 26, 2016 17:07:28 GMT
From previous experiences, I figured that it is better for hosts not to engage with Airbnb CX in cases like this. Because instead of being helpful, they'd end up punishing the host by deducting from future payout just like the OP experienced. Let the guests deal with Airbnb directly to request their refunds and IF Airbnb decides to give the refund (from hosts' account), ONLY then you should contact Airbnb. Preempting guests' actions often time backfires as Airbnb is now judging YOU instead of the guests. I was scolded once by an Airbnb CX for arguing that guest's grandmother is not an 'immediate family' using Airbnb extenuating circumstances terms. This was for a guest who departed early because his grandma was sick. I even emailed Chip Conley and said that if it is very important for Airbnb to side with guests, they should work together with a travel insurance company to give options for guests to buy insurance. Also, even if guests have documentation, they only need to provide those to Airbnb and they get to decide, not us. That's why I don't understand why the refund should come from Hosts, instead of Airbnb's account.
I experienced being the other end of this as well. I booked a place to attend a wedding, only to have to cancel since an Aunt passed away and I had to fly to the East Coast at a moment's notice. I tried to reschedule and the host didn't let me. I was quite upset, but also realized that I had to let the $$ go.
Anyway, for me, bottomline is, the more you engage with Airbnb CX, the worse the result you'd get. At least in my opinion.
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Post by High Priestess on Feb 26, 2016 19:28:49 GMT
I agree, Lambada, that it is definitely best for the host to not get involved with AIrbnb customer service on behalf of a guest who wants to cancel. Just don't help them, don't offer to call Airbnb for them, don't give them links or information. Let them do it on their own. SImply refer them to read the cancellation policy.
Even without host initiating contact with Airbnb CX, CX will sometimes contact host because guest complained to Airbnb about not getting a refund. It's best to reply to CX very simply, stating one will not be budged from the cancellation policy and asking Airbnb to uphold its own terms.
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Post by lambada on Feb 26, 2016 21:32:38 GMT
Oh I was actually contacted by an Airbnb CX in my case (guest departed earlier). At that time, both guest and I agreed that if I get another booking, I'd refund the unused portion of his stay after he canceled (to unblock the calendar). The CX took it upon herself to make sure I refund the guest. She 'forced' me to agree to that and I didn't. So she kept emailing and calling me and I just ignored the emails and calls altogether. It looks like they ended up refunding the guest, but from Airbnb own account!
The weird thing was, I was actually going to refund the guest on my own accord (I do this in a few cases where I feel the guest was being truthful and when I feel I could let go of the income). But when Airbnb CX insisted that I should do it, somehow I decided not to.
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Post by High Priestess on Feb 27, 2016 3:48:13 GMT
Good for you for standing firm. WOw, that sounds like a real case of CX harassment of a host. I have not heard of one as bad as you describe. Yecch!
I do know of at least one host who agreed to refund a guest if she rebooked the listing, after he cancelled, and then he cancelled, and she did rebook, but she never refunded him. So she didnt' keep her word. I dont' actually think AIrbnb should intervene in such a situation. Guests have to realize that when they decide where to stay, they need to consider many things and choose wisely. They may want to analyze the character of the host just like the host analyzes and screens the guest. Not everyone is honest or fair, and basically, hosts should never be forced to go beyond the terms that are stated in the contract -- meaning the cancellation policy. If the guest gets a refund, that is great, but they really can't depend on getting a refund beyond what the policy states, and if the host promises and doesn't follow thru, that is none of AIrbnb's concern in my view. IT's a case of a guest having to deal with the facts of life -- just like hosts have to sometimes deal with the facts of life in that their guest stole something and Airbnb wont' reimburse because there is no "proof" that the guest stole it. Or the guest leaves a vindictive spiteful review because they are mad that the host confronted them about smoking in a no smoking home. Unfairness cuts both ways and it isn't right for AIrbnb to try to use force to obtain fair results for the guest more than they do so to try to obtain fairness for the host. ANd I am pretty sure the host sees the worse side of the bargain most of the time. I've been renting property for long enough that I know the stories.
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