Updates about how our Extenuating Circumstances Policy applies during the pandemic

[Airbnb]

As the global pandemic continues to evolve, public health is one of our top priorities. We are continuing to monitor COVID-19 developments, local government guidance, and making changes as we learn more. 

We know many of you have questions about our Extenuating Circumstances policy as it relates to documentation standards, travel credits, and policy changes as countries shift into recovery mode. 

We want to share more information with you on this. 

Documentation Standards & Travel Credit

To cancel under the Extenuating Circumstances Policy for COVID-19 related reasons, guests are required to attest to the facts of and/or provide documentation of their extenuating circumstances. With widespread travel restrictions prohibiting travel, many guests have been eligible to cancel under the Policy, and we have seen many guests elect to receive travel credit rather than pursuing a cash refund.

Most guests who cancel under the Policy for COVID-19 related reasons are cancelling for one of the following reasons:

1. Government-mandated restrictions like border closures, quarantines and shelter-in-place orders
2. Medical instructions not to travel
3. Transportation disruptions, cancellations and closures
4. Medical professionals required to work in connection with the COVID-19 outbreak
5. Traveler is sick with COVID-19

Offering travel credit to guests who can’t travel now encourages them to book with an Airbnb host in the future. 

Given the unpredictability of COVID-19, hosts will likely continue to see cancellations from guests who cannot travel because of COVID-19. We heard some of you are concerned with guests taking advantage of this policy by cancelling and rebooking for the same dates with another listing and lower price. We are continuing to monitor the course of the pandemic, the Policy, and guest cancellation options to ensure refunds issued to guests are merited under the Policy.

We plan to update this page with current information about the Extenuating Circumstances policy, so you can bookmark it to stay informed. As decisions are made, we’ll continue to keep you updated. 

[Renee436]

@Jennifer1068 I'm so sorry to hear about your situation! I was curious to know, as I've heard of some like it: did you ever get a resolution on this reservation?

[Paul60]

Please like this post if you think Airbnb are a BUNCH OF SNAKES.

[Stephanie365]

I shut my AirBNB down during the peak of COVID. I won't be reopening until mid July at the earliest.

But I've been reading many of the discussion boards to keep up, and it is very clear that AirBNB needs to address the 48 hour penalty-free loophole that guests are exploiting when their booking falls outside of the COVID window.

If a guest booked in May and wants to cancel in July, they will try to claim COVID. When the host directs them to their moderate or strict cancellation policy that they should have read BEFORE they booked, the guest whines. Then they say, "Can we change our dates?" A host that isn't in the know will allow this change, which for some reason RE-OPENS the 48 hour penalty-free cancellation window. And hours later, the guest cancels and screws the host.

@Airbnb , you REALLY need to close this loophole. The 48 hour penalty-free cancellation should ONLY apply to the initial reservation. It should not apply to any subsequent changes made by the guest.

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Stephanie365 

I wonder how many guests are being advised to do this by CS Agents as a way to an easy cancellation?

This instills distrust in any guest requesting a date change without any valid reason.

[Huma0]

@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0 

I am not sure, but guests have definitely been encouraged by CS to do other things to ensure their full refund.

In the early stages, that was telling guests who fell outside of the COVID EC dates to hang tight because the deadline would be extended. At the same time, hundreds of hosts were posting on the CC begging Airbnb for some indication as to whether the deadline would be extended (who knows how many others were calling them asking the same question) and Airbnb remained silent. I had to hear about it from a guest.

Later on, I had a guest from the UK who wanted to cancel a stay that was still quite a way ahead (he was booked for three weeks late July/Early August). He was not covered by EC so wanted ME to cancel so he could get a full refund. I explained why I couldn't do this. It was a work trip initially said had been cancelled but, when I questioned why his employer wasn't covering the cancellation, he admitted the trip hadn't been cancelled but that he didn't want to travel. Now, I understand why he didn't WANT to travel, but that's his choice, isn't it? There were no travel restrictions, no train cancellations, he was not sick etc. etc. So, a partial refund seemed fair to me. I explained that if I could get the room rebooked, I would refund him the rest, but the sooner he cancelled, the more likelihood there was of that.

Given all the issues that had gone before with some of my guests who fell outside of the EC policy being refunded and guests even being refunded for days or weeks that they had ALREADY stayed at my property, I wanted to suss out the situation so I called Airbnb. The rep assured me that the guest didn't qualify for a full refund and even if they did, they would need to provide evidence.

However, the guest spoke to Airbnb and was firstly told they were going to extend the EC dates. He asked again (for the tenth time) for me to cancel and give him a full refund. I said no, so he waited. Then he told Airbnb he could not travel for 'health reasons', which I know not to be the case as he had already told me otherwise, and instantly got a full refund, no proof required. I suspect that he actually got a credit voucher, so the guest gets something, Airbnb gets something and the host gets nada despite three weeks of their calendar being tied up for months by a guest who then cancels a couple of weeks before his trip.

[Sarah977]

@Huma0  At this point, it appears that there is little point in having any cancellation policy at all. Every excuse for a guest cancellation seems to qualify for an EC and full refund. Hosts may as well all have a flexible policy, since guests no longer seem to be bound by the cancellation policy in place.

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Yep, seems that way. I only got paid something for one guest who was booked to stay after the pandemic broke and that's because she was a lovely person. She fell out of the EC dates at the time she cancelled, but was the only one who did not try to work the system. She thought it fair that we should split the loss but, if she hadn't, I am sure that she would have gotten her 100% refund anyway even though she didn't qualify. I am really sure of it.

Sadly, that's the guest who subsequently got overcharged by Airbnb, as I mentioned in another thread. Lucikly, I eventually got her money refunded but I really had to spend hours and hours on it. I would love to send her an additional refund but unfortunately, her dates never got rebooked and I had all three rooms empty the whole time 😞

Of the bookings made before 15th March, I only have one left because she decided to postpone rather than cancel, but she may well end up cancelling in the end and will probably get refunded.

What I am wondering now though is what happens with guests who booked after 15th March? If they decide to cancel, they are supposed to have at least one of the extenuating circumstances that are listed, but if there's no evidence required, what difference does it make? This could go on and on.

The FAIR thing for Airbnb to do is to tempt those guests into accepting a travel coupon that is only valid for bookings with the host they cancelled on. If they never rebook, the host should still receive their share. Should that host be unable to fulfil that later booking, then they should be given the option of booking with another host.

But anyway, pigs flying and all...

[Alienor-and-Piers0]

When will AirBnB have the courtesy to inform its hosts every time you decide to extend the extenuating circumstances deadlines.  I have just received a cancellation for a stay starting 13th August and now see you have extended it to 15th August.  You obviously informed the guests, but couldn't care less about informing the hosts - shame on you!  At least Homeaway communicates with us properly - so we know what to do next...(after 12 years as am Airbnb host...)

[Glenn55]

Airbnb does not care about its hosts plane and simple. 

[Paul6496]

@Airbnb   It is obvious that you are treating not only the Hosts with contempt but also the guests who are trying to do the right thing.   You currently are only allowing COVID cancellations up until 15 Aug 20 yet when i have discussed with you that i can meet 2 of your criteria now for a booking i have on the 17 Sep 20 in Hawaii you tell me that i have to wait to your dates change.

1. Government-mandated restrictions like border closures, quarantines and shelter-in-place orders
2. Transportation disruptions, cancellations and closures

As i explained to you as per 1 above, The Australian Government has made it clear that they are not looking at opening it borders to most of the world until Jan 2021, therefore do not expect to travel outside of Australia.

As i also explained to you as per 2 above, there are only two Airlines that fly between Australia and Hawaii, that is QANTAS (Jetstar) and Hawaiian Airlines, as of 1 July 20, Hawaiian Airlines have cancelled all flights in and out of Australia until 30 Sep 20 and QANTAS also advised they will not begin International operations until Mid 2021, all of this is available on the respective websites, so i have the proof that it is impossible for me to make it to Hawaii for this booking.

I am trying to do the right thing and cancel now so the host has sufficient time to be able to re-book this time slot, yet you refuse to offer me the full refund until you update your COVID dates to align with my booking dates in Mid September, so even though as a guest I am trying to do the right thing by my host, the host will be left in the lurch because you are only allowing me to get a full refund if i cancel at the last minute.   Wake up and start doing the right thing by your Hosts and Guests especially when they can provide you with the evidence you say you need to be able to provide that refund.

[Stephanie365]

Communication. Something that we hosts (and guests) are evaluated on.
Perhaps @Airbnb  should practice what they preach from their cubicles while drinking their overpriced lattes.

I cannot imagine that AirBNB is ignorant to the fact that there are social media pages where hosts discuss issues they are having. And Every. Single. Day. there are posts where AirBNB has arbitrarily refunded guests without first discussing the issues with the host or getting the host's side of the story.

With COVID being an issue, it is even more important that ABB communicate with their hosts. 

Right now I give AirBNB 1* for communication.

[Sarah977]

@Stephanie365  1* seems overly generous.

[Stephanie365]

So, I have just been a victim of AirBNB's capricious refunding to a guest without even reaching out to me.

I had a guest book for 2 weeks. The guest's fiance' is apparently allergic to cats. It is stated in my listing that I have cats and the HVAC system in the guest suite is shared with the main part of my house. I state no less than 3 places that I have cats and that I cannot guarantee an allergen-free accommodation.

Guest shows up, fiance' reacts, they pack and leave and cancel their stay. I message ABB right away on Twitter to say the guest is NOT entitled to a refund because the cats were disclosed in my listing and they chose to book anyways.

Naturally, I received no response. 

Today, I check my account and... no money.  I check Twitter... No reply to my message.
I check my payouts and "Guest Refunded" full amount. 

This was not a COVID cancellation. This was a "guest was too stupid to read the listing" cancellation and in no way, shape or form deserving of a full refund, especially without consulting me first.

@Airbnb , you are in breach of contract with me. You may think you can steamroll hosts and blow us off; I will be happy to prove your theory wrong.

[Jen89]

At the moment guests can say what they like - sore toe, flight cancelled, dog is sick, you name it - it will be a valid reason for cancelling under the extenuating circumstance policy.  It is totally ridiculous and so OTT.

[Bridget228]

I'm in the process of working out the details of a policy change before renting to any future guests on Airbnb, and am trying it out on the travelers who are booking with me directly through our own web site.  I am requiring proof of travel insurance that includes "Cancel For Any Reason" coverage, which is typically an add-on to a base policy, but will cover a guest even for government-imposed travel restrictions, a fire in the area that requires evacuation, etc.  (I'm in Wine Country, California, and fires now seem to be the new normal in October, thanks to my not raking enough leaves in the forest.  But I digress.)   

There are two companies that I know of that offer this type of add-on, and they are JohnHancockTravel.com and itravelinsured.com.  It's an expensive add-on, but if a guest provides proof of the coverage, I will reduce their rental by up to $200 to share in the expense (I got quotes, and for our average rental of $3,000-$5,000 this type of policy costs around $300-$400).  So I'm making my guests buy insurance, but I'm willing to pay for half of it, essentially.  With my new stricter cancellation rules, this is a way to protect me and to protect my guests as well, and we share in the burden of the cost. 

My Rental Agreement will have to state that it supersedes the cancellation policy of Airbnb, and guests will have to sign off on that, as well as provide their credit card information which would not be used other than to charge for a cancellation.  I imagine Airbnb would try to cut my legs off from under me, regardless of whether the traveler had purchased expensive insurance to cover their travel, and then the insurer might try to get Airbnb to refund before they reimbursed, so I'll have to have that separate agreement making it very clear that my guest will be charged for a cancellation within less than 60 days of arrival. 

I'm not a lawyer, but so far, two guests who rented directly from me in the last couple of days had no problem agreeing to this kind of arrangement, and both produced proof of the "Cancel for Any Reason" insurance with one of the companies I recommended.  I told them I wanted to help make sure they were covered in the event there are more travel restrictions, and that I was willing to help them pay for it, because I've paid out almost $60K in refunds since March.  It's been killing me. They seemed very understanding, and it was no problem. 

I'm tired of being everyone's travel insurer!  I've got to find a way to get my guests covered, or I cannot continue to rent through Airbnb.  Has anyone else considered an arrangement like this?   Vrbo offers guests the opportunity to buy insurance at check-out, but it does not cover any kind of travel restriction.  It's worthless when it comes to this kind of issue.  Looking forward to hearing if anyone has tried something like this!