Cancellation Scam or No?

[Peter1]

This is a hard case.  It could be true that the Host is trying to do the right thing by finding a way for the sick Guest to extend their stay without suffering the consequences of having to cancel on the second Guest.  But from Emma's (the second Guest) point of view, it does sound suspicious especially since the full refund window has just closed.

What would you do if you were (a) the Host (assuming the Host genuinely had a sick Guest), (b) Emma, or (c) the Airbnb Customer Service representative?

"In the original video, user Emma (@emmachiaro4) details how she booked an Airbnb for a birthday trip five months in advance. She shows the screenshot of the alleged house, a woodsy tiny home located outside of Portland, Oregon.

Just this week, she allegedly got a message from the owner claiming a guest recovering from black mold needed to extend their stay in the Airbnb. In a screenshot of the conversation, the owner says the guest would refund Emma and pay her an extra $100 through Venmo.

The offer has led to confusion. As they had just passed the deadline for the 30 day cancellation window, Emma isn’t sure if she’d get a full refund and she says the owner is refusing to cancel on his end. She says that Airbnb told her the owner’s excuse was 'not a valid reason for cancelation' and the company would remind him of the penalties for doing something like this."

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/airbnb-host-guilt-cancelation-tiktok/

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Peter1 As a host I would not let down a guest who had booked 5 months earlier. Sorry but guest number 1 needs to be moved out. Now if guest number 1 was so ill they literally could not be moved then Airbnb Customer Support should support the host and relocate guest number 2. Of course if guest number 1 is that ill perhaps they should be moved to a hospital!

[Sarah977]

@Peter1  Unprofessional host behavior. Promises of cash payment from one guest to another are nothing legally binding and Emma would be foolish to agree to it. 

This is a clear-cut host cancellation, which he is trying to get around being penalized for, and should not be made Emma's problem.