Fewer guests than expected. How do I refund the difference?

[Ann783]

 Our rate is based on 6 persons. Guest initially booked for 7  a month ago and was  charged an additional $50 a night.

They just Informed me  that only 6 persons are staying. How do I change the reservation and refund the difference. Or is no refund due?

Thanks!

[Emilia42]

@Ann783 

Is the reservation happening now? Have these guests already checked-in or is the reservation date in the future?

[Ann783]

They arrive in 2 days.

[Lisa723]

@Ann783 can the guest (or you) not propose a reservation alteration request changing the number of people?

[Ann783]

I believe one of us can do it.

[Lisa723]

@Ann783 then do that (or have the guest do it), and once the other approves the request Airbnb will automatically adjust the payment.

[Ann783]

Thanks @Lisa723 I will message the guest and ask them to request an alteration. 

[Debra300]

@Ann783,

I'd wait until the guests arrive to make sure that the 7th person didn't decide to come, after all.  Then you can give a refund after you get your payout.

[Lisa723]

@Debra300 that would result in forfeiture of the associated Airbnb fees.

[Debra300]

@Lisa723,

Good point, but in this situation I'd still go with my original message.  Given that @Ann783's listing has a strict cancellation policy, she is being generous to provide any refund.  I would simply inform the guest that I will issue the refund after they check-in.  It is not uncommon for consumers to receive a post-purchase cost adjustment (e.g. price matching), and not get the tax and fees refunded.

[Lisa723]

@Debra300 I really don't think the cancellation policy applies to a situation like this. If the booking would have been accepted with the revised guest count in the first place, the host is losing nothing by allowing the change. Denying the revision would be just mean.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Ann783 

Considering how glitchy the Airbnb site can be and the change being last minute, if it were me, I'd tell the guest that I'd be willing to refund X amount (and not the full $50/night, since there are fees and taxes to consider) on the day of guest check-out, assuming they host payout arrives on time, there was no 7th guest as well as no unauthorized guests on the premise during their entire stay and leave it at that. If the guest is intent on getting a refund before the stay, the guest can contact Airbnb directly and handle this with Airbnb. 

Imo, no reason for hosts to go the extra mile trying to issue refunds for money they haven't even received yet. The money the guest paid is still with Airbnb. 

[Emilia42]

If you go to change/cancel and update the reservation to account for 6 people as opposed to 7, the system will automatically adjust the reservation total depending on your pricing structure and therefore adjust your payout when due. It is very simple and I always make the change for the guest when asked unless they initiate the alteration first.