Guests retroactively refunded as extenuating policy expands?

[Julie134]

I would love to know thoughts and how others have, or would, handle a situation similar to this.  I had a guest cancel their reservation for June in early April.  At that time Airbnb's extenuating cancellation policy for COVID only covered reservations through end of May, so the guest's cancellation fell to our standard (strict) policy and they received a 50% refund.  Almost a month later, Airbnb extended their COVID cancellation policy to cover reservations canceled through mid-June.  The guest has now come back (over a month since they canceled) and now wants a full refund since Airbnb extended their policy.  Airbnb's extenuating cancellation policy states that "Cancellations will be handled according to the extenuating circumstances coverage in effect at the time of submission, and reservations that were already canceled will not be reconsidered."  

How would others react to this guest's request?

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Julie134 If you will be able to host in June and they would be able to travel I would refuse. If however they are unable to travel or you are not allowed to host I would be more sympathetic and offer them a refund. 

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Julie134 

If it were me, I'd tell them it's something they need to take up with Airbnb CS. Hosts have no control over how Airbnb implements EC coverage. 

While I can sympathize with how the guest feels, imo they could have decided to wait till their dates were included instead of jumping the gun. Or if you want to give a refund, then I'd suggest you wait till the 50% from the cancellation is actually paid out and the money comes into your account. Once you have the money, you can decide whether to give back all or part of the payout you received. You can't *refund* money when you haven't been paid yet. 

[Gordon0]

Surely it's a moot point in this case, @Julie134, because the stay was cancelled. It's effectively out of your hands?

[Julie134]

That is what I thought as well but Airbnb CS pushed the guest back to us for resolution saying we could refund if we wanted, really giving the guest the impression that the host could/should refund fully.  Airbnb CS even called and messaged me multiple times pressuring me to fully refund.  

Appreciate the feedback from everyone!

[Kia272]

@Julie134 

My personal policy due to Covid 19 has been to fully refund, regardless of AirBnB's policy and/or effective dates. We have all been subject to the effects of Covid 19, in ways too numerous to name. I realize that nobody would have wanted to cancel, and I would hate to impose a financial burden on somebody who can possibly no longer afford the weekend getaway or vacation they had planned before this crazy thing happened. This is my personal take on the issue and I am not sitting in judgement, I'm just sharing how I feel. I'm sure you'll do what's best for you, guided by your conscience. 

Good luck!

[Julie134]

Thanks for your thoughtful response!  Are you providing full refunds for summer cancellations too?  

[Kia272]

@Julie134  My situation is that I was lucky (or unlucky) enough to not have had a bunch of reservations for the summer. I only started hosting last fall, and though I've been steadily busy (until Covid), my reservations mostly come in about 1-3 weeks in advance. I did have 4 reservations on the books from April through June, all of which canceled. 

I decided early on, that regardless of what AirBnB decided to do, I would refund in full. I could not in good conscience ask (force) people to either travel under these circumstances, or lose hard-earned money for a reservation they couldn't keep. I mean, nobody really WANTS to cancel their vacation or get-away weekend. This truly has hit people hard for any number of reasons- job loss, caring for family members, etc. - and I didn't want to impose another hardship or even have a difficult back and forth over money in such dire times, so I knew I would agree to cancel and refund for any reservations in the near or distant future. Remember, this is rolling through areas and states at a different pace, and shelter in place orders and reopening are not uniform, so it could be that somebody with a June reservation might be under stricter travel guidelines than a particular host's area might be. Anyway, I survived before without the AirBnB income, and I decided I could forego the income until things changed for the better. I'm sure you'll do whatever is right for your situation. 

And I'm actually getting new reservations now. People are anxious to get out after weeks and months of quarantine, and I feel that I can host safely and responsibly. Best of luck to you! Kia