Cancellation and refund Covid-19? Means NO REFUND?

[Steven968]

I have only used AIR BNB once before and never had something like this come up to cancellation.

I have a trip to japan to a Nice place Specifically this location.

https://www.airbnb.ca/trips/v1/dfa55c63-f80f-4b42-bdf1-0f2be76d49e7/ro/RESERVATION2_CHECKIN/HMANHSWZ...

I made the reservation WAY AHEAD OF TIME

Nov 5, 2019 I made the reservation for APR 19, 2020

I Paid $1298.78 out of  $2407 

I haven't made the second payment yet.

The host's policy is a 50% refund.

Is this a refund of the $2407 or refund of my $1298.78 I already paid?????

Because when I went to cancel due to Covid-19 I cannot select that option any more. 

https://imgur.com/a/bTm7Dec proof

It says "Please select another reason to continue -we'll give you the service fee as a coupon for your next trip, and the rest will be refunded according to your host's cancellation policy"

What service fee? Where is this service fee? how much is it?

If I Select something like I have an extenuating circumstance I receive no money back according to the side bar??

https://imgur.com/a/bTm7Dec

I have been messaging these people for so long they refuse to give my money back.

Please explain how this works as AirBNB does not respond back. I'm hoping this community will be a lot more helpful.

Has anyone canceled due to Covid-19 and received a refund?

If I'm losing my money I swear to god I'm never using this site again.

[Sarah977]

@Steven968 The amount a guest is refunded due to a cancellation is based upon the total cost of the reservation, not what you paid up-front. (This is made clear if you actually bother to read the cancellation policies) The option to pay half up-front is simply a convenience to guests so they don't have to come up with all the money in one shot. It's completely unrelated to any refund owing. 

If you are eligible for  50% refund on a $2407 booking, and you only paid 1298.78 so far, then you wouldn't be due any refund. However, the total cost of the reservation isn't all the cost of the stay- part of that was Airbnb service fees, and perhaps taxes, cleaning fee, etc. If you look at your reservation, you can see a breakdown of what the charges were for each thing, and what portion of that is the Airbnb service fee (which has nothing to do with the host).

You are not being given the choice of a cancellation due to COVID because your reservation date falls outside the current COVID policy. 

[Steven968]

What if I change my dates to 1 day only in the future? Do i get a re-fund cause I over paid?

[Steven968]

What if I change my dates to 1 day only in the future? Do i get a re-fund cause I over paied?

[Sarah977]

@Steven968 Of course not. No host is going to accept a date change to 1 day in the future so that you can get the bulk of your payment refunded.

Look Stephen, everyone is financially suffering right now, guests and hosts and everyone else. It's painful for everyone. Hosts have lost months' worth of bookings, their entire livelihood- many will lose their homes because they can't pay the mortgage.  

This is not the time to be trying to come up with underhanded schemes, it's the time to accept the situation, and be understanding about others' predicament as well as your own- none of us bear responsibility for the turmoil this virus has thrown the world into.

Have you even bothered to message your host in Japan to ask if he would apply the 50% to a future booking  when travel is possible again?

[Yadira22]

HI @Steven968 

hope you are well. 

Also to add to the above, the COVID-19 policy was announced without any prior communication to the hosts- not just those where the virus has been most prevalent. To say it was a low blow would be an understatement as MANY people have truly lost their livelihood and may possibly become homeless, go into bankruptcy etc as a result. Now more than ever, people need to practice kindness and compassion- I would suggest you try to arrange something with your host and being understanding and patient usually makes people more generous and considerate.  Everyone is hurting right now and for this I kindly ask that you please not play any games and consider that your reality and their's may be completely different, not that either is any more important that the others. 

Good luck and stay safe.

[Dan12468]

@Steven968 @Yadira22 @Sarah977 

Isn’t the fairest solution to give the customer 50% of what he paid back?

[Dan12468]

@Steven968 @Yadira22 @Sarah977 

That way - both parties share the loss. 

If the host keeps all the money - they win. 

[Ute42]

.

@Dan12468  

No.

If the rental price was £100 and now the host gets only £50,

the host suffers a loss of 50% and so does the guest.