Airbnb sneaky on currency conversion

[Anita915]

Airbnb- beware of hidden currency exchange fees. 

I made the mistake of booking an apartment in Spain using USD, my credit card currency. My host told me he would charge me 150€/ night. Airbnb charged me US$184/ night which was much higher than any rate I found on the internet. When I took it up with them, the “specialist” kept saying they charged me the prices in USD and they didn’t do any currency conversion, which was of course a blatant lie. After a protracted conversation he finally admitted that the “ automatic currency converter” they used was OANDA. 

According to OANDA, 150€ came out to be US$178. I had conversations with more than one Airbnb representative on this. No one was willing or able to explain the 3% discrepancy between this and $184, which was actually a hidden fee Airbnb would not admit to.  I found from the internet that other travellers also wrote about this 3% additional currency conversion charge which Airbnb never mention anywhere in its website. 

In addition, Airbnb also calculated their service fees  based on the jacked-up room prices. In other words, I was overcharged twice. Luckily my host agreed to give me a full refund when I cancelled, and I was able to rebook  in Euros. 

Lesson: always pay Airbnb in the local currency. You can go to your Profile to make the choice. 

[Helen427]

@Anita915, Isn't it great we have the internet to check these things when they arise?

It's good you have it sorted, alas it should not happen.

Have you checked here in CC if there have been other similar instances?

[Dale711]

@Anita915 

I am so sorry to hear that the inconvenience course you in term of the booking payment by using a wrong currency.

Airbnb has reminded the users in the reservation payment by selecting the local currency 
It is very important for Airbnb users to read well and understanding as below points before the booking.

Airbnb -The Terms Of Service 

Can I pay with any currency?

When you enter your payment information, you can choose to pay with one of the various currencies we support. You can also change your default currency at any time by changing currency on one of the pages where the currency selector is available. Depending on your selected payment method, there may be some currencies that will not be available.

Exchange rates and currency conversion

We will display prices on Airbnb in the currency you select. If you choose to change the currency at any point while booking, we will display the price in the new currency you select.

Bookings will be completed with the displayed price and currency as selected by you.

If you choose to make or receive payments in a currency different from the designated currency of your payment method, your credit or bank card issuer may apply a currency conversion rate or fees to your payment. Please contact your bank or credit card issuer to learn more about what fees may apply. Airbnb is not responsible for these fees.

Third-party fees

If you pay in a currency that’s different from the designated currency of your payment method, your credit or bank card issuer may apply a currency conversion rate or fees to your payment. Please contact your bank or credit card issuer to learn more about what fees may apply. Airbnb is not responsible for these fees.

Cross-border fees

If extra fees appear on your bank statement, or the amount charged differs from what appeared on the Airbnb checkout page, contact your credit or bank card issuer. If your bank considers Airbnb's processing entity as international, you may be charged cross-border fees by your bank even if the charge was processed in the original currency of your payment method. If the fees were added by your card-issuing bank, Airbnb can't refund them.

 @Anita915 , do find above link in the booking page.

                                 Airbnb is a Trust and Safety Platform 

[Anita915]

Please do not insult me further with this cut-and-paste gibberish which was nothing but a ploy to evade the issue. 

Just be honest with your customer by

1. drawing their attention to the fact that you use OANDA to calculate the currency rates when the host and the guest use different currencies and Airbnb charge an extra fee on top of the OANDA rates. Stop pretending that Airbnb do not use any FX devices/ company at all in coming up with the prices shown on the guests’ page when they use a currency different from that used by the host. And be honest about the difference between the  OANDA rates and the rates you chose to calculate the prices show on the guest’s page. 
2. Not shifting the responsibility to the credit-card issuing banks, many of which( at least in my case) do not charge any foreign transaction fees. The exchange rate used by my bank was again about 3% lower than your rate. 

I am very disappointed with the dishonesty of Airbnb in this. You are a good company overall. Please try to act in a more honorable manner becoming of a publicly listed company.