How Can I Opt Out of "Contributions to Hosts" ?

[Jennifer1421]

As part of the help and support to hosts announced by Brian Chesky yesterday, one of the initiatives announced was that Airbnb will be sending emails to previous recent guests, asking them to consider making a contribution to the host they stayed with.

I do not want/need anything sent on my "behalf" to previous guests, asking for donations/contributions.

How can I opt out? Guidance very much appreciated...

[Susan17]

@Huma0 

Agreed. In fact, all cancelling guests should have been clearly informed that Airbnb invoking the COVID-19 EC policy, overturned the hosts' regular cancellation policies in order to provide a 100% refund to the guests. 

Then they could have been given a choice of whether they'd like to accept their full 100% refund, or if  they'd prefer to allow the host to retain 100%, 50% or 25% of the amount they'd otherwise have received under their usual cancellation terms. 

 Be it by accident or design (l think we all know which), the majority of guests are still labouring under the misconception that Airbnb, and not the hosts, are footing the bill for their 100% refunds. Had it been presented to them in the manner above, I'm pretty certain that quite a few guests would have chosen to leave at least 25 or 50% on the table for their beleagured hosts. That, in itself, could have saved everyone (including Airbnb) a whole world of pain. But of course, the guests were never given that option. 

[Huma0]

@Susan17 

Absolutely. That would have been a sensible and fair approach. I know for one that most of my guests would have wanted to pay something. That's not just wishful thinking. I know it for a fact as they expressed it to me themselves unprompted, e.g. "I don't think that's fair. You should get something..." Only once cancelling guest was demanding a 100% refund. The rest were very reasonable.

The problem is that Airbnb pressurised them into 100% refunds, or just issued the refunds leaving the guests not knowing what to do, wanting to pay me something but worried Airbnb would double charge them fees etc.

Refunding guests 100% no matter what the circumstances (and bear in mind most of my cancellations did not fall within the COVID-19 policy) is a much better PR exercise for Airbnb, particularly when most of the refund is coming out of someone else's pocket.

[Elaina5]

I'm curious if guests were given 100% refunds of money or instead given credit for a future travel booking? My lost bookings, due to COVID 19 were within my two week grace period, so I don't expect to receive 25% or small fraction from those lost bookings.

[Brenda328]

@Huma0, @Susan17  And even while Airbnb is putting forth this hideous proposal to ask previous guests to contribute to us, I receive yet another email from Airbnb CS.  Prior to the beginning of this entire debacle, I had a guest who checked in, stayed at my property, and then checked out before the end of their scheduled stay.  This entire event occurred more than two weeks ago and this guest was outside of the COVID-19 EC policy.

Customer service just contacted me and asked me to refund this guest in full.  Not even an offer to pay for the nights the guest stayed and the cleaning fee, but a refund in full!!!  I told customer service that this guest did stay at my property and I am unable to provide a refund.  We will see whether customer service takes it upon themselves to once again 'provide an exceptional experience for their guest'.

Airbnb, if you can hear me (and I keep hearing that you read every one of these posts), I don't want previous guests to 'send me a token of their appreciation'; I don't want 25% of 50% of the amount of my bookings; and I don't want some random Superhost grant.  All I want is the compensation I am due per the terms of the agreements I had with my guests.

Oh, and let me add my voice to the others on this post:  Please, please, please do not contact my previous guests.  I want them to come back to my property which is in a very nice resort area.  If you contact them and portray to them that am I virtually bankrupt that really destroys the entire brand that I worked so hard to build and may actually make them concerned that if they book with me again I might not still be around by their scheduled arrival date, or that when they arrive my property will not be as nice as it was in the past because I have no funds to maintain it.

Please stop digging, soon the hole will be so deep that none of us will be able to climb out of it!

[Huma0]

@Brenda328 

Exactly the same thing happened to me with two long-term guests that had checked in long before the COVID-19 EC policy came into effect, only Airbnb didn't ask me to refund them. CS just went ahead and refunded them without consulting me and 2.5 weeks later, I am still trying, in vain, to get a sensible answer as to why. The guests did not even ask to be refunded anything extra outside of the normal long-term cancellation policy but, as you can imagine, trying to get any of that money back after it has already been refunded is a complete nightmare. It doesn't even matter if CS admit they made a mistake. They still won't do a thing about it.

I have not fought any COVID-19 cancellations, but I would like to get paid for the ones outside COVID-19 EC. This is simply not an acceptable situation and going to my previous guests with a begging bowl is certainly not an acceptable solution.

[Julie3225]

Brenda,

Well stated! I agree completely!

Julie

[Courtney172]

I absolutely agree with the idea of asking cancelling guests to consider a fair contribution of their refund.  We were on the other side of this two weeks ago - we were the guests cancelling.  As I was dealing with guests cancelling their reservations with me, I was also cancelling with a host and told her to split the reservation with me, 50/50.  Meaning that she just refunds me 50% and she keeps the rest.  She is a brand new host and appreciated the gesture, and happily kept her 50%.  THIS, WHAT THE HOST AND I WORKED OUT,  IS GOODWILL.  Goodwill is NOT asking past guests for a donation.  Holy hell, Airbnb, what are you thinking?

Airbnb totally handled this wrong from the start, and they still are.  They didn't trust us, the hosts, to be reasonable, good human beings and work with guests.  VRBO, on the flip side, gave us the options and guess what?  I still gave the guests 100% back on their cancellation.

This little "We're in this together" fund isn't what many think it is.  25% of what you WOULD have kept (under your normal cancellation policy) is, in many cases now, 25% of 50% of what has only been PAID so far.  So doing the math:  If someone has paid $1,000 of their $2,000 reservation, then under normal circumstances, you'd have gotten to keep $500 of that PAID $1,000.  Now, take 25% of $500 and you're getting to keep $125.  Sure, it's something, but it's not much at all.  50% would have been better.  $125 of what would have been $500 - it's ridiculous.  What's even more irritating is that the public has NO idea that the amount is this little.  They're thinking, "Oh hey, that's so nice of ABB.  They're paying the people 25% of my reservation!  That's $500 (of the example above) out of ABB's pocket.  How lovely!"  I want to throw up.  I want someone to put it out there, publically, that that is NOT what is happening.

My goodness, I didn't know I was so worked up about this until I started typing!

Airbnb, drop your stupid begging campaign idea.  Stop pandering to the public.  Stop telling US what to do while you do virtually nothing to help us.

[Lauren285]

I couldn't agree more! 

[Robin807]

I would also like to opt out of this.  Airbnb please do not contact any of my previous guests to ask them for donations on my behalf.  I would be extremely embarrassed if you did this.  Like myself, my guests are also suffering from this pandemic.  The last thing I want is for them to be guilted into sending me money when they too are suffering.

[Welcome0]

It is extremely embarrassing to contact my guests for handouts. What is wrong with Airbnb? I just accepted a doctor to stay at my place, while working at a local hospital, but I expected to be paid my rate as listed. I was not willing to give him a discount, but Airbnb took it upon themselves to give a discount. The system did not allow me to submit a Special Offer. This doctor lives near by, but most likely does not want to put his family at risk.  I am putting my family at risk. On top of it, I'll need to do Deep Clean when he leaves. This will cost me a lot of money. If Airbnb wishes to play Santa Claus, do it in your own name. Leave me out of it!

[Welcome0]

Attention Airbnb! Absolutely, DO NOT send any solocitation letters to my previous guests for handouts! Do not embassass me! I have worked much too hard to build up my business. I don't need you to tear it down with that crap! As a country, we are in this calamity together and we'll get out of it individually stronger! I am proud of all the hosts who responded turning down this horrible idea. It shows you how many decent people are in our group of hosts. It restores my faith in people.

[Michelle53]

"While we're busy apologizing to you for not treating you like a partner, and not talking to you first, before blindsiding you with our new policy, we'd like to let you know about something new that we never talked to you about, that we dreamed up in a conference room (that we'll probably have to apologise for later)". 

Add me to the "Opt-out" list please. It's a ridiculous idea. 

[Stela0]

That is absolutely unacceptable!

Does anyone know if Airbnb forcing us to give a full refund in the extenuating circumstance is illegal? Since they allow us to choose the cancellation policy we want for our property, they shouldn't have changed it without our consent.

[Helen3]

No of course not.

It is part of the EC policy that we sign up to when we join Airbnb to market our listings.  @Stela0 . They don't need to ask for your consent.

[Katie23]

Just adding our name to the list with a loud: OMFG, DO NOT CONTACT OUR GUESTS ON OUR BEHALF ASKING FOR MONEY.  DO NOT MAKE US LOOK THAT SELF ABSORBED AND TONE DEAF.

Such a poorly reasoned idea! All these decisions obviously come from a lack of clear and careful thinking at the top.